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Vegan Creamy Cajun Pasta with Crisp Breaded tofu. Nut-free Creamy Cajun Spice Sauce with Farfalle and Breaded Tofu. 23 Gm of Protein.Vegan Nut-free Recipe. Soy-free option. Easily oil-free Jump to Recipe
My Cajun blend gets used up quickly right after my garam masala and berbere blends. Its a versatile blend that works in many types of meals. This Creamy Pasta Sauce has the cajun blend for a smoky delicious flavor profile. The sauce is creamy, fluffy and is made with tofu. I have started to make more Tofu sauces(Lemon Asparagus Pasta) as they are so much quicker than cashew sauces. They also amp up the protein in the meal!
The peppers and onions add flavor. I top the pasta with a smoky breaded tofu. You can use other toppings such as roasted cauliflower or veggies, or chickpeas or vegan meat subs. Or just serve as is! See Recipe notes for tofu-free option.
Ingredients for Vegan Creamy Cajun Pasta
- The Creamy Cajun Sauce has garlic, onion, mushrooms, peppers as the aromatics.
- The creamy sauce portion uses tofu, non dairy milk, onion powder, cajun spice blend, miso and optional nutritional yeast
- Farfalle is the pasta of choice
- The Tofu is tossed in soy sauce, paprika, herbs, garlic, water and cornstarch mixture.
- Breading uses breadcrumbs and onion flakes
How to Make Vegan Creamy Cajun Pasta with Breaded Tofu
Mix the soy sauce, herbs, spices, cornstarch, lime and oil in a shallow bowl. Coat each slice of the Tofu and let is sit to marinate for 10-15 mins.
Meanwhile, cook the pasta and prep the sauce. In another shallow bowl mix breadcrumbs, onion flakes and salt. Coat each tofu slice in the breadcrumb mixture, Then pan fry for 4 to 5 mins each side or bake for 25 mins.
Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and cook for a few seconds, add onion and mix and cook for a minute. Add bell pepper and mushrooms and a good pinch of salt and cook until golden.
Meanwhile, blend the rest of the ingredients (tofu through miso) until smooth. Add this to the skillet and mix well. Bring to a boil. Taste and adjust flavor with more salt and cajun spice if needed.
Fold in the cooked farfalle and toss to coat. Switch off heat. Cover and let sit for 2 mins. Serve slice sliced breaded tofu, chopped tomato, pepper flakes and cilantro.
Can I make the pasta sauce without Tofu?
To make the sauce without soy: Use 1/2 cup cashews , 1 tbsp flour and 1/4 cup more non dairy milk and blend with the rest of the ingredients. Use chickpea miso.
Serve the Pasta without the breaded tofu topping or use roasted veggies or vegan chicken subs for soy-free.
Where is all the Protein coming from?
There is protein in the sauce with the tofu, and protein in the wheat based pasta, and the breaded tofu
More Pastas
- Lemon Asparagus Fettuccine, so Creamy!
- Sundried Tomato and Garlic Pasta with Soy curls.So beautiful!
- Garlic Pasta with Cajun Cauliflower – super popular
- Rose Sauce Farfalle – so Creamy!
- Lentil Bolognese with Spaghetti.– Hearty
- Cauliflower Parmesan Pasta Bake – sliced cauliflower, baked then dressed in vegan mozz, baked over pasta
- Spaghetti with toasted garlic breadcrumbs and herbs – So easy and so delicious
Vegan Creamy Cajun Pasta with Breaded tofu.
Ingredients
- 8 oz farfalle
Vegan Creamy Cajun Sauce:
- 1 tsp oil or 2 tbsp broth
- 3 cloves of garlic minced
- 1/2 cup chopped onion
- 1/2 cup sliced mushrooms
- 1/2 red bell pepper thinly sliced
- 7 oz firm tofu, , drained (use tofu that doesn’t have a strong beany flavor as that can stand out) see note for tofu free sauce
- 1 cup non dairy milk such as soy milk, oat milk or almond milk
- 1 tsp flour
- 1/2 tsp onion powder
- 3 tsp cajun spice blend, or more as needed
- 2-3 tbsp nutritional yeast, (optional)
- 1 tsp miso, , mellow miso or chickpea miso
- 1/2 tsp salt
For the Breaded Tofu:
- 9 oz firm or extra firm tofu, , drained and pressed for 10 mins, then sliced into 1/2 inch thick slices
- 1 tbsp soy sauce, or tamari
- 1/2 tsp poultry seasoning, or use a mix of sage, thyme and oregano
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp smoked paprika, or a mix of sweet and smoked, or use cajun seasoning
- 1/2 tsp cornstarch, or other starch
- 1 tsp lime juice
- 1/2 cup breadcrumbs
- 1/2 tsp onion flakes
Instructions
- Cook the pasta according to instructions on package and set aside.
- Breaded tofu: Mix the soy sauce, herbs, spices, cornstarch, lime in a shallow bowl. Coat each slice of the Tofu and let is sit to marinate for 10-15 mins. Meanwhile prep the sauce(below).
- In another shallow bowl mix breadcrumbs, onion flakes. Coat each tofu slice in the breadcrumb mixture, Then pan fry in a regular skillet or grill skillet over medium-high heat for 4 to 5 mins each side, or bake for at 400 deg F (205 C) for 25 mins. Slice into half inch slices.
- Make the Cajun Cream Sauce: Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and cook for a few seconds, add onion and mix and cook for half a minute. Add bell pepper and mushrooms and a good pinch of salt and cook until golden.
- Meanwhile, blend the rest of the ingredients (tofu through salt) in a blender until smooth. Add this to the skillet and mix well. Bring to a boil. Taste and adjust flavor with more salt, cajun spice, nutritional yeast if needed. (some tofu brands are denser and might need more of the flavor ingredients).
- Fold in the cooked farfalle and toss to coat. Switch off heat. Cover and let sit for 2 mins.
- The pasta is great as is as well. Garnish with 1/4 cup or more chopped tomato, pepper flakes and cilantro. Serve with sliced breaded tofu,
Store: Pasta sauce and cajun pasta can be stored refrigerated for upto 3 days.
Tofu breading will soften on storage, Re-bake and serve.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I’m not trying to be the person who makes a bunch of changes, but I just made it with what I had on hand. So yummy! I did the cashew sauce because I only had extra firm tofu on hand. Added chopped spinach and julienned carrots instead of mushrooms for the same reason. For the blackened seasoning I really just eyeballed several spices in not the blender to make my mix from your suggested blend. Yum yum yum. Our hood-vent is broken so I did the breaded tofu in the oven. I couldn’t help myself and ate enough pasta and veggies to fill up before I could add it. Looks like I’ll have the tofu with it tomorrow. Thanks again for the recipe!
Thank you for taking the time to comment.
The breaded tofu was good but the pasta was crazy salty. Very creamy but not in a good way. I’m not one to bash a recipe and always try new ones but good lord this was not good at all.
Hmm maybe something to do with the tofu? If the salty ness and texture were so off I would think it’s some ingredient messing things up like tofu wich makes the volume of the sauce. Try with cashews
vegetables are nice. my tofu doesn’t have a strong beany flavour but it just tastes like tofu. id suggest tomato paste/stewed tomatoes and actual beans instead of tofu when blending as they are more neutral in flavour.
Try cashews instead. I find beans to be very beany and also gritty. Probably personal preference and tofu brand are in play here
This was a great dish! Lots of flavor & the sauce turned out rich & creamy. Definitely adding this to my rotation of recipes.
Thank you!
This recipe was absolutely amazing! I doubled it and added spicy vegan sausage instead of the breaded tofu, and it was delicious and full of flavor. I’m definitely making this again! 🙂
Awesome!
It needs more flavor. My god it only tasted like tofu. I would have maybe doubled the spices and added more chily.
Yes double up on the spices and flavors. Some brands of tofu have a very strong beany flavor. The spices also can have low flavor payoff if they are old. It’s easy to Taste and adjust the sauce while it’s simmering.
Great recipe! I didn’t have tofu or cashews, so I used a can of coconut milk, which replaced the cup of milk too. I used one tablespoon of flour. Didn’t have miso because I dropped the jar when cooking 😅 so after I cleaned that mess up, I used a tsp of soy sauce instead… All that and it still came out great! The kids and hubby loved it. Thanks for another great recipe 😊
Wonderful!
Love this recipe! Spicy and creamy 😋
Thank you Richa!
Awesome
This was fantastic! I’ve made nut-free sauces before but usually they are a little grainy with beans or tofu in my experience (even with a vitamix) and this really wasn’t; perfectly creamy. I did add a little of the pasta water to the sauce. The breaded tofu was fabulous on top. Heat level was just enough without taking away from the flavors of the veggies. Will definitely make again!
Perfect. I put less cayenne fir my kids. Everyone loved it.
how nice
Just came here to say that I’ve made this recipe many times and devour almost all of it every time! It’s so stinking good.
hahahahahah