This irresistibly rich and creamy vegan Marry Me Tofu is the perfect date night vegan dinner recipe. It features juicy crispy tofu cubes cooked in a creamy yet dairy free cheesy sun-dried tomato sauce and pillowy gnocchi- but so easy to make!
Table of contents
- The vegan pasta dish that will leave you speechless:
- Why you need to try this Marry Me Tofu:
- Simple Pantry Ingredients:
- How do I get tofu to be crispy?
- Overview: How to make marry me tofu with gnocchi step-by-step
- Can I use another pasta?
The vegan pasta dish that will leave you speechless:
Move over, Marry Me Chicken- Marry Me TOFU is in town, and it’s about to be your new favorite vegan dinner recipe to ever exist- heck, even your new favorite dinner, period.
You’ve heard of Marry Me chicken- the viral TikTok dish that combines a creamy, luxurious sun-dried tomato sauce with chicken and usually pasta as well.
Well, I decided to make it entirely dairy free and vegan, and let me tell you- my husband wasspeechless. The vegan version is just unbelievable.
Now I love gnocchi dishes- my gnocchi alla Sorrentina and vegan gnocchi soup are always in rotation. But this marry me tofu pasta dish is just on its own level.
We have a silky, creamy and luxurious sun-dried tomato sauce that’s made so fragrant and flavorful from fresh parsley, basil, and thyme. Then we drench some crispy tofu (much easier to find than vegan chicken cutlets!) and pillowy plump gnocchi in the sauce, and finish with some cracked fresh black pepper.
Heavenly doesn’t even begin to describe.
Why you need to try this Marry Me Tofu:
Here are some of my favorite highlights from this tofu pasta dish:
- Ready in 30 minutes:Like my pasta con broccoli dish, this recipe seems fancy, but the pasta sauce is actually VERY quick and easy to make. It’s all in one pot, and if you have any leftovers (very hard, especially if you’re feeding a family 😉 ), you’ll have a delicious weeknight meal prepped and ready to go for those busy nights.
- Simple customizable ingredients:I totally understand the complications of juggling food allergies- my husband is gluten free and my SIL is nut-free! So I’ve developed this recipe to be able to use both gluten-free ingredients AND nut-free ingredients as well. You can even swap in your favorite pasta or rice!
- Great for date night or family dinner:From Valentine’s Day to date night at home, to even just a family meal with kids, this Marry Me Tofu is perfect. Kids just love it, and it somehow feels elevated without any fancy ingredients or extra work!
- Rumor has it:That if you make this vegan pasta dish for a loved one, they’ll instantly want to marry you 😉 Okay, just kidding, that’s just the TikTok rumor, but it DID make my husband’s jaw drop. Truly, my entire family is obsessed.
Simple Pantry Ingredients:
- Vegetable broth:Store bought or homemade work here!
- Oat milk or cashew cream:I make both of these homemade, but you can use store bought as well. A store bought vegan heavy cream works too, but I love the taste the oat milk or the cashew cream (made from just cashews and water) for a super creamy sauce! Personally, I don’t use coconut milk, as I don’t like the coconut flavor that results in the marry me sauce from it.
- White wine:I also sub in apple cider vinegar with water for an alcohol-free sauce.
- Tomato paste
- Sun-dried tomatoes:Save some of the oil for the flavor in the sauce!
- Garlic
- Vegan butter
- Vegan mozzarella:I love using Miyoko’s liquid mozzarella or I have a bean-based vegan mozzarella cheese on the blog as well! You can also use store bought vegan parmesan for a version that is most similar to marry me chicken.
- Extra-firm tofu:You can also use firm tofu, but the extra-firm will taste and feel more like chicken, making it a one of my favorite vegan chicken recipes.
- Vegan gnocchi:This you can get store bought and it will save you a ton of time- I always make mine homemade (I have this amazing homemade vegan gnocchi recipe here!). But that definitely means this won’t be a 30 minute recipe then, so I would recommend store bought if you are short on time! Please also note that not all gnocchi brands are vegan so be sure to check the label.
- Herbs:Parsley, basil, and thyme are all amazing here!
Because I’m allergic, I don’t use red pepper flakes, but feel free to add these in! I usually will add these in for my family after I’ve taken a position for myself.
How do I get tofu to be crispy?
This is my favorite trick that I go over in my how to cook tofu guide that gets the edges of the tofu to sear and be similar to sautéed chicken.
After you’ve pressed and cubed the tofu, I toss it with a bit of arrowroot starch or cornstarch, sea salt, and pepper.
Then sauté the tofu on medium-high heat in a pan with some vegan butter, and sear on each side until lightly golden brown.
Overview: How to make marry me tofu with gnocchi step-by-step
For the full written instructions and ingredient measurements, see the bottom of this post in the recipe card. You can also hit the “jump to recipe” button at the top of this post! Here, we’ll go over a brief overview of the steps, along with providing visuals for a better understanding of the recipe.
Can I use another pasta?
Absolutely! If you’re not a fan of gnocchi (don’t worry, I won’t hold it against you 😉 ), you can use spaghetti, fusilli, penne, or even linguine. I have a homemade vegan pasta recipe too if you want to try that!
This recipe makes a lot of sauce, so if you just want enough for the tofu and save the rest for another vegan dinner recipe, you totally can. The leftover sauce will be good in an airtight container in the fridge for about 4-5 days.
Want to save this recipe for later? Add it to your favorite recipe board on Pinterest!
If you make this recipe, please be sure to leave a comment and a rating ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ below. This helps others to find the recipes! As always, I absolutely love to see your beautiful creations on Instagram and Pinterest, so be sure to tag me there as well!
Marry Me Crispy Tofu with Gnocchi – Vegan & Dairy Free!
5 Stars4 Stars3 Stars2 Stars1 Star5 from 3 reviews
- Author: Britt Berlin
- Prep Time: 15
- Cook Time: 15
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 6 1x
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Saute
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegan
Description
This irresistibly rich and creamy vegan Marry Me Tofu is the perfect date night vegan dinner recipe. It features juicy crispy tofu cubes cooked in a creamy yet dairy free cheesy sun-dried tomato sauce and pillowy gnocchi- but so easy to make!
Ingredients
Scale
Crispy Tofu:
- 16 ounces extra-firm tofu
- 1 tbsp arrowroot starch
- Sea salt + pepper
Marry Me Sauce:
- 2 tbsp vegan butter
- 7–8 large garlic cloves
- 1 1/2 cups (360 mL) vegetable broth
- 1/2 cup (120 mL) white wine*
- 1 1/2 cups (360 mL) oat milk or cashew cream
- 2 tbsp all purpose flour*
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 1/2 cup vegan cheese (either parmesan or vegan mozzarella)
- 1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
- 1–2 tsp red chili flakes
- 1 6 ounce jar sun-dried tomatoes, drained and chopped (reserve 1 tbsp oil)
- Sea salt + pepper to taste
- 16 ounces vegan gnocchi (homemade gnocchi or store bought*)
- Fresh basil to top
Instructions
- Prep:Press the tofu in either a tofu press, or make sure the tofu has been pressed about 1-2 hours before prepping the recipe. Then cube the tofu and place in a bowl. Toss with the arrowroot starch and a dash of salt and pepper.
- Crisp the tofu:Pan fry arrowroot starch coated tofu in large pan with vegan butter, then set back in the bowl and set aside.
- Before beginning the sauce:Start to bring a large pot of water to a boil. You can turn on the heat for the water right before you start the sauce, and allow it to heat up while you’re making the sauce.
- Make the sauce:In a large pan or skillet, sauté the garlic until golden brown in the vegan butter and 1 tbsp of reserved sun dried tomato oil, then add in veggie stock and white wine to deglaze the pan, followed by the vegan cream, flour, and vegan cheese or nutritional yeast. Stir in the parsley and optional chili flakes here as well, and reduce to a simmer to let the sauce cook and thicken for 2-3 minutes.
- Finish the sauce:Add in the tomato paste, sun-dried tomatoes, followed by sea salt and pepper to taste. Cover and let cook on simmer for 5 minutes.
- Once the pasta water is boiling:While the sauce is cooking, the water should be boiling now. Add in the gnocchi, and cook for 3-4 minutes or according to packaging. The gnocchi should float to the top. You can reserve about 1/4-1/2 cup of pasta water.
- Finish the marry me tofu:Stir in the tofu and gnocchi from Step, and add in the pasta water if you’d like (can help if your sauce is too thick from using a store bought vegan heavy cream).
- Serve and enjoy!Serve and top with fresh basil. Enjoy!
Equipment
Buy Now →Notes
White wine:I also like to do a nonalcoholic white wine or I do 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar with 1/4 cup water. Works great!
Gluten free: Swap in a gluten free flour blend, such as King Arthur measure-for-measure gluten free flour. I also sometimes use einkorn flour, which is low gluten (but NOT gluten free and not suitable for those with Celiac’s disease).
Vegan gnocchi: Please also note that not all store bought gnocchi brands are vegan so be sure to check the label.
