Sofritas (tofu taco meat) is the first thing I made when our family stopped eating meat. Everyone assumed it was chicken! When I said, “nope, it’s tofu!” it was one of those “AHA!” moments where everyone realized that we can have great food without meat, after all.
Out of all the vegan taco meat alternatives available – everything from store-bought vegan crumbles to homemade TVP taco meat – I’d rank sofritas as the best. It has the best taste, it’s extremely quick to whip up, it’s cheap, and it’s just so satisfying to eat.
What Are Sofritas?
Sofritas is the name of the vegan/vegetarian taco meat at Chipotle made from tofu. The word sofritas comes from the word sofrito, which means gently fried in Spanish. You may have seen sofrito in jars at the grocery store near the Mexican foods aisle. It’s a base ingredient to add to things like soups, meat, etc, made from tomatoes, garlic, peppers, and onions.
You can make sofritas right at home and have it in your tacos or burritos – it makes the perfect vegan taco meat or vegetarian option if you’re doing meatless Mondays, for example.
What Is Sofritas Made Of?
We’re making our sofritas with a few simple ingredients:
- tofu
- oil – you can leave out oil to make it whole foods plant based.
- spices (nothing crazy, just standard chili powder, cumin, onion & garlic powder)
- salsa
- crushed tomatoes
Most of the ingredients are pantry items. I use canned crushed tomatoes and store-bought salsa for this recipe. If you don’t have crushed tomatoes it’s fine to use tomato sauce.
What Does Sofritas Taste Like?
The salsa that you use will be the most apparent flavor in this recipe. So use a salsa that you love and that’s not too spicy or too mild for you or your family. I’d recommend using a savory salsa over one with mango or peaches in it.
You don’t get a very strong tofu-y taste in these sofritas. Since we do a process of draining, broiling, and then re-hydrating it, the final flavor of the sauce in the pan is the one that the tofu takes on.
Other Vegan Mexican & Tex-Mex Recipes
Recipe For Sofritas
Here’s the recipe for Tofu Sofritas, the best vegan taco meat. Word of warning, you might wanna double the recipe if cooking for over 2 adults. I double it for my family of 4.
Sofritas – Tofu Taco Meat
Ingredients
- 1 13 oz block tofu firm or extra firm
- 2 Tbsp vegetable oil
- 2 Tbsp chili powder
- 2 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 cup salsa
- 1/2 cup crushed tomatoes
- 1/2 tsp salt
Instructions
- Crumble up the tofu in a bowl with your hands and stir in oil and spices. Mix/shake up to coat the tofu well.
- Lay in a single layer on a parchment-lined baking sheet and broil 5 minutes. Toss pieces and broil another 2 minutes.
- Add the tofu crumbles to a skillet with the salsa, crushed tomatoes and salt, and cook on medium heat about 5 minutes.
