This easy baked tofu recipe will make you wonder why you ever bought those prepared slices. It's so low fuss to make it at home.
Vegan & gluten-free.
This easy baked tofu with lemon & rosemary has been one of my favorites for YEARS! It’s so convenient to prepare, thanks to some handy shortcuts.
Once upon a time, making tofu often involved pressing, marinating, and then baking it. However, this simple tofu recipe uses vacuum-packed tofu, which doesn’t require pressing.
Then instead of soaking tofu slices in a marinade, the seasonings are baked right into it. That means you can go from a block of tofu to the oven in no time flat.
Plus, homemade baked tofu is a less expensive alternative to the flavored tofu you can buy at the store.
Use this delicious tofu as a main course, slip it into sandwiches and wraps, pile it on top of avocado toast, or enjoy it as a protein-packed snack right out of the fridge!
In this post:
Why readers love this recipe
“This was really good and simple to make! I really enjoyed the tofu and it will be great to have with some rice and roasted veggies!” – Andrea
Ingredients
Here are the ingredients you will need to make this recipe.
Tofu: For this recipe, I recommend super firm vacuum-packed tofu. Since it’s not packaged in water, no pressing is required.
You can find vacuum-packed tofu at most grocery stores in the refrigerated section and at Trader Joe’s.
Oil: For this dish, I usually use extra virgin olive oil, but avocado oil also works here.
Tamari: This Japanese-style soy sauce adds salt and umami. It can be replaced with the soy sauce or liquid aminos of your choice.
Lemon juice: Freshly squeezed lemon juice offers the best flavor. (I like to use this citrus squeezer to make quick work of it.)
Rosemary: Either fresh or dried rosemary works beautifully in this recipe. Because the flavor of dried rosemary is more condensed, you’ll need either 1 Tablespoon of chopped fresh rosemary or 1 teaspoon of dried.
Pepper: I recommend freshly ground black pepper for the best flavor.
Salt: A pinch of salt makes the flavors pop.
Step by step instructions
This section shows how to make this recipe at a glance with process photos of the steps. For complete ingredient amounts & instructions, keep scrolling to the recipe card below.
1. Pour oil and tamari into a 9 x 13 baking dish. Then add slices of super firm tofu, making sure each side of the tofu slices gets fully coated with the oil and tamari.
2. Bake the slices for twenty minutes to cook out any of the remaining water inside.
3. Once the sliced tofu has baked for 20 minutes, cover it with the following:
- Lemon juice
- Rosemary
- Pepper
- Salt
Tip: When working with fresh rosemary, I recommend using your fingers to pull the needles away from the stems. (Just graze them down the stem against the grain for easy removal.) Then use kitchen scissors to cut them into small pieces.
4. Return to the baking dish to the oven, and bake for another 20 minutes.
Make it your own
You can make this dish your own by varying the ingredients and amounts.
Adjust the lemon juice
If you like a less prominent lemon flavor, reduce the amount to 3 Tablespoons. Or you can replace lemon juice with lime juice instead.
Use water-packed tofu
Don't have access to vacuum-packed tofu? No problem.
Just press 1 ½ (14-ounce) packages of water-packed tofu first. (Here’s a handy guide on how to press tofu.) Once you press the water out of the tofu, each block will be 10-ounces.
Then continue the recipe as written.
Replace tamari
I like the flavor of tamari. However, it can be replaced with the soy sauce of your choice or liquid aminos.
Use fresh or dried rosemary
Either fresh or dried rosemary will work for this recipe. Just remember that the amounts vary, because dried has a more condensed flavor.
You can also replace rosemary with thyme or oregano, if you’d prefer.
Omit the salt
If you’re watching your salt content, use reduced sodium tamari and omit the added salt. The recipe is still great without it.
Add garlic
If you like, add granulated or fresh garlic at the same time as the lemon juice and rosemary.
I recommend about ½ teaspoon of granulated garlic or several pressed cloves of garlic, depending on your tastes.
Serving suggestions
This easy baked tofu recipe can be used as a main dish, snack right out of the fridge, or as a sandwich or wrap filling.
It’s great with any of these side dishes:
- Sauteed broccolini
- Air fryer radishes
- Pesto rice
- Spinach salad
- Creamed kale
- Roasted fennel
- Pan-fried asparagus
- Oven roasted potatoes with peppers & onions
- Air fryer asparagus
- Baked farro with tomatoes & herbs
- Sauteed kale
Add lemon rosemary tofu to any of these wraps or sandwiches:
Storage instructions
Store leftover lemon rosemary tofu in an airtight container in the fridge. It will keep for about 4 days. It gets firmer in the fridge.
Enjoy it cold, or quickly warm it in the microwave or in a skillet.
If you try this recipe and love it, let me know! Leave a comment and ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ rating in the comment section below. It truly makes my day and is such a help!
📖 Recipe
Easy baked tofu with lemon & rosemary
Ingredients
- 16 ounces super firm tofu vacuum-packed, evenly cut into 10 slices, ¼ to ½ inch thick
- 2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
- 2 teaspoons tamari
- ¼ cup lemon juice
- 1 Tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary removed from stems & cut into small pieces, or 1 teaspoon dried rosemary
- Generous dashes of black pepper
- Pinch of salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
- Drizzle extra virgin olive oil and tamari into an 9 x 13 inch baking dish. Tilt the dish, so that the bottom is evenly coated. Put the tofu slices into the dish, making sure each side gets coated.
- Bake for 20 minutes.
- Remove from oven, and flip the slices. Pour lemon juice onto the tofu, and then sprinkle it with rosemary. (If using dried rosemary, use your fingers to break it up as you evenly sprinkle it across the tofu.) Grind black pepper & salt evenly over the slices.
- Bake for 20 more minutes.
- Remove from oven and serve.
Watch how to make it
Notes
Nutrition
Recipe, photos, and content updated June 18, 2024 from an earlier post on June 26, 2017.
Andrea
This was really good and simple to make! I really enjoyed the tofu and it will be great to have with some rice and roasted veggies!
Cadry Nelson
I’m so glad to hear that you enjoyed it, Andrea! Thanks for the excellent feedback.
Don Gallagher
The title says it all: Easy……but it’s super tasty too
I like how easy it is to make this tasty tofu that we can eat separately or add to other foods. I like to bake a batch of tofu to have in the frig for the week.
Cadry
That’s good thinking. Having baked tofu on hand makes it simple to add it to sandwiches, bowls, salads, or as a snack. I’m so glad you’ve enjoyed this recipe. Thanks for letting me know!
Sarah
That tofu looks perfect! And how do you always find the best music for your videos?
Cadry
Thank you, Sarah! And what a nice compliment. I spend a lot of time looking through music until I find one that seems right. I’m glad to hear that’s coming through!
Mary Ellen
Yes, I’m always finding easier ways to make favorites and tweaking them over time. I use that packed tofu when I’m traveling too – great minds. 🙂
Totally trying this soon, it looks delicious and I love lemon!
Cadry
Those flavored slabs really are delicious. I just wish they weren’t so much more expensive than the unflavored kind. It’s hard to justify getting it when I have access to an oven. I hope you enjoy this recipe, Mary Ellen!
Jenn
I’m not sure I’ve ever seen plain vacuum packed tofu at TJ’s. I think ours only sells the flavored ones. Or maybe I just haven’t looked hard enough…I usually just grab the blocks in water. I am on the hunt for next time!
Cadry
Oh, I’m sure they have it! It’s usually right by the water-packed ones. You’ll have to keep an eye out for it! 😀
Sherry Lang
I made this baked tofu . My husband loved it ♥, and he is a challenge to please when it comes to food. Thanks so much Cadry for sharing this!
Cadry
Oh, I’m so happy to hear that, Sherry! Thank you for letting me know. 😀
Amy Katz from Veggies Save The Day
The super firm tofu from Trader Joe’s is the best! And I can’t believe how much the pre-baked flavored tofu costs at the supermarket. I’m so glad I can make delicious flavors like yours at home now!
Cadry
Yes, it’s amazing how much more it costs per ounce to buy the pre-baked/flavored kind. Unless I’m on a trip or something, it’s just hard to justify the additional cost when it’s so easy to do it yourself.
Susan
I love baked tofu recipes, there are so many options and they are so delicious.
We don’t have vacuum packed tofu here that I have seen, so I press the old school way. Or sometimes I don’t and just have softer tofu, it’s all fine.
Cadry
I can’t get enough baked tofu recipes either! Tofu is such a great base for flavors. The options are endless.