Oooh, I remember when there wasn’t a day that went by that I didn’t eat cheese. I’d suffer from tummy pains, eczema, and wobbly bits on my body where I didn’t want them, but still I wouldn’t step away from the cheese. Thankfully I finally got savvy, but I do miss the fun of cheese sometimes.
I’m not brave enough to attempt making one of those complicated cultured vegan cheeses yet (one day!), but thankfully this one is a cinch to make and still made me feel all clever in manner of Professional Cheesemaker.
It doesn’t taste like the creamy, Danish feta I once loved but it does taste like the traditional hard, crumbly feta in brine. Sprinkle it with balsamic vinegar and wait for the magic to happen! β¬.*`*β³.*`*β¬
Inspired by a recipe printed in VegNews magazine and lots of feta-fun cravings.
Tofu Feta
Ingredients
- 1 small packet of Extra-Firm Tofu organic & non-GMO - drained and cut into cubes
- 2 cups Water
- Juice of 2 Lemons
- 1 tbsp Sea Salt
- 2 tsp Dried Basil
- 2 tsp Dried Oregano
- 2 tbsp Nutritional Yeast
Instructions
- Add all ingredients to a medium saucepan.
- Bring to the boil, reduce heat and simmer uncovered for 30 minutes.
- Set aside to cool.
- Place tofu and brine into an air-tight container in the fridge overnight. The longer you leave it, the better it gets.
- Drain immediately before use. Any unused portions can stay refrigerated in the brine for up to 2 weeks.
Like magic…
Enjoy it on salad like this Roast Veg, Quinoa & Dukkah Salad:
Thread it onto bamboo sticks to make the ultimate, party-ready Greek Salad Skewers:
Bake it in Lemon, Feta & Basil Stuffed Mushrooms:
Or toss it into sandwiches, wraps, pasta or platters. So much fun! So versatile! Ξ±ΟολαΟΟΞ΅ΟΞ΅! β₯
Wow wow wow this looks great!
hehe, and it’s so easy! Give it a try, Tash! π
Im going to try it this week so i will come back and let you know how it goes π
Fabulous! I hope you love it! π
Ooh I’m going to try this for dinner soon: I love a good Greek salad. Thanks for sharing!
My pleasure, Christabel! It tastes even better with balsamic. π
This is really creative! It’s awesome that you found so many uses for Tofu feta! LOVE tofu!!
haha, I was never a big fan of tofu but I am beginning to see its potential! π
I suffer from a very serious cheese addiction, so I’m always on the lookout for tasty vegan cheese recipes so that I can enjoy all of the yummy goodness of cheese without the not-so-yummy effects of tons of dairy. This one looks delicious!
And it only gets better with time! The portion we ate on Day 5 tasted so much better than the portion we had on Day 1. π
I have yet to make tofu feta yet. This looks delicious, simple and versatile.
It sure is! Get aboard the tofu feta train! π
That’s such a great idea! I’m definitely going to try it. Thanks for sharing the recipe.
My pleasure, Deb! I hope you enjoy it as much as we did. π
hi am excited to use this to make a Greek salad tonight for dinner!
Can you tell me, when you say to put the tofu and brine in an airtight container, do you mean the liquid the tofu was cooked in or do you mean to make up some brine using just salt and water?
Thanks
Oh yes I mean the liquid the tofu was cooked in, Gwyn. π If you make it tonight, it will taste best from tomorrow onwards – the longer the marinate, the better.
What a brilliant idea!
Thanks Alana and so easy! π
I so need to try this! I make a pasta dish with feta, kalmata olives,and sun-dried tomatoes but I obviously would love to switch out the dairy feta for a vegan version. Besides, tofu ricotta totally rocks, so why wouldn’t tofu feta?
Ooooohhh, I haven’t tried Tofu Ricotta but I will now! Thanks for the idea, Reia! π
Sure thing! Might I suggest my recipe for Kale Lasagna Diavolo? It’s really, really good. And if you’re not into spice you can just leave out the crushed red pepper. http://thecrueltyfreereview.wordpress.com/2012/03/11/kale-lasagna-diavolo-with-vegan-tofu-ricotta/
Ooooohhh, that looks delicious, Reia!! Thank you. π
My “feta” cubes are in the fridge chilling. I dreaming of a Greek salad for dinner…. mixed greens, ripe cherry tomatoes, seedless cukes, thinly sliced red onion, pepperoncini, kalamata olives, oil-less Greek dressing and TOFU FETA CHEESE!!! omg…
haha, YAY, I hope you loved it, Shari and remember that they get much more tasty over time. Mine tasted best about 5 days after I first popped them into the fridge to marinate. π
OMG! This looks so crazy easy, thanks heaps for the recipe π
I’ve been getting super excited about the world of vegan cheese recently: I made my first spreadable vegan mozz last week – yuuuuum.
At this point it seems like vegan haloumi is the final frontier. Oh, for a vegan haloumi…
My pleasure, Lissa! It is a cinch – you will love it. And hello, spreadable vegan mozz sounds amazing! π
Hello! This is great! I was wondering what constitutes a “small” package of tofu? Is this the standard 12oz? Thanks! π
Yes that’s right, Katie. Any size is fine really – just so long as the marinade covers the cubes in the saucepan. π
OMG this sounds yummm! My boyfriend is a Greek AND feta-addict but I’m having
Vegan friends over for dinner in a few weeks, so I’m digging for inspiration. This sounds amazing! Will try it out! One question though, nutritional yeast, is that The same yeast that I have in my cupboard to make bread?
Thanx for posting & love from The Netherlands xx
Oh YAY, I hope you love it, Erica. π
And nooooo, definitely not brewers yeast. Just ask your friendly health food store for Nutritional Yeast or Savoury Yeast. It looks like yellow flakes and tastes like cheese. YUM! xx
This looks so awesome! I’ve never heard of this before. One question–will it be dramatically different if I don’t include the nutritional yeast? Thanks!
Hi Maddie! You can definitely skip the Nooch – it will just have less of a cheesy flavour. You could always add a sprinkle of fresh herbs to the brine liquid instead, or just embrace the subtle lemon-salty flavour. π
Hi Rebecca!
Ok, so I got some nutritional yeast at the local health food store like you said and made this ‘fake feta’ (hehehe) for my vegan friends who came over for dinner a week ago.
As I said earlier, my boyfriend is Greek and a sincere Feta addict and connaisseur, so this was a challenge. I tossed the feta into an authentic Greek salad (cucumber, tomato, red onion, sweet red pepper and kalamata olives) with olive oil, but with a splash of Balsamic Vinegar instead of the traditional Apple cider vinegar (because you said it tasted better with Balsamic) and my guests, including my boyfriend were all amazed!
By itself, they thought it didn’t taste very feta-ish, but in combination with the salad, it was definately a winner! So thank you so much for this, I have the leftover feta in the fridge and will make this more often in the future. So now you can say your ‘fake feta’ is approved by an authentic Greek Feta-lover! Yayyy for you!
love from the Netherlands
x
Erica
PS: I made your creamy mushroomsoup as a starter. WINNER!!! Check the Mushroomsoup comments on that matter π xxx
haha, YAYYYY!! That is so exciting to hear, Erica! SO happy to hear you all loved it and it has the Greek stamp of approval! π xxx
Hi, The marinade is simmering, the tofu is in the Mason jar….
it is delicious, tasty, only needs a little more salt, had it with cucumber and tomatoes, I crumbled it on top of a stirred no-meat hamburger stir fried….thanks a million, this is a keeper.
My pleasure, Mario! So happy to hear you enjoyed it. π
This is so yummy! I made with the Greek skewers and then had some left over so I decided to toss it in a salad. I have posted this salad with your feta on my blog Vegan Adventures if you would like to check it out here: http://vegantripper.wordpress.com/2013/12/09/endamame-and-mandarin-salad-with-refreshing-asian-mint-dressing/#more-1923
Fabulous recipe that I will definitely be repeating, and repeating, and then repeating some more :)!
Oh I’m so happy to hear you loved it as much as we do, Andrea! π Heading over to check out your salad now! x
Do you boil the tofu with the other ingredients?
You sure do, Mary. π