A kidney friendly deli meat alternative!
This vegan deli meat is made out of tofu. It is a plant based, low sodium, kidney friendly alternative to traditional sandwich meat. Try it on your next sandwich, wrap, or even a salad!
How do you make it?
Start by pressing the water our of your extra firm tofu for ~15 minutes. If you don’t have a tofu press, you can use a cutting board, paper towels (or clean dish towel), and place something heavy on top. I usually place a baking sheet on top and then put a pot on top of that for weight.
After you have pressed the water out of the tofu, you are going to use a cheese slicer to cut very thin strips. If you don’t have this kitchen utensil, just use a sharp knife and slice as thin as you can. I have made this same recipe with both thin and thick slices of tofu and both are delicious!
As you are slicing the tofu, it’s normal if bits fall off. You will still use those pieces in the recipe. I found that if I flipped the block of tofu around every 2-3 slices that it stayed even and together better.
Next you will lay the slices of tofu out on a baking sheet (on parchment paper) and rub your marinade on the tofu. It is totally fine if the tofu slices slightly overlap. You only need to brush the tops of the tofu with the marinade (it packs a lot of flavor).
Bake the tofu slices in the oven for 20-25 minutes and then they’re done! You could even let them cook longer and get crispier if you wanted a bacon type of texture for your sandwich 🙂
How does this vegan deli meat compare to regular deli meat?
- It’s WAY lower in sodium. One serving of the tofu deli meat is 185 mg sodium. You could make this even less by using coconut aminos instead of reduced sodium soy sauce. Deli meat is usually over 300 mg sodium per ounce. Most people eat 2-3 ounces of deli meat on a sandwich which would be 600-900 mg sodium!
- It’s lower in both potassium and phosphorus. This is even without accounting for the lower absorption of phosphorus coming from tofu (plant protein) compared to deli meat (animal protein). Also, many traditional deli meats contain phosphorus additives which are absorbed at an even higher rate.
- They’re pretty comparable in protein. Two ounces of deli meat is ~ 12-14 grams of protein. One serving of this vegan tofu deli meat is 12.5 grams of protein.
- The vegan tofu deli meat is lower potential renal acid load (PRAL). One serving is +1.7 PRAL while 2 ounces of turkey deli meat is +6.5 PRAL.
How long does it last?
Making your own deli meat obviously takes more time and effort than buying it in a package at the store. I hope that the nutrition benefits mentioned above will encourage you to try it though! Make it in batches so that you don’t have to cook it often. It will last in an air tight container for 4-5 days in the fridge.
This recipe was inspired by: https://itdoesnttastelikechicken.com/tofu-deli-meat-peeled-tofu-technique/
For more ways to cook with tofu and other plant based foods, check out my How To Eat Plant Based To Protect Kidney Health E-Guide!
Vegan Tofu Deli Meat
Ingredients
- 1 14 oz block extra firm tofu
Marinade
- 1 tbsp nutritional yeast
- 1 tbsp reduced sodium soy sauce
- 1 tsp sriracha or other hot sauce
- 1 tsp white wine vinegar or rice vinegar
- 1 tsp avocado oil or olive oil
- 1 dash garlic powder, onion powder, and black pepper
Instructions
- Press the water out of the tofu for ~15 minutes and preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
- After the tofu has pressed, use a cheese slicer to thinly slice the block of tofu. If you don't have a cheese slicer, use a sharp knife to thinly slice the tofu.
- Lay the sliced tofu out on parchment paper on a baking sheet.
- Brush the marinade evenly on top of the tofu.
- Bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes. Let it cool (if desired) and then use it on your sandwich, wrap, salad, or whatever you want!
