Get ready to enjoy your new favorite tradition: Tofu Nacho Movie Night with crispy, crunchy nachos featuring seasoned tofu, colorful raw veggies, and a creamy, irresistible sunflower seed queso.
Ever since Hunter and I began dating, we've been making these Tofu Nachos. We even turned it into a weekly event: Tofu Nacho Movie Night! Every Friday night we make Tofu Nachos together—he makes the tofu taco 'meat,' and I make the Sunflower Seed Queso. It's one of the things I look forward to most every week because we get to be in the kitchen together, watch a new movie, and we get to eat this crunchy plate of chips, seasoned tofu, chopped veggies, and irresistibly creamy vegan queso.
I have made Tofu Nachos for my bachelorette party, Hunter's family, my family, and literally anyone who will let me cook for them. I make it because it always impresses...and besides, who doesn't love nachos?!
This recipe has perfectly seasoned tofu that's crispy with raw, crunchy veggies and creamy queso that's cheesy, garlicky, and smooth. Every bite is pure perfection. You'll want to fill your entire plate and reach for seconds. We do every time.
Tofu Nachos Ingredients
Choose your favorite tortilla chips! This is an important decision. We always reach for blue corn tortilla chips, but you may prefer the classic round yellow corn tortilla chips. Make sure they're sturdy though—you don't want your chips to crumble under the weight of all of your scrumptious toppings!
Seasoned, crispy tofu makes the 'meaty,' protein-packed layer. Oil is essential for getting those crispy, fried edges on the tofu, and a combo of spices pack in a zesty, garlicky, spicy flavor. Hot sauce is a perfect addition to the tofu to give it extra heat and a colorful marinade.
Boiled Yukon gold potatoes, cauliflower florets, and sunflower seeds make up the base of the sunflower seed queso. Starchy, thick, creamy, and toasty, these key ingredients come together to make the perfect nacho sauce.
The mixture above is combined with nutritional yeast for cheesy flavor, olive oil, red wine vinegar, and water for a balance of fat, acid, and texture, salt, pepper, and garlic cloves. This completes the vegan queso. It's cheesy, silky smooth in texutre and subtle in flavor with hints of garlic and pepper.
My go-to toppings for this irresistible plate of nachos typically includes diced red bell pepper, tomato, jalapeño and avocado.
Salsa feels like a must-have, but I tend to go heavy on anything in the tomato category. If you love tomatoes and salsa as much as I do, then dump it on! Or, be like my husband and drizzle just enough to get a little extra flavor on the plate.
Finally, you've got the completely crucial finishing touches: hot sauce and lime. I lather on the hot sauce, while Hunter's plate looks more aesthetic with a perfect zig-zag. I squeeze an entire half of lime juice on my plate. Hunter thinks a squeeze or two will do. I'm sensing a trend here... I just really love sauce!!
How to Make Tofu Taco Meat
To make the tofu taco 'meat,' you can't be afraid of oil here. It's a key part to getting that crispy texture. If you go light on the oil, your tofu will still have the flavor of the spices and hot sauce, but the texture will be soft. Find the perfect texture for your personal preference.
Heat oil over medium heat in a large frying pan or cast iron skillet. Drain the block of tofu and pat dry with a paper towel, squeezing out any excess liquid. Use both of your hands to hold the tofu and squeeze it over the pan so it crumbles into pieces. If you like your tofu pieces to be larger, then you're good to go! I prefer them to be a bit smaller, so I'll use a spatula to continue chopping the crumbles into tinier pieces.
Add the taco seasoning (or chili powder), garlic powder, cumin, salt, and pepper. Stir to make sure the spices evenly coat the tofu. The tofu should now have some color to it. If you wish to add any more of the spices you can. Once the tofu has crisped up a little and soaked up most of the oil, add the hot sauce and turn the heat down to medium-low until you achieve the desired texture.
I make this tofu taco meat recipe every week for our Tofu Nacho Movie Night, but I also use this recipe to make a taco filling. Any time you're looking for a vegan replacement for taco meat, this can be your new go-to recipe!
How to Make Vegan Queso
Add the potatoes, cauliflower, and sunflower seeds to a small pot with water filled three-quarters of the way up. Turn the heat to high and bring the pot to a boil. Once boiling, reduce the heat to medium-high and let boil until the potatoes and cauliflower are fork tender.
Drain the mixture through a fine mesh strainer. Once drained, there will likely be some leftover sunflower seeds in the pot. Scrape these into a high speed blender, along with the drained potato-cauliflower mixture, continuing to scrape the seeds from the edges of the strainer.
Add the remaining queso ingredients to the blender: nutritional yeast, olive oil, red wine vinegar, water, salt, pepper, and garlic cloves. Blend on high until smooth.
I recommend serving the sauce immediately and eating while it's still hot. If you end up having to warm it back up the sauce will thicken in texture and not be as creamy.
What Substitutions Can I Make?
Tofu: You can swap the tofu for crumbled tempeh or seitan if you prefer. You could also use rice, lentils or beans as a different or additional plant-based protein option.
Sunflower seeds: Skip adding anything to the pot with the potatoes and cauliflower, and simply add a ¼ cup of hemp seeds to the blender instead. I use this alternative all the time!
What Other Toppings Can I Add?
You can substitute any of the toppings with these, or just add these in addition to the ones listed in the recipe:
- Pickled red cabbage
- Pickled jalapeño
- Pickled onion
- Vegan sour cream
- Guacamole
- Sliced black olives
- Pico de gallo
- Cilantro
My Secret for Perfect Tofu Nachos Every Time
It's all in the timing!
For perfect tofu nachos every time, start with the tofu so it has time to achieve a good texture. Then start boiling the potato-cauliflower-sunflower seed mixture.
While these are cooking, get all of your toppings chopped and ready. Add the queso ingredients to the blender, except for what's boiling on the stove.
Now your tofu is about done, your toppings are ready, and it won't be long until you can drain the potatoes, cauliflower, and sunflower seeds. Use this time to set the table, gather anything you might need—ahem, napkins! And a fork, perhaps. Light the candles. Get your movie up and ready to play.
When the mixture on the stove is ready to be drained, turn off the heat and start assembling the nachos. Spread out the chips, add the tofu, and sprinkle (or dump) on the toppings.
Then, drain the potatoes, cauliflower, and sunflower seeds and add them to the blender. Blend on high and wait to open the lid until you are absolutely ready. 🙂
Have your hot sauce and lime juice ready so that you can eat right away.
The secret is all in making sure the queso is hot, creamy, and absolutely perfect. After all, this is what really makes these nachos stand out.
I would LOVE to see your beautiful plate of nachos! Snap a pic and tag me on Instagram—and don't forget to share what movie or show you watched! 😉
Looking for another Mexican-inspired snack or appetizer? Check out my quick 5-Ingredient Black Bean Dip.
📖 Recipe
Vegan Tofu Nachos with Sunflower Seed Queso
Equipment
- High speed blender
Ingredients
Seasoned Tofu Taco "Meat"
- 2 tablespoons olive oil extra virgin
- 16 ounce tofu block extra firm
- 2 teaspoons taco seasoning*
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon cumin ground
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper freshly ground
- 1 tablespoon hot sauce I prefer Cholula
Sunflower Seed Queso
- 1 cup Yukon gold potatoes peeled and cubed
- 1 cup cauliflower florets frozen
- ¼ cup sunflower seeds
- ¼ cup nutritional yeast
- 3 tablespoons water filtered
- 2 tablespoons olive oil extra virgin
- 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 3 garlic cloves peeled
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper freshly ground
Nachos
- 8 ounce bag tortilla chips
- 1 red bell pepper
- 1 tomato
- 1 jalapeño
- 1 avocado
- Salsa
- Hot sauce
- Freshly squeezed lime
Instructions
- Heat a tablespoon of oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Remove the tofu from its package and drain the liquid. Use a kitchen towel to wrap the tofu block and gently press into the block with your hands to release as much liquid as possible. Then, use both hands to crumble the block into the skillet. Depending on whether or not you like larger crumbles or tinier, crispy pieces, use a spatula to chop the tofu to your desired shape.
- Add the taco seasoning, garlic powder, cumin, salt, and black pepper to the tofu mix and stir to coat every piece. Add an additional tablespoon of oil. Continue stirring, then add the hot sauce. Stir and let the tofu cook and get crispy for about 2-3 minutes. Then bring the heat down to a simmer while you prepare the sauce and toppings. Stir occasionally.
- Add the potatoes, cauliflower and sunflower seeds to a small saucepan. Pour enough water over top to cover everything. Bring the pot to a boil. Once boiling, turn the heat down to medium and cook until the potatoes and cauliflower are fork tender, about 10 minutes.
- Meanwhile, spread tortilla chips out on plates and prepare all of the toppings. Chop the red bell pepper, tomato, and jalapeño. For the jalapeño, remove the seeds if you prefer it to be less spicy. Slice open the avocado and remove the pit. Create a criss-cross pattern with a knife in each avocado half and use a spoon to scoop out the diced avocado.
- Get your sauce ready by adding the nutritional yeast, water, oil, vinegar, garlic, salt, and pepper to a blender.
- By now the tofu should be crispy and the potatoes and cauliflower should be soft. Drain the potatoes, cauliflower, and sunflower seeds and add them to the blender. Blend on high speed until the queso is smooth and creamy.
- Add the tofu and toppings to each plate of nachos and drizzle on the queso. Add salsa, hot sauce, and freshly squeezed lime juice if desired.
Notes
- Servings suggest 4 people, but it can really range anywhere from 2-4. If you're hungry, don't be afraid to buy an extra bag of chips or double the tofu and toppings. Better to have extra than not enough! The queso does serve 4, so no need to double this unless you are serving more than 4 people. Toss any extra tofu or toppings into a breakfast bowl or burrito the next morning with queso if you have any leftover. 🙂
- To make homemade taco seasoning, combine a tablespoon of chili powder, a teaspoon of cumin, salt, and freshly ground black pepper, a half teaspoon of paprika, and a quarter teaspoon of garlic powder, crushed red pepper flakes, and oregano. You can also just use chili powder instead of taco seasoning if it's all you have on hand.
