This is a super delicious tofu tray bake with tofu and vegetables tossed in a delicious jerk inspired marinade and roasted. Just marinate and spread on a pan and bake!. 3 steps 1 pan! Bake and serve just as-is or in a wrap, over a bed of rice or quinoa, or over salad greens. Gluten-free Nutfree, option for soyfree. Sheet pan Jerk dinner.
Recipe Snapshot
- Prep time: 20 minutes
- Cook time: 30 minutes
- Total time: 50 minutes
- Yield: 3
- Category: dinner, Main, Main Course, Side Dish
- Cuisine: Jamaican
Ingredients
For the Marinade
- 4 cloves garlic
- 1/2 inch ginger
- 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro
- 1 or 2 whole green onions
- 2 tablespoons lime juice
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup (or use sugar)
- 2 teaspoons oil
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1.5 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 2 teaspoons paprika
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 to 2 teaspoon all-purpose seasoning (Or use poultry seasoning)
Optional Add-Ins
- 1 hot green chili (such as Serrano or scotch bonnet pepper)
- 1/4 teaspoon lime zest
For the Veggies and Protein
- 14 ounce block firm or extra firm tofu, (pressed for at least 15 minutes and then either cubed, torn into pieces, or sliced into fat triangle slices)
- 1 small red onion (chopped into inch size petals or fat slices)
- 1 red bell pepper, (chopped into inch size slices)
- 1 green bell pepper (chopped, inch size slices)
- 1/2 cup cubed potatoes, 3/4 inch cubes (or more)
For Garnish
- hemp seeds (sunflower seeds, or chopped nuts)
- cilantro or parsley, black pepper, lime juice
Method
Make the marinade.
- Add all of the marinade ingredients, including any optional add-ins you’re using, to a blender, and blend. If the blender doesn't move along, then add in 1 to 2 tablespoons of water to help it move along, and then blend into a coarse puree. You don't want a super smooth puree, blend only till the ginger, garlic, and greens are broken down. Set the marinade aside and preheat the oven to 410° F (210° C). Grease a large baking sheet or sheet pan, or line with parchment
Make the veggies and protein.
- Chop your veggies, if you haven't already. Press the tofu, if you haven't already, and then chop. I usually make fat triangular slices, like small chicken breasts, and then I score them on the top with a knife, so that the marinade soaks in really well.
- Add a little more than half of the marinade to the tofu, tossing well to coat, then add the remaining marinade to the veggies, and toss well. (You can prep the tofu in the marinade ahead, and then refrigerate the tofu for a couple of hours or overnight for the best results. Add the marinade to the vegetables just before you're ready to bake, because otherwise the veggies will start losing too much moisture from the salt in the marinade.)
- Once you're ready to bake, spread the marinated tofu out on one side of a greased baking sheet. Then, add the veggies on the other side, and spread them out, as well. You want the baking sheet big enough so that it can accommodate both the tofu and the veggies, spread into a single layer without overlapping, so that they crisp up a bit. I use 12x17” or similar-size baking sheet.
- Drizzle a teaspoon or so of oil all over. Then, bake for 20 minutes. If the veggies are starting to scorch on the edges at this point, move them around a little bit, and then continue to bake for another 10 minutes or longer, until the potatoes are cooked and some of the tofu is getting crisp on the edges. This is a very moist marinade, so you're not going to get super crispy results, but they will be packed with flavor! We want the marinade to thicken and set on the vegetables and tofu.
- Once everything is baked to preference, remove it from the oven. For extra crispiness, you can broil it for a minute or two, and then remove it from the oven. Serve this tofu tray bake any which way you like! See notes for suggestions.
Kiyaan Singh’s Kitchen Note
Keep this recipe as a working base: cook once as written, then adjust spice, texture, and serving style for your own table.