When the temperature drops, I love to make all different kinds of soup, and eat it constantly throughout fall and winter. When you have a good soup recipe, you can eat it throughout the week, and it never feels like the dreaded "leftovers." It's just a warming, hearty meal for lunch or dinner. This tofu noodle soup is one of my favorites, and this time around, I served it as bread bowl soup. You don't have to make it in a bread bowl—it's delicious in a regular ol' bowl, and a fantastic soup to make when you're feeling under the weather, a la chicken noodle.
Tofu Noodle Soup
This post is part of Vegan MoFo 2017 for today's theme of "repurposing food". While I made the bread for this recipe (find the bread bowl recipe here!) specifically to use as bread bowls, you can make the bread a few days in advance and use it for toast or sandwiches first. Then, make soup and repurpose the bread as bread bowls. It's actually better if the bread is at least a couple of days old because it won't get too soggy with soup, and will still taste fresh.
Vegan Chicken Noodle Soup
The soup recipe is full of flavor between the rich broth, herbs and spices medley, nutritional yeast, wine, and sun-dried tomatoes. To give the soup a chicken noodle-type taste, I make a vegan chicken broth with this vegan chicken base. I'm a bit obsessed with this stuff and may or may not have bought it in bulk. I use it to make vegan "chicken" broth, add it to tofu marinade, use it for homemade seitan, rice, or whenever a recipe calls for a boullion cube. The vegan chicken Better Than Boullion jars would be pretty similar for that umami flavor. You could also simply use vegetable broth.
Get the recipe:
📖 Recipe
Tofu Noodle Bread Bowl Soup
This tofu noodle soup served in homemade garlic and herb bread bowls is a vegan version of chicken noodle soup, and it's just as warm and comforting. The tofu marinade is reused as the soup broth.
Ingredients
Tofu:
- 1 lb tofu
- ¾ cup vegan chicken-style broth
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- ¾ teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 2-3 teaspoons chili sauce or hot sauce, or to taste
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
Soup:
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 large onion, chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, chopped
- 3-4 ribs celery, sliced
- 3-4 carrots, peeled and sliced
- ¼ green cabbage, sliced
- 1 teaspoon each thyme
- 1 teaspoon sage
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- ½ teaspoon dill
- ½ teaspoon parsley
- ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
- 2 teaspoons onion powder
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 2 bay leaves
- 3 tablespoons nutritional yeast
- 3 tablespoons red wine or cooking wine
- Reserved tofu marinade
- 7-8 cups vegan chicken-style broth or vegetable broth
- 2-3 medium potatoes, peeled and chopped in ½" cubes
- 1 cup pasta, any kind (if using spaghetti, break into smaller pieces)
- ⅓ cup sun-dried tomatoes, sliced
Instructions
For the tofu:
- Press the water out of the tofu using a tofu press, or wrap in a clean dish towel or paper towels, then press between two dinner plates with a heavy object on top.
- Mix the remaining ingredients together in a large shallow bowl, reserving 1 tablespoon of the olive oil.
- Slice the tofu into small cubes and place in the marinade for at least 30 minutes, or overnight.
- Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large cast iron skillet or other non-stick skillet, then add the tofu. SAVE THE MARINADE FOR THE SOUP.
- Cook for about 5 minutes on each side, until the tofu gets a crispy skin. Remove from heat and set aside for the soup.
- Depending on the size of your pan, you may have to cook the tofu in 2 batches.
For the soup:
- Heat the olive oil in a large soup pot over medium heat.
- Add the onion and cook until browned, 3-4 minutes.
- Toss in the garlic and cook for 30 more seconds, then add the celery, carrots, and cabbage.
- Sprinkle in all of the herbs and spices, onion powder, soy sauce, bay leaves, nutritional yeast, and wine. Stir to coat the vegetables.
- Pour the reserved tofu marinade in a measuring cup and add water until it makes 2 cups. Add to the soup pot.
- Add the vegan chicken or vegetable broth, adding more broth or water if necessary. Bring to a boil, then add the potatoes and reduce to a simmer.
- Simmer for 18-20 minutes, or until the potatoes are partially cooked, then add the pasta. Cook until the pasta is al dente, and you can easily pierce the potatoes with a fork.
- Add the sun-dried tomatoes and tofu cubes. Taste and adjust seasonings if necessary, then add more broth if necessary.
- If you're using bread bowls, cut a circle in a loaf of the bread, scoop out some of the bread, and ladle the soup into the bread "bowl." You may need to add more broth, as the bread will soak up some of the broth.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 6 Serving Size: 1 cupAmount Per Serving: Calories: 400Unsaturated Fat: 0g
Close up of the freshly-baked homemade bread bowls:
[…] made the bread bowls for my Tofu Noodle Soup recipe, but you can use any type of soup you like! I have my eye on this Dilly Stew with Rosemary […]