If you miss scrambled eggs, this Tofu Scramble Recipe is for you! An easy vegan breakfast staple made with just 7 ingredients in 10 minutes.
If you’re looking for more breakfast tofu recipes, check out my Fried Vegan Eggs, Vegan Breakfast Burritos, and Tofu Cream Cheese while you’re here.
I used to love eating scrambled eggs as a kid. That is, until I actually learned what eggs were and where they came from… My relationship with eggs was officially tainted forever.
The joy I felt eating scrambled eggs is something I still miss, which is where this Easy Tofu Scramble comes in. It’s a vegan egg recipe that really hits the spot. Slightly creamy and jammy with some seriously delicious eggy flavors, it’s as close to real scrambled eggs as it gets!
And as the best tofu scramble recipe ever, it only takes 10 minutes to cook a batch in one pan. The ingredients are simple and likely already in your kitchen, too! I highly recommend doubling the recipe so you have enough for yourself, the kids, and leftovers for a few days after.
Why this is the best breakfast tofu scramble ever
- A vegan breakfast staple – A protein-packed plate of tofu scramble is always the perfect way to start the day, whether it’s a weekday or weekend morning.
- A nostalgic “eggy” flavor – The secret’s out… Black salt (kala namak) is the secret ingredient that gives the crumbled and seasoned tofu its eggy, sulfur-like flavor. If you’re like me, each bite will have you reminiscing about the plates of scrambled eggs you loved eating as a kid.
- Really quick and easy – 7 ingredients, 10 minutes, and 1 pan. That’s all this easy breakfast recipe takes!
Ingredients needed (with substitutions)
- Olive oil or other oil/vegan butter
- Tofu – Use firm or extra-firm tofu. The amount of water in a brick of soft or medium tofu will take too long to cook off.
- Nutritional yeast – A cheesy and salty seasoning that gives the tofu scramble a delicious umami flavor. Try not to skip it if you can help it!
- Black salt – AKA kala namak. It’s a sulfur-tasting salt that gives vegan egg recipes a similar flavor to real eggs. You can substitute it with regular table salt or sea salt if you don’t have it on hand.
- Turmeric – For a golden “egg yolk” color. Feel free to omit the turmeric if you don’t have any on hand. The nutritional yeast will still give the scramble a yellow-ish color.
- Garlic powder
- Non-dairy milk – Any unsweetened and unflavored non-dairy milk will work! Better yet, stir in a little cashew cream.
How to make tofu scramble
Find the complete recipe with measurements in the recipe card below.
Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat. Once it’s hot, mash the block of tofu in the pan with a potato masher or fork, or crumble it over the pan with your hands.
Cook the tofu, stirring often, until the excess water has evaporated.
Sprinkle the nutritional yeast, black salt, turmeric, and garlic powder over the tofu. Cook and stir the seasoned tofu for 5 minutes.
Pour the milk into the pan and stir to mix.
Serve the warm tofu scramble on plates with sliced avocado, toast, berries, and your other favorite breakfast items. Enjoy!
Frequently asked questions
I prefer to use firm tofu but extra-firm tofu will work just as well. No need to press the block ahead of time! The water cooks out really quickly.
You should be able to find black salt at specialty grocery stores or buy it online. It comes in handy when you need to replicate classic eggy flavors in vegan egg recipes, like this tofu scramble recipe, my Vegan Egg Salad, or a JUST Egg Omelette.
You can easily turn this basic tofu scramble into a colorful breakfast by playing around with different vegetables! There are so many you can add, like:
Vegetables you can sauté in the pan a few minutes before adding the tofu are 1/4 cup diced onion, minced garlic cloves, or a diced bell pepper.
Vegetables to add after the milk is added are fresh spinach or kale, small broccoli florets, or diced or sliced tomatoes.
Other than vegetables, you can also add crumbled vegan bacon, a sliced Italian vegan sausage, or half a can of drained and rinsed chickpeas or black beans at the end to make the scramble even heartier.
I love to serve this basic tofu scramble with sliced avocado, hot sauce, toast, and fresh fruit. It also goes well with sliced tomatoes, fruit salad, breakfast potatoes, and your other favorite vegan breakfast recipes.
The leftover tofu scramble will keep for up to 3 days in the fridge. Double the recipe and store the extras in individual containers for easy grab-and-reheat meals to enjoy for meal prep!
The Best Tofu Scramble
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- (1) 14.5-ounce block firm tofu
- 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
- 1/2 teaspoon kala namak (black salt) or more to taste
- 1/4 teaspoon turmeric
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- 2 tablespoons non-dairy milk, unsweetened and unflavored
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil in a pan over medium heat (I prefer a cast iron pan, or non-stick). Mash the block of tofu right in the pan, with a potato masher or a fork. You can also crumble it into the pan with your hands. Cook, stirring frequently, for 3-4 minutes until the water from the tofu is mostly gone.
- Now add the nutritional yeast, salt, turmeric and garlic powder. Cook and stir constantly for about 5 minutes. Continue to cook for longer, not stirring for a few minutes at a time, until golden spots form on some of the tofu. This is a personal preference but I prefer some golden spots and a longer cook time.
- Pour the non-dairy milk into the pan, and stir to mix. Serve immediately with sliced avocado, hot sauce, parsley, steamed kale, toast or any other breakfast item.
Video
Notes
- Tofu Scramble is also good with all sorts of vegetables mixed in. Vegetables to add before the tofu: 1/4 cup diced onion or a few cloves of minced garlic. Saute in the oil for 2-3 minutes before adding and mashing the tofu. Vegetables to add towards the end: fresh spinach, kale, thin sliced red peppers, small chopped broccoli or fresh sliced/diced tomatoes. Add these after you’ve added the milk to the tofu, and cook for just a few minutes.
- Omit oil if desired to make the tofu scramble oil free.
- You can use any kind of non-dairy milk you like, such as soy, almond, cashew, oat or coconut milk. Just make sure it is unsweetened and unflavored. Cashew cream makes it extra creamy and delicious!
Nutrition
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Brilliant in its simplicity
Do you need to press the tofu in a tofu press and drain the liquids first if using extra firm tofu?
No, I never press the tofu first for this recipe. The water will cook off.
this recipe is amazing. I made mine with onions and mushrooms and it was beautiful. I also added black salt for that eggs taste. Thank you!
Great dish!
For those trying to go low salt, I omitted the salt and at the end sprinkled 1/8 teaspoon kala namak (black salt) Gave it that eggy flavor.
Thanks Nora!
You are welcome, Gary! Thanks for your great idea and review!
I don’t use the milk substitute. I’m not vegan but I can’t have eggs right now and this is a terrific substitute. I used more turmeric and top it with black mineral salt .which has a bit of an egg/sulfur taste.
I sauteed 1/3 package of Trader Joe’s roasted pepper/onion and mixed it in. It was great.
Hi Laura. I’m glad you are enjoying the tofu scramble during this time you can’t eat eggs! Thanks for sharing your ideas and terrific review!
So quick and easy! And tastes great! I added red onions and power greens to mine.
This is the best “tofu egg scramble”.
I add sautéed onions, mushrooms, peppers and any other veggies to make an awesome breakfast! I do add black salt for the eggy flavor.
Reheats well for next day breakfasts.
I’m so glad you are really liking the tofu scramble, Jeannie! It is definitely a versatile recipe! Thanks for your terrific feedback and review!
Curious what you think this might taste like if I add some pesto to it. Or do you think that’s too much?
I think that would probably be really tasty! I’ve never tried it, but I’ll have to one of these days.
I haven’t tried this yet but why does it need the nutritional yeast? Have never used yeast. Is it a necessity?
Hi Lois. Nutritional yeast helps provide a cheesy flavor to the recipe. You can leave it out if you do not like the flavor. Happy cooking!
I put chopped scallion and Himalayan black salt..was so good
I previously prepared this recipe (from other website), but I have to tell this one was much better. I did it with garlic gloves and I add tomato. I also decreased amount of olive oil, because I’m trying to lose some weight. I enjoyed it a lot. Thanks!
You are welcome, Jenn. I’m glad you enjoyed the tofu scramble! Thank you for taking time to share your stellar review!
This is so delicious! I’ve had a few bland meals with tofu but I have just realised that it’s all in the seasoning. I always had scrambled eggs every morning for breakfast, so I’m absolutely thrilled that I found this recipe. It’s quick, simple and very tasty. Thank you 🙂
I have always resisted trying tofu scramble up til now, but wow! I microwaved some veggies with thyme while scrambling per your recipe, and it was really good! Thank you!
How many servings does this make?
This recipe makes 2 servings.
Do you have to add the non-dairy milk? Asking for a friend who forgot to pick it up from the store😃.
No, you can leave it out, no problem!
Absolutely one of my family’s favourite recipes !! It’s in our weekly rotation and I always double or triple the recipe. I saute onions, red peppers & garlic first before adding the tofu and right before adding the milk at the end I add chopped spinach.
I’m cooking for my husband’s co-workers tomorrow (approx. 150 people) and there are a few Vegans. It’s a buffet breakfast, so I want to make this. Will it be okay if I make it today and then reheat it tomorrow, or is it best to serve it the same day I make it? I have to cook 10 dozen (normal) eggs tomorrow morning, so if it’ll still taste good, making this the day before would be best. Thanks!
Wow! That’s a lot of cooking! Best of luck! Yes, it reheats very well and is perfect for meal prep. Happy cooking!
Thank you very much. Really appreciate the recipe 🙂 Best wishes!
Great tofu scramble! I added mushrooms and a chopped garlic clove to the oil as well as chopped broccolini. I threw in a few handfuls of baby spinach at the end. Ate it with a slice of pumpernickel toast! So good, thank you!!
Yum, sounds delicious, Stasia! I’m thrilled you enjoyed it 🙂
This was so easy to make and delicious! I added some kale at the end of cooking. Thanks for posting the recipe x.
You are welcome, Bobby! Thanks for sharing your awesome feedback and review!
I literally never leave comments, but WOW. This is absolutely delicious. I’m a new vegan, and trying to figure out what I like and don’t like. This will be a staple for breakfast! Thank you!
Hi Ratasha. I appreciate you taking your time to leave your fabulous review and feedback regarding the tofu scramble! I hope you’ll enjoy your journey through my recipes! Don’t hesitate to reach out with any questions. Happy cooking!
Non-vegetarian or vegan here. This was so good! better than my usual egg whites morning ritual.
I do have questions 🙂
I drained the water out of the tofu before adding it to the frying pan. There wasn’t really any water to cook away. I kind of wondered what I was waiting for during the three to four minutes, and then the five minutes also.
I’m so glad you enjoyed it! It sounds like you possible had the kind of super firm tofu that comes in a vacuum type pack, with little water? If so, you’re really just cooking the tofu chunks a bit, but you could just add all the other ingredients sooner. With the kind of tofu (even extra-firm) packed in water, it’s usually a bit more water logged and I find you have to cook that out so the finished dish isn’t watery. Hope that makes sense!
This was delicious and easy. I doubled the salt and added black pepper but other than that did everything to its specifications. I will definitely be making this again. Scooped it up with avocado toast and had a great meal. Thank you for the recipe 🌞❤️
You are welcome, Christine! I love that you found it delicious and easy! Thanks for your fantastic feedback!
I really did not anticipate how much I would like this recipe, but it really was delicious. I mixed it with potatoes and soy chorizo and had a breakfast burrito. Thanks!
You are welcome, Diane! I’m thrilled you tried it! Thanks for your fabulous review and feedback!
This is my first time commenting but I had to because it was so good. This tofu scramble is absolutely amazing. I made it exactly like the recipe said and man was it good. I added black beans, golden potatoes and spinach and made it a breakfast scramble with avocado and salsa. I will absolutely be adding this to my breakfast favorite.
I’m so thrilled you loved the scramble, Lori! I appreciate you taking your time to share your fabulous review and feedback! Happy cooking!
Awesome recipe!!! I haven’t been able to eat eggs for years because they trigger headaches for me. I had tried tofu scramble before with a different recipe but wasn’t a fan…until this recipe!!! It’s so yummy! My husband and I loved it! Thanks for making such amazing recipes.
How awesome you love this scramble, and can enjoy this breakfast item! Thanks for your fabulous review and comments!
This is a favorite in our house. We love the addition of nutritional yeast. We had this last night with steamed broccoli.
I’m so glad you love it! Thanks for your wonderful review and feedback!
Thought I would finally leave a comment, because I follow this every single time! It is truly delish! By itself or add in sautéed veggies, even sometimes add in cold rice & soy sauce to do a tofu fried rice.
I’m so glad you enjoyed the scramble! Thank you so much for your review! 🙂