Sage Tofu Sausage Links

(Vegan, Gluten-Free)

Leave it to vegan food wizard Mark Thompson and his Sauce Stache YouTube channel to come up with this clever protein base for vegan gluten-free sausages. The crumbled baked tofu, combined with the methylcellulose and bean flour, create exactly the type of gluten-free vegan sausage that I have been trying to create for years. I recommend you also try Thompson’s original recipe for Italian sausage, which is pretty darn good.

My recipe steams the sausages in foil instead of wrapping the sausage in spring roll rice paper. I personally find rice paper a pain to work with, and these sausages are easier to slice, serve, and store. I also replaced the textured vegetable protein in Thompson’s original recipe with brown rice, which creates a slightly different texture and nutritional profile. The spices in my recipe create a sage-forward breakfast sausage rather than an Italian sausage.

The end result is a smoky sausage that is easily customizable. It can be served on a bun, sliced on the bias and added to a pasta dish, or crumbled as a topping for pizza. It can also be eaten straight out of the fridge while furtively looking over your shoulder. I promise I won’t tell.

INGREDIENTS

• 14-16 ounces extra firm tofu, drained
• ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
• 2 teaspoons mild flavored vegetable oil (e.g. canola oil)
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 2 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 tablespoons water
• 1 teaspoon maple syrup
• ¼ teaspoon liquid smoke
• ½ teaspoon beet root powder
• ½ cup cooked brown rice
• 2 teaspoons sage
• 1 teaspoons smoked paprika
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1 teaspoon ground mustard seed
• ½ teaspoon chili powder
• ½ teaspoon onion powder
• ½ teaspoon garlic powder
• ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
• ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
• ¼ teaspoon celery seed
• ¼ cup mung bean flour or chickpea flour
• 1½ teaspoons methylcellulose

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 400°F.
2. Smash the tofu with a potato masher or with your hands until it looks like wet crumbs. Mix in salt and vegetable oil.
3. Spread tofu out on parchment paper on a large baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes. Halfway through the baking, stir and flip tofu to break it into smaller pieces.
4. Once tofu has cooled, pulverize tofu and rice together into smaller crumbs in a food processor for 10-20 seconds.
5. Mix together red wine vinegar, soy sauce, tomato paste, water, liquid smoke, beet root powder, and all spices.
6. Stir liquid ingredients into the tofu and rice mixture. Add bean flour and methylcellulose and stir to incorporate.
7. Cover mixture with plastic wrap and let sit at room temperature for 30 minutes to full hydrate.
8. Divide mixture into six separate mounds of filling (slightly more than ¼ cup each) and press each mound into a log. Wrap each log tightly with aluminum foil, twisting the ends.
9. Steam logs in aluminum foil for 20-30 minutes.
10. Let cool completely before unwrapping.

NOTES

1. Sausage links are ready to eat after steaming. They should be refrigerated if not eaten immediately, and they can be reheated by microwaving, browning in some oil in a pan, or grilling.
2. The beet root powder adds a nice red color to the mixture pre-steaming, but loses a lot of the color after steaming. If beet root powder is not available, it can be omitted from the recipe.
3. For a spicier sausage, double the amount of red pepper flakes.
4. For a good cooking hack, use parboiled or instant brown rice in the sausage. It cooks up faster, so you can make only what you need in half the time.