This Creamy Vegan Tomato Sauce is a quick, protein rich, dairy-free pasta sauce made with canned tomatoes, silken tofu and nutritional yeast. Ready in 30 minutes, this vegan tomato sauce delivers cheesy favor. Ideal for busy weeknights or meal prep. An easy homemade alternative to store bought tomato cream sauce.
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Shad has been vegan for 25+ years and recipes like this are weekdays staples, when we are looking for something easy, comforting and fast.
To complete this recipe we have a delicious and hearty tofu meatball recipe that goes great with the sauce.
If you're looking for quick lunch and dinner recipes don't miss our vegan Italian pasta salad or our easy spicy kale wrap recipes.
Why You'll Love This Creamy Vegan Tomato Sauce
- Easy and Reliable - simple ingredients already in your pantry.
- Big Flavor - delicious, comforting and satisfying.
Key Ingredients & Substitutions
- Silken or soft tofu - tofu is a great source of protein and silken tofu makes the sauce very creamy.
- Tomatoes - crushed and tomato paste for concentrated tomato flavor.
- Nutritional yeast - add cheesy parmesan like flavor.
- Herbs & spices - diced onion, minced garlic and dried oregano for flavor.
- Add-In's - you can add vegetables or beans for some texture to the sauce with pan seared zucchini or broccoli or you can add chickpeas or white beans. Cook vegetables separately for best results.
Detailed ingredients, measurements, and instructions are provided at the end of this post in the printable recipe card below. This recipe has not been tested with substitutions or variations not listed. If you make any changes, please share your results in the comments!
Step By Step Instructions
Step 1: Finely dice onion and mince garlic. Heat oil in a large pan over medium-high heat.
Add onion and garlic and cook, stirring regularly, for 7-10 minutes until beginning to caramelize.
Step 2: Add the crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, oregano, salt, and red pepper flakes. Stir to combine.
Reduce heat to medium low and cook, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes.
Step 3: Add the tofu and nutritional yeast. Stir for 1-2 minutes to heat the tofu and break it up further. Remove from heat.
STEP 4. Use an immersion blender to puree the sauce smooth.
Or you can use a blender. Allow to cool. Combine tomato sauce in blender with tofu and nutritional yeast and puree until smooth.
Step 5. Cook pasta to al dente according to package directions. Drain well.
Step 6. Toss the pasta with the sauce and serve with chopped parsley and an additional sprinkle of nutritional yeast for extra cheese flavor.
Reheat & Storage
- To Store. Sauce stores well in the fridge for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 1 month.
- To Freeze. Cool before freezing. Freeze in an airtight freezer-safe storage bag or container for up to 1 month. Let thaw overnight in the refrigerator before reheating.
- To Reheat. Rewarm leftovers in microwave safe bowl until heated through.
- Prepare Ahead of Time. Make the sauce and freeze in ½ cup/120ml portions to make single servings of pasta later.
Want More Vegan Lunch & Dinner?
Love this recipe? Please leave a 5-star ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating in the recipe card below & if you REALLY like it, consider a comment down below. Thanks!
These nutritional figures should be considered estimates. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe.
📖 Recipe
Creamy Vegan Tomato Sauce
If you love this recipe as much as we do, let us know with a 5-star rating!
Print Recipe Leave A ReviewIngredients
- 1 tablespoon (15ml) olive oil
- 1 medium(180g) yellow onion - diced
- 3 cloves (15g) garlic -minced
- 1 15oz(796ml) crushed tomatoes - about 3 ½ cups
- 2 tbsp(30g) tomato paste
- 2 tsp(12g) salt
- 1 tsp(1g) dried oregano
- ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes or ¼ tsp. more for more spicy flavor
- 2 tbsp(10g) nutritional yeast or more for a more intense cheesy flavor
- 1 lb (450g) soft or silken tofu - cut in pieces
To serve:
- 16 oz (450g) bucatini other long pasta like spaghetti
- Chopped fresh parsley or basil
Instructions
- Finely dice onion and mince garlic.
- Heat oil in a large pan over medium-high heat.
- Add onion and garlic and cook, stirring regularly, for 7-10 minutes until beginning to caramelize.
- Add the crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, oregano, salt, and red pepper flakes. Stir to combine.
- Reduce heat to medium low and cook, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes.
- Add the tofu and nutritional yeast. Stir for 1-2 minutes to heat the tofu and break it up further.
- Remove from heat and use an immersion blender to puree the sauce smooth.
- For a conventional blender: Remove from heat before adding tofu. Allow to cool. Combine tomato sauce in blender with tofu and nutritional yeast and puree until smooth. Return the sauce to the pan and gently reheat before serving.
- Cook pasta to al dente according to package directions. Drain well.
- Toss the pasta with the sauce and serve with chopped parsley and an additional sprinkle of nutritional yeast for extra cheese flavour.
- Sauce stores well in the fridge for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 1 month.
Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered estimates. Actual nutritional content will vary with brands used, measuring methods, portion sizes and more.
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