Vegan pepperoni, made with only 9 ingredients. It is deliciously flavorful and smokey and has a great texture. The best pizza topping!
I promise this vegan pepperoni makes the perfect pizza topping! Although it may seem like a really elaborate recipe, it is actually extremely easy to make. Besides, it only requires 9 ingredients!
With this recipe, your vegan pizza will taste like heaven. Oh, and I made it with tofu, so it actually contains some good-quality vegan protein. It really is the best one out there!
Looking for more meat alternative recipes? Try these three delicious options: Smoky Tempeh Bacon, Tofu Steak, and Soyrizo. These vegan alternatives are perfect for adding flavor and variety to your dishes without meat.
How to make vegan pepperoni
- Preheat the oven to 400ºF or 200ºC. Press the tofu while the oven is preheating.
- Add all the ingredients to a food processor and pulse until well combined.
- Try the mixture and adjust the seasonings if needed.
- Spread the mixture onto a lined baking sheet into an even layer about ¼ or ⅛ inch thick (about 0,3-0,6 cm).
- Bake for 25 to 30 minutes.
- Use a circular cookie cutter to cut out the vegan pepperoni and it’ll be ready to be added to your vegan pizza. You should bake it for at least another 10 to 15 minutes before eating.
Ingredients and tips
- Firm tofu: firm or extra firm tofu work best for this recipe. Soft or silken tofu is not a good choice as it will fall apart easily.
- Garlic powder.
- Smoked paprika: you could also add regular paprika if you can’t find it.
- Sugar: I used brown sugar, but any type of sugar will do.
- Fennel seeds.
- Salt: I used ionized salt, but feel free to add any type of salt to your vegetarian pepperoni.
- Ground black pepper: fresh ground black pepper tastes amazing. However, I find the store-bought version to be more convenient and also easier to measure with a teaspoon. I believe buying it at the store will save you some time while making this vegan pepperoni recipe.
- Liquid smoke: omit this ingredient if you can’t find it. In that case, try to use smoked paprika, but it's okay if you can’t find it either.
- Red pepper flakes: adjust the amount depending on how spicy you like your pepperoni. For me, the best vegan pepperoni contains ½ teaspoon of red pepper flakes.
- Feel free to add your vegetarian pepperoni to our vegan pizza recipe or make your own version of a vegan pepperoni pizza.
Is pepperoni vegetarian?
Regular pepperoni is neither vegetarian nor vegan because it's made out of meat. However, my version of this ingredient is 100% plant-based, as it does not contain any kind of meat or dairy.
Looking for more vegan meat recipes?
Did you make this vegan pepperoni recipe?
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📖 Recipe
Vegan Pepperoni
Ingredients
- 12 oz firm tofu
- 1 tablespoon garlic powder
- 1 tablespoon smoked paprika
- 1 tablespoon sugar, I used brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon fennel seeds
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon liquid smoke
- ½-1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400ºF or 200ºC. Press the tofu while the oven is preheating (just wrap the tofu in a clean towel and apply a steady weight to squeeze out the moisture).
- Add all the ingredients to a food processor and pulse until well combined.
- Try the mixture and adjust the seasonings if needed. I added ½ teaspoon of red pepper flakes, but feel free to add more of them if you like your vegan pepperoni really spicy.
- Spread the mixture onto a lined baking sheet into an even layer about ¼ or ⅛ inch thick (about 0,3-0,6 cm).
- Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until golden brown.
- Use a circular cookie cutter to cut out your vegan pepperoni and it'll be ready to be added to your vegan pizza. You should bake it for at least another 10 to 15 minutes before eating (it's not ready to eat until you bake it for another 10 to 15 minutes).
- If you’re not going to use your vegetarian pepperoni immediately, just let the slices cool and keep them in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 week or in the freezer for up to 1 month. If frozen, let them thaw slightly before using them.
- Feel free to add your vegan pepperoni to our vegan pizza recipe or make your own version of a vegan pepperoni pizza.
Notes
- Feel free to add regular paprika to your vegetarian pepperoni if you can’t find smoked paprika.
- Any type of sugar will do.
- Omit the liquid smoke if you can’t find it. In that case, try to use smoked paprika, but it's okay if you can’t find it either.
- Add more or less red pepper flakes to your vegan pepperoni recipe depending on how spicy you want it to be.
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