Enjoy vegan ham that’s gluten-free and made with tofu for your next holiday or special occasion! Easy to make and so smoky, salty, and delicious!
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I really cannot express how excited I am about this gluten-free vegan ham recipe! After checking out a lot of the other meatless “ham” recipes around the internet, I realized that they were made almost entirely of gluten (specifically, vital wheat gluten) in the form of seitan.
That’s definitely leaving out a big portion of people who might be at your dinner table (and mine), so I set out to make one that was not only free from animal products but also free from gluten.
What came out of my oven is nothing short of a meatless miracle. This vegan tofu ham is a little sweet, a little savory, with a crispy/chewy texture and a hint of smoke and salt that makes it the best ham replacement I’ve had.
While this doesn’t make a full vegan ham roast, it does make some beautiful slices with an incredible texture and surprising, complex flavor.
This recipe does have a long ingredients list and takes a little more time than a usual weeknight dinner, so I think it’s ideal for holidays and special occasions where you want something extra special on the table. It’s definitely easy to make, let me show you how!
Vegan ham ingredients
- Tofu
- Beet juice
- Tamari
- Olive oil
- Ketchup
- Dijon mustard
- Liquid smoke
- Maple syrup
- Onion powder
- Garlic powder
- Smoked Paprika
- Salt
Vegan ham glaze ingredients
- Pineapple juice
- Beet juice
- Maple syrup
- Vegan butter
- Dijon mustard
- Brown sugar
- Liquid smoke
- Salt & pepper
How to make vegan ham
- Combine all ingredients for the vegan ham marinade in a shallow dish.
- Add the tofu and use your hands to rub in the marinade and coat it on all sides. Let marinate at least 30 minutes, flipping once.
- In a small bowl, stir together vegan ham glaze ingredients.
- Arrange tofu on a single layer on a rimmed, parchment lined baking sheet (affiliate link). Top with half the glaze.
- Bake the tofu at 375ºF for 22 minutes. Flip and top with the remaining glaze. Bake an additional 22 minutes or until firm and crisp on the edges.
Top tips and questions
What is liquid smoke?
Liquid smoke is a smoke flavoring made by condensing the smoke from wood. It gives food a smoky flavor without needing to do any actual smoking.
Liquid smoke can be found at the grocery store usually near the barbecue sauce and other condiments.
Where can I find beet juice?
I was able to find a small bottle of beet juice by the other juices in the natural section of the grocery store. You could always make your own beet juice if you have a juicer, or roast beets, run through a food processor, and strain to get the juice.
It’s much easier to buy beet juice, and you can use leftovers in smoothies, cocktails, and mocktails.
What is tamari?
Tamari is a type of soy sauce that is usually gluten-free. You may want to check the label if you do not consume gluten. It can be found near the soy sauce in the Asian foods section of the grocery store.
How do I press tofu?
It’s easy to press tofu without a press by placing the block between several layers of paper towels and putting something heavy on top like a cast iron skillet.
You can also purchase a tofu press fairly inexpensively. How to use your tofu press will depend on which one you buy, but the one you can see in my video places the block of tofu in the center and uses screws to press down.
I recommend pressing tofu on a rimmed plate to catch the water.
How should I cut tofu for baking into ham?
You can cut your tofu however you prefer, but may want to adjust the cooking time if you’re cutting it thicker than I did. You can see in the video that I cut my first slab into a bit of a wedge, and the rest came apart in rough pieces.
My favorite parts were actually the more rugged edged pieces that got a little extra crispy in the oven. I would recommend trying to cut the tofu into pieces where some parts are thicker and some are thinner for the most interesting texture.
Ripping the whole block up by hand would probably be best texture-wise, but won’t give you that slice of ham look if that’s what you’re going for.
Can I make vegan ham ahead of time?
This vegan ham recipe is really at it’s best straight out of the oven. It still tastes great cold or reheated after being refrigerated, but will lose some of it’s crispy texture.
If you’re going to make this ahead of time, I would recommend not freezing it. To reheat from the refrigerator, bake at 375ºF until warmed through and lightly crisped.
Tips for customizing vegetarian ham
- Place slices of vegan ham on sliders with cheese (or vegan cheese) for a meatless ham and cheese sandwich
- Chop and add to eggs or potato dishes
- If you want a less smoky ham, decrease the liquid smoke
- If you want less sodium, decrease or eliminate the salt and/or choose a low sodium tamari or soy sauce
- If you have whole beets on hand, you could juice them instead of purchasing beet juice, or roast them, run through a food processor, and strain
What to serve with vegan ham
- Mashed Potato Bake
- Cheesy Crock Pot Mashed Potatoes
- Oven Roasted Rosemary Potatoes
- Oven Roasted Potato Wedges
- Vegan Orzo Pasta Salad
- Vegan Potluck Barley Salad
- Simple Vegetarian Stuffing
- Vegetarian Cornbread Stuffing
- Creamy No Mayo Coleslaw
More tofu recipes
Vegan Ham
Ingredients
Vegan Ham
- 14 ounces extra firm tofu, pressed
- 1 tablespoon beet juice
- 1 tablespoon tamari or soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 teaspoons ketchup
- 1 teaspoon maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon liquid smoke
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
- ½ teaspoon coarse kosher salt
Vegan Ham Glaze
- 2 tablespoons pineapple juice
- 2 tablespoons beet juice
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup
- 2 tablespoons vegan butter, melted
- 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
- 2 teaspoons brown sugar
- ½ teaspoon liquid smoke
- ½ teaspoon coarse kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
Instructions
- Slice tofu as desired. I like to cut it into wedge shapes, so some parts are thicker than others (see the video for how I cut mine). Rustic cuts are the best because they will give it a nice crispy texture.
- In a medium sized baking dish, whisk together the marinade ingredients. Place the tofu in the baking dish with the marinade, rubbing it so that it gets on all sides. Arrange the tofu in a single layer if possible, and let marinate for 30 minutes, flipping and rubbing on extra marinade at least once.
- Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 375ºF and line a large, rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a small bowl, stir together all of the glaze ingredients.
- Arrange the tofu in a single layer on the prepared baking sheet and spoon half the glaze over the top.
- Bake for 22 minutes. Flip the tofu pieces, spoon the other half of the glaze over the top, and bake an additional 22 minutes or until the edges are crisp and the glaze has been absorbed.
Notes
Tips for customizing vegetarian ham
- Place slices of vegan ham on sliders with cheese (or vegan cheese) for a meatless ham and cheese sandwich
- Chop and add to eggs or potato dishes
- If you want a less smoky ham, decrease the liquid smoke
- If you want less sodium, decrease or eliminate the salt and/or choose a low sodium tamari or soy sauce
- If you have whole beets on hand, you could juice them instead of purchasing beet juice, or roast them, run through a food processor, and strain
Justin says
This was really great. I did 30 gluten free, vegan, low FODMAP pizzas for a thing.
I doubled the marinade and glaze recipes and did 5 blocks of super firm tofu…
After baking the tofu, I didn’t feel like the color was there so the only step I added is I put it in a (huge) sauté pan after baking and reduced down the remaining half of the glaze with the baked tofu slices.
Everyone loved the ham! Dubbed “sham” at the event…