This silken tofu pasta sauce blends up in just 5 minutes with no chopping and no cooking! Using pantry staples like jarred roasted red peppers and nutritional yeast, it’s a creamy, flavorful, slightly smoky sauce that goes so well with your favourite pasta or gnocchi.

roasted red pepper tofu sauce on shell pasta
This silken tofu pasta sauce lives up to it’s name: so silky, with a rich roasted red pepper flavour and just a hint of smokiness!

I’m sensing a new theme emerging in my weeknight cooking: vegan pasta sauces made in the blender. It all started with my very craveable cashew alfredo sauce, which has been a family staple for years.

And now I realize that this just might be one of the easiest ways to put a nutritious meal on the table with minimal effort. Which is probably why I love it so much, because I’m a very lazy weeknight cook!

You just boil your favourite pasta, whip the sauce up in the blender, and if need be, add a side of roasted zucchini or double down on the protein by opening a can of some creamy white beans. Et voila! A balanced, comforting vegan dinner without all the fuss.

FAQ: does silken tofu have a lot of protein? 

Silken tofu is an incredible ingredient: ultra smooth and milder in the flavour than typical tofu, it can be used as a substitute for cream in plant-based recipes because it blends like a DREAM.  It lends a creamy richness to any pasta sauce as well as a little boost of protein. Which, as a plant-based dietitian, we should probably talk about as I’m seeing some misleading information on blogs about just how much protein silken tofu has.

The local brand I use, Sunrise, has about 4g of protein per ⅓ cup (85g). If you have access to firm or extra firm silken tofu at your store, that increases protein a bit, about 6-7 grams. So it’s a nice boost, but not a lot of protein on it’s own.

I see a lot of blogs claiming that silken tofu pasta sauces are “high in protein” which is why you want to be careful with nutrition information on the internet (that is not written by an actual dietitian!). I wouldn’t say that 6-7 grams is high. 20 grams of protein? That’s high!

And yep, when served with pasta, this silken tofu pasta sauce will net you a high protein meal, without adding additional protein to this recipe. The combination of this sauce plus two cups of cooked pasta will net you 21 grams of plant-based protein. I bet you didn’t realize that cooked pasta contains a whopping 8.6 grams of protein per cup! And that’s before you swap in a higher protein pasta like a chickpea-based pasta OR add on a protein like grilled tofu or white beans. You’ve got options!

How to make this creamy red pepper silken tofu pasta sauce 

This sauce couldn’t be easier: in just 5 minutes, you’ll blend up silken tofu and some pantry staples for a no cook, no chop sauce that will dress a full pound of pasta! Here’s how to do it:

silken tofu pasta sauce ingredients
The smoked paprika enhances the smokiness of the roasted red peppers but you can sub regular Spanish paprika if you like it better.

Hot tip: I find depending on the shape of the pasta, and how saucy you like it, you might have a bit more sauce than you need. Pour it into a jar and save it in the fridge. It’s great for when you reheat leftovers, as the sauce dries up a bit. You can also use it as a dipping sauce.

silken tofu and red peppers in blender
You don’t even need a high speed blender for this one because the ingredients are soft!
red pepper silken tofu sauce in blender
The trick: start blending on low and slowly increase to medium high until super smooth, about 1-2 minutes.
pouring silken tofu sauce over pasta
Toss with your favourite pasta or gnocchi! This would even taste good drizzled over quesadillas

More vegan recipes using silken tofu:

roasted red pepper tofu sauce on shell pasta

Silken Tofu Pasta Sauce with Roasted Red Peppers

4 servings
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Total Time: 5 minutes
This silken tofu pasta sauce blends up in just 5 minutes with no chopping and no cooking! Using pantry staples like jarred roasted red peppers and nutritional yeast, it’s a creamy, flavorful, slightly smoky sauce that goes so well with your favourite pasta or gnocchi.
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Ingredients

Roasted Red Pepper Silken Tofu Pasta Sauce

  • 12 ounces silken tofu, I've used 12-14 oz packs with equal success
  • 2 cups jarred roasted red peppers, drained
  • 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon dried thyme
  • ¼ teaspoon smoked paprika
  • 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
  • freshly cracked pepper

For Serving

  • 1 pound package your favourite pasta, cooked according to package directions, drained
Imperial – Metric

Equipment

  • Blender

Instructions 

  • Place all of the sauce ingredients in a blender. Blend on low until peppers break down, then slowly increase speed to medium high and blend until smooth, about 1-2 minutes total.
  • Taste and adjust salt if needed. Too acidic? Lacking umami? see notes in blog post.
  • Toss with hot pasta and serve.

Notes

Flavour notes: when you are working with just a few ingredients, the flavour of each one really stands out. Because there is variation in the flavour of jarred red peppers (bitterness/acidity etc), you can adjust the sauce to your taste.
Tasting too acidic or bitter? Just a ½ teaspoon of sugar will help balance it. Extra salt will help with bitter too. Need more umami? Try an extra shake of nutritional yeast. 
Cuisine: American, Mediterranean
Course: Pasta, Sauces
Author: Desiree Nielsen, RD
pinterest graphic of pasta shells with a red sauce on a plate and roasted red peppers, nutritional yeast and silken tofu in bowls
This creamy, richly flavourful silken tofu pasta sauce is spiked with jarred roasted red peppers. Takes 5 minutes in the blender!