These easy sweet, savory, and spicy Baked Tofu Temaki Sushi with Cauliflower Rice are a host's best friend. Each guest can customize their own!
What is Temaki Sushi?
Temaki, also known as a hand-roll, is a large cone-shaped piece of nori wrapped around sushi rice and other ingredients. It is eaten with hands instead of chopsticks.
These Baked Tofu Temaki Sushi with Cauliflower Rice were inspired by my pantry ingredients - or lack thereof. I wanted a wrap but was out of tortillas.
I have been making wraps and cones out of nori sheets for years but didn't know there was a name for the cones until recently.
Temaki sushi is hand-rolled sushi, so you don't need a bamboo mat (although I never use one anyway). It just takes a little practice to get your sushi rolls tight.
It is best to eat them right away so that the nori doesn't get soggy. They are great for a party because everyone can roll their own, which is great for the guests because they can customize their ingredients.
In the past, I have fried the tofu in tamari and sesame oil. This time I marinated and baked the tofu in maple syrup and tamari, making it sweet and savory.
Baked tofu adds a great texture to this dish. It is crispy on the outside, and soft on the inside. The marinade gets baked on, adding a lot of flavor.
For the cauliflower rice, I added similar flavors to sushi rice. You wouldn't even know it is cauliflower instead of rice. That's a win in my book!
Dijon mustard adds a spicy touch and compliments the sweetness of the baked tofu and cauliflower rice. Mustard is similar to wasabi, in fact, they are in the same plant family, so it works well when you don't have any (which I didn't at the time of making this).
I do love wasabi though. It works well for clearing up the sinuses, which I have problems with in the Fall and Spring especially. Feel free to use wasabi instead. Your sinuses will thank you!
I included crisp, fresh slices of cucumber, but I imagine carrot strips or avocado slices would be a great addition as well.
Enjoy!
Another recipe to try is my Vegan Tofu Meatballs with Asian Glaze.
Other Asian-Inspired Dishes
- Vegan Teriyaki Reuben with Spicy Thousand Island Dressing
- Gluten Free Vegan Tempura
- Sweet Potato Sushi Rolls with Quinoa
- Crispy Teriyaki Tofu and Cauliflower Rice
- Wasabi Chips
- Stir-Fried Tofu and Peppers
Instructions
- Baked Tofu: Mix maple syrup, tamari, and paprika.
- Drain and press tofu. Slice and marinate in the mixture overnight.
- Bake, flip, and bake until crispy on the outside.
- Cauliflower Rice: Put cauliflower into a food processor. Pulse until you get a rice consistency.
- In a bowl mix brown rice vinegar, sugar, and tamari.
- Heat a skillet and add olive oil. Add cauliflower rice. Cook on medium heat until tender.
- Temaki Sushi: Slice a nori sheet in half. Place a nori sheet on a cutting board. Spread cauliflower rice on half the sheet.
- Drizzle mustard on top of cauliflower rice.
- Place sliced cucumber on top.
- Place tofu on top of the cucumber.
- Roll the nori into a cone shape and secure the edge by wetting it with marinade.
How Long Does It Last?
The cauliflower rice and the tofu (packaged separately) will last about 5 days in an airtight container in the fridge.
Variations / Additions
- red pepper
- avocado
- shiitake mushrooms
- cabbage
- bok choy
- carrots
- jackfruit
- tempeh
- quinoa
- brown or white rice
Recipe
These healthy vegan sushi rolls make a great light lunch.
*Don't forget to come back and leave your feedback and star rating.
📋 Recipe
Baked Tofu Temaki Sushi with Cauliflower Rice
Equipment
Ingredients
Baked Tofu
- 15 ounce extra firm tofu drained and pressed
- ¼ cup maple syrup
- ¼ cup low sodium gluten free tamari
- ½ teaspoon paprika
Cauliflower Rice
- 2 cups cauliflower rice (¼ head of cauliflower)
- 4 tablespoons brown rice vinegar
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 2 tablespoons low sodium gluten free tamari
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
Temaki Sushi
- 1Â cup sliced cucumber
- 4 nori sheets
- Dijon mustard optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°.
Baked Tofu
- Mix maple syrup, tamari, and paprika together. Pour in a zip lock bag or large shallow pan. Slice drained and pressed tofu into strips. Add to marinade. Let sit for at least an hour to overnight.
- Place tofu (without marinade) into an oiled pan or on parchment paper with cooking spray. Bake at 400° for 20 minutes, flip and bake another 10-15 minutes.
Cauliflower Rice
- Process cauliflower in food processor until it looks like the consistency of rice (or use package of riced cauliflower).
- In a small bowl mix brown rice vinegar, sugar, and tamari.
- Add olive oil to a hot pan. Add cauliflower rice, brown rice vinegar, sugar, and tamari mixture. Cook on medium heat until cauliflower is slightly tender.
Temaki Sushi
- Slice nori sheets in half, and place in front of you rough side up horizontally. Spread ¼ cup cauliflower rice on left side of nori sheet, covering half the sheet. Squirt a little Dijon mustard on cauliflower rice. Place 5-6 cucumber slices diagonally on top of cauliflower rice. Place 3 slices of tofu on top. Fold the bottom left corner over and roll into cone shape. Secure the roll by wetting edge with water or marinade. Repeat with the rest of ingredients.
Nutrition
*Note: Nutrition information should be considered an estimate only. Different nutrition calculators give you different results.
Ayi says
This looks yum! My husband and I are into healthy eating these days for health reasons. This is something we can add to our recipe list 🙂
Willow Moon says
Great, I hope you both enjoy it!
Maryanne | the little epicurean says
It's lunchtime and this sounds so good right now. Love that you used cauliflower rice!
Willow Moon says
Thanks Maryanne!
Cat says
Mmmm, this sushi recipe looks so tasty! Will definitely have to try it!
Patricia @ Grab a Plate says
I love this recipe and happen to have all the ingredients on hand (I just picked up a prepacked baked tofu from Trader Joe's). This is really creative, and I love how you made something fun and tasty with what you had on hand!
Willow Moon says
Thanks Patricia! I wish I could still eat prepacked baked tofu! Most of them have gluten in them. I think there is one brand that I can still eat though.
Maggie Unzueta says
I'm totally sold on this recipe. Love finding her tofu recipes.
Kate says
Yum! These look so good. I love temakizushi. I don't think I have had it since I lived in Japan!
Willow Moon says
Thanks Kate! I have never seen it before until I stumbled upon it on the internet. I have been making hand-rolls for a long time - I just didn't know there was a name for it!
Jenna Parsons says
I have always been a fan of sushi, but recently discovered sushi with tofu, and I am obsessed! I think this recipe looks absolutely delicious, and I want to try it!
Willow Moon says
Thanks Jenna! Sushi with sweet potato is great too! That's something that I have only been using for the last couple of years.