Tofu Grinder Salad Sandwich

My latest vegan delicacy is this tofu grinder salad sandwich. The tofu is grilled with a BBQ sauce and the salad dressing is just divine.

I wish you could taste this amazing vegan sandwich.

The photo just doesn't show how much flavour is in this tofu sandwich.

My mouth is watering, just looking at it.

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Jump to:

• 🥪 What is a grinder salad sandwich?
• 🥪 How do you make a grinder sandwich vegan?
• 🥗 What you need to make this TikTok famous sandwich
• 💭 What type of tofu?
• 🍲 Marinating Tofu
• 🥘 How to grill tofu
• 📖 Variations
• 🥛 Creamy salad dressing
• 🌶 Peppadew peppers
• 🌶 Another way to add heat
• 🍟 What to serve with your grinder
• 🥪 More tasty vegan sandwiches to try
• 📋 Want new recipes delivered to your inbox?
• ⭐ Pin it for later
• 🥦 Living on the Veg
• 👩🏻‍🍳 Step-by-step photos
• 📖 Recipe
• 💬 Comments

🥪 What is a grinder salad sandwich?

Grinder sandwiches first came to my attention on TikTok, although the ones I saw were not vegan.

They were filled with dressed salad, tomatoes, deli meats, and cheese.

An internet search found a few titbits about the history of this sandwich.

An online dictionary describes it as a submarine sandwich.

"A large sandwich consisting of a long roll split lengthwise and filled with layers of various ingredients such as meat, cheese, tomatoes, lettuce, and condiments. Also called grinder, hero, hoagie; Also called regionally torpedo, wedge, zep." from The Free Dictionary.

Houston Press say "Hoagie referring to a type of sandwich that was popular among Italian workers on Hog Island in Pennsylvania (get it?); "grinder" a slang term for dockworkers who were fans of a similarly structured sandwich; and the "sub" being a broad descriptor for any long, spherical sandwich that resembles a submarine".

Read more in the Press article Hoagies vs. Grinders vs. Sub(marine) Sandwiches.

🥪 How do you make a grinder sandwich vegan?

Grinder sandwiches or hoagies, usually have slices of dairy cheese and slices of deli meat, but it's easy to swap that out for a tasty vegan sarnie.

Here are the simple swaps:

• Slices cheese - slices of vegan cheese
• Deli meat - grilled or baked tofu, or why not try it with my easy vegan pepperoni?
• Creamy Italian dressing - use vegan mayo

See recipe card below for full ingredients and quantities.

🥗 What you need to make this TikTok famous sandwich

Here are the simple ingredients you need to make this deli sub.

• Sub rolls (see substitutes below)
• Firm tofu
• BBQ sauce
• Olive oil
• Iceberg lettuce
• Red onion
• Peppadew peppers (see substitutes below)
• Dried oregano
• Chilli flakes
• White wine vinegar (or red wine vinegar)
• Salt & pepper
• Sliced vegan cheese
• Ripe tomatoes

For a twist, try adding some quick homemade pickled cabbage.

More viral TikTok recipes

Here are a few more easy recipes made famous on Tik Tok.

• Vegan Date Snickers
• Vegan Grinder Salad
• Vegan Overnight Oats

💭 What type of tofu?

Firm tofu is what you need for this sandwich. Never silken tofu as it is creamy and more suitable for desserts and sauces.

Personally, I like Tofoo's Naked Tofu, which is extra firm and already pressed, so no need to press it, just slice it and away you go.

🍲 Marinating Tofu

The marinade is the most important step when cooking tofu as it gives all the flavour.

I often make my own marinade, like this homemade tandoori paste, but this time I used shop-bought BBQ sauce.

I didn't leave it to soak in the marinade this time.

A good brush of sauce on both sides, then another brush of sauce once it's grilled.

🥘 How to grill tofu

There are several ways to grill tofu.

You can choose which option works best for you.

• Waffle maker - my favourite as it makes it chewy and gives that wonderful waffle pattern
• Sandwich maker - you could also use a sandwich maker
• Electric grill - either a grill plate or something like a George Foreman grill
• Grill pan - a ribbed frying pan
• Air fryer - which makes the surface nice and crispy
• Oven bake - on a tray

You could also try these sandwiches with Tomato & Olive Deli Slices.

Also, try Teriyaki tofu crumbles and easy tofu fried rice.

For more inspiration check out 101 Vegan Sandwiches - Back to School Kids Lunch boxes.

📖 Variations

I couldn't get hold of sub (submarine) rolls to make this deli sandwich, so I used a baton, which has good crunch.

Here are some more options:

• Baguette- cut in three
• Baton - a mini version of a baguette
• Sub rolls - a classic, but make sure you toast them for crunch.
• Jumbo hot dog rolls - regular hot dog rolls are too narrow to hold enough filling.

🥛 Creamy salad dressing

The creamy salad dressing on the crunchy iceberg lettuce is what takes this sandwich over the edge.

It is mouth-wateringly good.

I would describe it as a creamy Italian dressing.

🌶 Peppadew peppers

Peppadew peppers are added to the salad which tops off this sub sandwich.

The Peppadew peppers are little sweet roast peppers in a tangy brine, which you can buy in little jars at the supermarket, usually next to the olives and sundried tomatoes.

You can also get them in a hot version for a bit of a kick.

If you can't get these, you could use roast pepper antipasti or just finely chop either jarred or home-roasted red pepper.

🍟 What to serve with your grinder

Here are a few ideas of what to serve with your vegan grinder.

• Green salad - why not make extra dressed iceberg salad to serve on the side?
• Chips - or fries
• Crisps - or tortilla chips (try these homemade paprika tortilla chips)
• Sweet potato fries - or wedges
• Spiced wedges - make them yourself or buy them frozen

🥪 More tasty vegan sandwiches to try

Here are a few more of my favourite vegan sandwiches for you to try after you try this vegan grinder sandwich.

1. Avocado Chickpea Sandwich
2. Black Olive & Tomato Toastie
3. Caprese Sandwich (toasted or air fryer grilled)
4. Carrot Sandwiches
5. Cuban Sandwich with Mushrooms
6. Easy Vegan Egg Mayo Sandwiches
7. Hummus Beet Sandwich
8. Italian White Bean & Tomato Sandwich
9. New York Deli Sandwiches
10. Pepperoni Cheese Sandwiches
11. Reuben Sandwich with Russian Dressing
12. Vegan Cheese & Onion Sandwiches
13. Vegan Cheese Ploughman's Sandwiches
14. Vegetable Salad Sandwiches

For more sandwich inspiration check out 39 of the Best Vegan Sandwiches and check out my guide to packing lunches.

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👩🏻‍🍳 Step-by-step photos

Step-by-step photos. Keep scrolling for the full printable recipe (with full ingredient list and nutritional info).

Step 1

• First prepare the tofu. If it is already pressed just slice it and dab with kitchen paper to remove any excess liquid from the pack, if it's not, press it for half an hour, then slice.
• Brush both sides of the slices with BBQ sauce and grill. See the guide above for grilling ideas.
• Once grilled and crispy, brush with extra sauce and set aside.

Step 2

• Now make the dressed salad while the tofu grills.
• Add the shredded iceberg, peppers, red onion and flavourings to a bowl and mix.
• Add the dressing at the last moment, so the lettuce stays crisp.

Step 3

• Slice your roll or sub in half and place the cheese on one side, then toast (broil) or air fry to allow the cheese to melt.
• Top with slices of tofu.

Step 4

• Add the dressing to the salad and mix well.
• Now add the slices of ripe tomato to the roll, then pile high with the salad.
• Enjoy! I know you will love it.