Top 20 Ways to Get More Soy in Your Diet
Baking
- Add soy nuts to cookie or brownie recipes.
- For cheesecake, replace half of the cream cheese with pureed tofu.
- Use calcium-fortified soy milk in place of milk for pudding.
Main Dishes
- Add tofu, tempeh, texturized vegetable protein or textured soy protein to meatless chili, soups and stews.
- Cook extra-firm tofu or tempeh on the grill.
- In meatloaf, use half texturized vegetable protein or textured soy protein and half ground turkey or lean ground beef.
- Make a taco using pre-browned, flavored tofu.
- Marinate tofu chunks in teriyaki sauce or your favorite dressing and keep on hand for an easy snack.
- Puree silken tofu and flavor with ranch dressing mix, onion soup mix or taco seasoning. Serve with low-fat tortilla chips, potato chips or fresh vegetables.
- Replace all or part of the ricotta cheese in lasagna or stuffed pasta shells with tofu. Blend soft tofu with salt, pepper, garlic, basil and chopped fresh parsley until smooth.
- Skewer extra-firm tofu chunks for shish kabobs.
- Use tofu sausage links, soy burgers or soy hot dogs as substitutes.
Restaurant Meals
- Order miso soup in Japanese restaurants.
- Try tofu with mixed vegetables in Asian restaurants.
Salads
- Top salads with roasted soynuts.
Sandwiches
- Add a thin slice of baked tofu to a sandwich.
- Use soynut butter in place of peanut butter.
Side Dishes
- Use pureed tofu in twice-baked potatoes. Scoop out the baked potato pulp and combine with tofu. Add sauteed garlic and minced onions. Season to taste. Refill the potato shell with tofu mixture. Top with low-fat shredded cheese and bake until cheese is melted.
Soy milk
- Make smoothies by blending soy milk, silken tofu, frozen bananas and other frozen fruit in a blender.
- Pour soy milk over cereal or fruit, use in sauces, soups, puddings, muffins, pancakes or in any recipe that calls for milk.
UCSF Health medical specialists have reviewed this information. It is for educational purposes only and is not intended to replace the advice of your doctor or other health care provider. We encourage you to discuss any questions or concerns you may have with your provider.