No-Mayo Tofu Egg Salad Sandwich with Dill and Crunchy Celery
Creamy tofu egg salad made without mayo: a lemony tahini-Dijon dressing, turmeric, fresh dill and crisp celery, piled on toasted sourdough with romaine.
- Prep
- 20 min
- Cook
- 3 min
- Rest
- 10 min
- Serves
- 4
No-Mayo Tofu Egg Salad Sandwich with Dill and Crunchy Celery is a vegan lunch recipe made with tahini, fresh lemon juice, cold water. It takes 23 minutes of hands-on time, plus 10 minutes resting, serves 4, and each serving has 397 calories, 27 g of protein and 6 g of fiber.
Tahini whisked with lemon and water makes a thick, glossy dressing that stands in for mayo and clings to the tofu without going watery. Crumbling part of the tofu finely and dicing the rest into small cubes gives you the creamy "yolk" and firm "white" bits of a classic egg salad. Turmeric adds the yellow color, and a pinch of kala namak (black salt) adds the sulfur note that makes it taste properly eggy.
Ingredients
Dressing
- 3 tbsp45 gtahini, well stirred
- 1½ tbsp23 gfresh lemon juice
- 3 tbsp45 gcold water, add gradually; you may need a little less or more
- 1 tbsp15 gDijon mustard
- ¼ tsp0.8 gground turmeric
- ½ tsp3 gkala namak (black salt), or use regular fine salt; the eggy flavor will be milder
- ¼ tsp0.6 gblack pepper, freshly ground
Salad
- 14 oz397 gextra-firm tofu, drained and patted dry
- 2 80 gcelery ribs, finely diced
- 2 30 ggreen onions, thinly sliced
- 2 tbsp1.8 gfresh dill, chopped
To serve
- 8 slices256 gsourdough bread
- 4 80 gromaine lettuce leaves
- 1 medium123 gtomato, sliced (optional)
- 1 pinch0.3 gsmoked paprika, for sprinkling (optional)
Kit: mixing bowl, whisk, fork or potato masher, toaster
Tips
- Kala namak loses its sulfur aroma with heat and time, so add a tiny extra pinch just before serving leftovers.
- Use extra-firm tofu. Softer tofu turns mushy and doesn't give you the chunky, egg-white bits.
- Stir the tahini jar well before measuring. The oil separates, and the bottom of the jar is too thick to whisk smoothly.
Swap ideas
- Vegan mayo instead of the tahini dressing (about ⅓ cup)
- Richer and closer to a classic deli egg salad, with no sesame flavor
- Chopped dill pickles or 1 tbsp capers in place of some of the celery
- Adds a tangy, briny bite
- Gluten-free bread or lettuce wraps instead of sourdough
- Makes it gluten-free (use tamari-free mustard and check labels)
- Add 1 tbsp nutritional yeast to the dressing
- Deeper, more savory, yolk-like flavor
The numbers
Nutrition per serving
397kcal per serving
Everything else · 4 servings per recipe
- Saturated fat
- 2.5 g 13%
- Sugars
- 3.9 g
- Sodium
- 502 mg 22%
- Potassium
- 500 mg 11%
- Calcium
- 784 mg 60%
- Iron
- 7 mg 39%
- Vitamin C
- 6 mg 6%
- Vitamin B12
- 0 µg 0%
% Daily Value on a 2,000 calorie diet. Calculated from USDA FoodData Central values for each ingredient; optional ingredients are excluded. Estimates vary with brands and portions.
Sources: Seeds, sesame butter, tahini, from roasted and toasted kernels (most common type), Lemon juice, raw, Beverages, water, tap, drinking, Mustard, prepared, yellow, Spices, turmeric, ground, Naco Black Salt Kala Namak (Carb Manager food database), Spices, pepper, black, Tofu, raw, firm, prepared with calcium sulfate, Celery, raw, Onions, spring or scallions (includes tops and bulb), raw, Dill weed, fresh, Bread, french or vienna (includes sourdough), Lettuce, cos or romaine, raw
Method
Pat the tofu dry with a clean towel, pressing firmly to squeeze out excess water. If your tofu seems very wet, press it under a heavy pan for 10 minutes first.
Make the dressing: in a large bowl, stir the tahini and lemon juice together. It will seize and thicken at first. Whisk in the water 1 tablespoon at a time until it turns smooth, pale and about as thick as mayonnaise.
Whisk the Dijon mustard, turmeric, kala namak and black pepper into the dressing until it's an even yellow.
Cut half the tofu into ¼-inch cubes. Crumble the other half into the bowl with your fingers, then mash it into the dressing with a fork until it's creamy with a few small lumps.
Fold in the cubed tofu, celery, green onions and dill until everything is evenly coated. Taste, then add more salt, lemon or pepper if needed.
Cover and chill for at least 10 minutes so the tofu soaks up the dressing and the flavors come together.
Toast the sourdough until golden and crisp at the edges, 2–3 minutes.
Lay a romaine leaf and some tomato slices, if using, on 4 slices of toast. Top each with a quarter of the tofu egg salad, add a pinch of smoked paprika if you like, and close with the remaining toast. Cut in half and serve.
Storage: Keep the tofu egg salad in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. Stir it before using and loosen with a teaspoon of water if it has thickened. Store the bread and lettuce separately and make the sandwiches just before eating so they don't go soggy. Don't freeze it.
Questions
- How much protein is in no-mayo tofu egg salad sandwich with dill and crunchy celery?
- Each of the 4 servings has 27 g of protein, 6 g of fiber and 397 calories, calculated from USDA FoodData Central values for every ingredient.
- Is no-mayo tofu egg salad sandwich with dill and crunchy celery vegan?
- Yes. It contains no dairy, eggs, honey or other animal products.
- How long does no-mayo tofu egg salad sandwich with dill and crunchy celery take to make?
- 20 minutes of prep and 3 minutes of cooking, so 23 minutes of hands-on time, plus 10 minutes of unattended resting.
- Can you make no-mayo tofu egg salad sandwich with dill and crunchy celery ahead?
- Keep the tofu egg salad in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. Stir it before using and loosen with a teaspoon of water if it has thickened. Store the bread and lettuce separately and make the sandwiches just before eating so they don't go soggy. Don't freeze it.
- What can I substitute in no-mayo tofu egg salad sandwich with dill and crunchy celery?
- Vegan mayo instead of the tahini dressing (about ⅓ cup) — richer and closer to a classic deli egg salad, with no sesame flavor. Chopped dill pickles or 1 tbsp capers in place of some of the celery — adds a tangy, briny bite. Gluten-free bread or lettuce wraps instead of sourdough — makes it gluten-free (use tamari-free mustard and check labels). Add 1 tbsp nutritional yeast to the dressing — deeper, more savory, yolk-like flavor.
- Does no-mayo tofu egg salad sandwich with dill and crunchy celery contain gluten?
- Yes — the ingredient list includes gluten. Check the labels on the products you buy if you're cooking for an allergy.
Nutrition is calculated from USDA data for every ingredient — how we work it out.
Published September 25, 2026 ·American