This is the perfect smoky & ‘meaty’ Tomato Dip to serve with Tortilla Chips! Thanks to soy granule, no one will know that it’s actually vegan!
This is actually one of my favorite dips to serve at parties because it’s a real crowd-pleaser! I bet you no one would think it’s vegan! The TVP (soy granule) is perfect for mimicking the meat in a bolognese-style dip. I like to serve it with tortilla chips.
It’s smoky, it’s flavorful, and it has a little bit of spice. You will love it!
PS. You can also use the sauce with pasta, or in lasagna.
What is TVP?
TVP stands for Textured Vegetable Protein, often also called soy meat, soya chunks/granule/slices. It is made out of defatted soy flour, which is extruded into shapes (such as granules, flakes, chunks, slices, strips, nuggets,…).
For this ‘meaty’ dip, we are using the smallest kind: granules.
I love TVP because
- it can be stored at room temperature – like forever,
- it is high in protein and low in fat,
- it is inexpensive,
- it expands when cooked, so it doesn’t need much space in the pantry
- and it’s versatile!
Soy Granule is the KEY INGREDIENT in this dip. It’s perfect to accomplish a ‘meaty’ texture.
How to make a vegan ‘Meaty’ Tomato Dip
The ingredients
You will need:
- soy granule
- onion
- garlic
- oil
- liquid smoke
- soy sauce
- salt, paprika powder, chili powder
- dried oregano
- tomato passata
The basic steps
Looking for more recipes with TVP?
- TVP – What is it? How to use it? +10 Recipes!
- Vegan Bacon Bits (made with TVP)
- ‘Meaty’ Vegan Chili con TVP
- Vegan Spaghetti Bolognese
- Soy Protein Vegan Burgers
Love it? Rate it!
I hope you enjoy this vegan ‘meaty’ Tomato Dip as much as I do! Let me know if you give it a try!
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Cheers, Bianca
Vegan ‘Meaty’ Tomato Dip
Ingredients
- 1 teaspoon canola oil or olive or sunflower
- 1 small yellow onion diced
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- 1 cup soy granule
- 1/2 cup water
- 1 teaspoon liquid smoke
- 2 teaspoons soy sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon salt + more to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon paprika powder
- 1/4 teaspoon chili powder
- 2 teaspoons dried oregano
- 1 1/4 cup tomato passata*
Instructions
- In a medium-sized pot with a little bit of oil, cook the onion and garlic until soft. Set it aside in a bowl, we will add it to the dip later.
- In a pot (I use the same as before), add the soy granule, water, soy sauce, liquid smoke, salt, paprika powder, and chili powder. Turn on the heat to low and stir until the soy granule has soaked up the water (this takes about 1 minute).
- Add in the onion and garlic, and add a bit of oil. Let it cook further until slightly crispy.
- Add the tomato passata and dried oregano. Stir and heat until hot. At this point, you can add more salt, liquid smoke or chili powder if you want to spice it up even more. I recommend serving this dip with corn tortilla chips, but it's awesome over pasta too!
Shellie
Tuesday 23rd of August 2022
This sounds so good. Can I use soy curl crumbs in place of the TVP?
Bianca
Thursday 25th of August 2022
yes, it's the same thing! :)
Sarah | Well and Full
Friday 13th of May 2016
I saw this recipe on foodgawker and had to click over to see what made it so "meaty".... and I'm definitely impressed! I love that you used soy granules for texture and liquid smoke for flavor. It looks and sounds so good!! :D
Bianca
Saturday 14th of May 2016
Thank you so much, Sarah! This is exactly the sauce how I made it when I started to go vegan and I've been using it for different purposes (Spaghetti Bolognese, as a dip or even on pizza (a Lahmmacun-kinda thing)) ever since. I love the soy granule because the texture is so meat-like and you can store them at room-temperature for years, so it's a good thing to always have at home.
Kyra | Vie De La Vegan
Wednesday 11th of May 2016
Ohhh this dip looks delicious! I've never seen liquid smoke here but I think I should buy it online, I keep seeing recipes that use it.
Bianca
Wednesday 11th of May 2016
I ran out of liquid smoke a few days ago and I'm dying over here! I don't know what to do with my life :D I need to order it asap too because we can't get it in stores here anywhere, unfortunately. I really like the stuff and it's very intense, so you'll only need small amounts and the bottle lasts a long time :)
Edith
Wednesday 11th of May 2016
OMG this looks so delicous!!! So need to try it out :)
Bianca
Wednesday 11th of May 2016
thanks Edith! Yes, you should :) Everyone loved it so far!
Natalie | Feasting on Fruit
Tuesday 10th of May 2016
My first thought when I saw this was bolognese turned dip! Well no actually my first thought was gimme gimme! The smokiness sounds great too. I really should not be trusted around this stuff with a bag or tortilla chips :D
Bianca
Wednesday 11th of May 2016
You're so right, Natalie, it's actually a Bolognese Dip - that would have been a good name too :) I love the soy granule with liquid smoke, no one will ever notice this is a vegan dip :D