For A Creamy Dairy-Free Dip, Start With Tofu

Believe it or not, it is possible to make a luscious, creamy dip that even those who can't eat dairy products will thoroughly enjoy. You just have to substitute the usual dairy base for your dip — be it cream cheese, sour cream, yogurt, or half and half — with tofu. But not just any tofu. As with all replacements, the distinction between types of bean curd matters a lot here due to their differing amounts of moisture and texture. So you won't want to use the firm or even the medium kind. Rather, you'll want to reach for the silken tofu.

Silken tofu has a super soft, silky texture just like its name. So it easily blends down to a cream that is perfect for dips. Use it to make ranch, French onion dip, spinach artichoke dip, and much more. Or create your own creamy tofu dip with a mix of herbs, spices, olive oil, and citrus. The tofu will absorb all of the seasonings that you add to it, making it the perfect canvas for all of your favorite flavors.

Since tofu is a blank slate, you will need to sour it up a bit if it is going to mimic the sour cream in a given dip. Luckily, it's easy to do so and all it takes is a bit of acid and salt — and of course your blender or food processor.

Just drop the package of silken tofu into the blender along with a splash of apple cider vinegar, a squeeze of lemon, and half a teaspoon of salt. Exact measurements aren't necessary here since sour cream can vary by brand. Just blend it down to a creamy consistency and give it a taste. If it's not sour enough then give it another splash of vinegar and another squeeze of lemon. Once you've got the right balance of sourness add the rest of your creamy ingredients and give it another whirl in the blender to finish off the dip.

If you want to make a creamy yogurt-like dip you'll need to both sweeten and sour the silken tofu. In that case, you can use the same blending process as above but with a quarter cup of lemon juice and sugar or sweetener to taste. A bit of citrus will also mimic the slight tanginess in cream cheese so squeeze a bit of lemon in when substituting with silken tofu. This isn't an exact science, so you'll want to taste as you go instead of relying on precise measurements.

Straining or pressing tofu is often recommended for dishes where it's being used as the main protein or as a substitute for meat. This applies to firm varieties of tofu and is specific to certain preparation methods where you don't want to retain much of the liquid. However, when it comes to creamy tofu dip, you will want to keep that moisture and incorporate it into the dip. If you tried to press silken tofu it would just break up. It can be drained, but again this is mostly unnecessary since you want to keep it moist and creamy for your dip.

Tofu is perfect for making almost any type of creamy dip and works well as a substitute for just about any type of dairy. You can even make a vegan cheese-style dip with soft tofu. When done correctly, most people would be hard-pressed to tell the difference between creamy tofu dip and those that are dairy-based.