How do I set up my network using tuntap without using VDE?
See Qemu Network HOWTO. The VDE stuff in the HOWTO is not correct (as the author of the HOWTO does not use VDE), but the rest of it has exactly what you are looking for. Note: if you want to use bridging, you can use nameif or ifrename to name the bridge eth0 instead of br0 (thus potentially saving you from having to edit countless configuration files of various daemons).