This vegan butter tofu is a twist on the traditional Indian butter chicken. A creamy sauce made with tomatoes, raw cashews and spices. It’s a hearty, filling and flavourful plant-based meal!
Ingredient Notes:
- Tofu: make sure you choose extra firm tofu for its texture.
- Tomatoes: we use fresh tomatoes, but feel free to swap for canned tomatoes if you prefer.
- Cashew nuts: it will make our sauce really creamy. Use raw cashews.
- Spices: a mix of fresh garlic, fresh ginger, garam masala, ground coriander and curry powder.
How to prepare vegan butter tofu?
- Prepare the tofu. Break it with your hands to mimic the chicken texture.
- Toast the tofu with cornstarch and cook in the oven. This way, we make sure it’s super crispy!
- Cook the tomatoes, cashews, diced onion and spices in a big pan. Let it simmer for about 20 minutes.
- Add the mixture to a high speed blender and blend until you get a creamy texture.
- Pour the sauce back to the pan and add coconut milk. Transfer the cooked tofu bites and stir well.
Tips to Prepare the Tofu
We want to make sure to remove any excess of water. To do so, remove the tofu block from the packaging. Roll into a tea towel and place a dutch oven/something heavy to press the tofu. Let it sit for 15-20 minutes.
How to serve vegan butter tofu?
- Rice
- Naan bread
- Roasted veggies, like broccoli or cauliflower.
No-Butter Butter Tofu
4
servings20
minutes30
minutes50
minutesThis vegan butter tofu is a twist on the traditional Indian butter chicken. A creamy sauce made with tomatoes, raw cashews and spices. It’s a hearty, filling and flavourful plant-based meal!
Ingredients
- Tofu
400g of extra-firm tofu
3 tbsp of cornstarch
1 tbsp of olive oil
- Sauce
2 tbsp of neutral oil (such as coconut oil or avocado oil)
½ red onion, diced
3 garlic cloves, minced
½ tbsp of grated fresh ginger
1 tbsp of garam masala
1 tsp of ground coriander
1 tsp of curry powder
4 fresh tomatoes, cut into cubes
⅓ cup of raw cashew nuts
2 tbsp of water
1 tsp of salt
2 tsp of maple syrup
¼ to ⅓ cup of coconut milk (full fat canned coconut milk)
- Serve it with: fresh coriander, rice and naan bread
Instructions
- Remove the tofu block from the packaging. Roll into a tea towel and place a dutch oven/something heavy on top of the tofu to remove any excess of water. Let it sit for a few minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 400F. Break the tofu with your hands to mimic chicken texture. In a bowl, mix the tofu bites with cornstarch and olive oil. Transfer to a baking pan and spread evenly. Cook for 25-30 minutes.
- Prepare the sauce. Sauté the diced onion with oil in a big pan on medium heat for 6-7 minutes, until tender. Add the garlic, ginger, garam masala, coriander powder and curry powder. Mix well and cook for one minute. Add the diced tomatoes, cashews, water, salt and maple syrup. Mix well and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover with a lid and let it simmer for 20 minutes on low heat.
- Transfer the mixture to a high speed blender. Blend until you get a creamy texture.
- Pour the sauce back to the pan and add coconut milk. Transfer the cooked tofu bites and stir. Season to your preference.
- Serve over rice with fresh coriander and naan bread.
