This creamy Vegan Butter Chicken is rich, comforting and filling. Made with extra firm tofu for protein, it is simple to prepare and totally delicious.
What is Vegan Butter Chicken?
Butter chicken is a popular Indian dish with chicken, tomato sauce, and various spices. The dish is usually creamy and rich, making it a popular choice for those looking for a hearty meal.
Vegan butter chicken is a vegan dish that uses tofu instead of chicken. The tofu is cooked in a tomato-based sauce spiced with garam masala, cumin powder, and other Indian spices. The result is a dish that’s just as tasty as the original – but without animal products.
Ingredients
Here’s a shopping list of everything you’ll need to make Vegan Butter Chicken:
- Brown onions
- Garlic
- Fresh ginger
- Extra firm tofu
- Corn flour
- Light vegetable oil suitable for frying
- Spring onion
- Coconut milk
- Canned diced tomatoes
- Sugar
- Garam masala
- Cumin powder
- Ground coriander
- Turmeric
- White rice
Instructions
Follow along with this step-by-step guide to make your Vegan Butter Chicken. You’ll find all the exact times, temperatures, and measurements in the recipe card below
Step one: Heat a splash of oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Cook the onion for about 4 minutes, then add garlic, ginger, sugar, and spices for 1 minute.
Step two: Pour in the diced tomatoes, bring to a simmer, and let the sauce thicken slightly.
Step three: Tear the tofu into bite-sized pieces, toss in corn flour, then fry in hot oil until golden. Drain on paper towel.
Step four: Stir coconut milk into the sauce, season to taste.
Step five: Fold in the tofu and sliced spring onions off the heat.
Step six: Serve over cooked white rice and garnish with extra spring onion.
Storage instructions for Vegan Butter Chicken
The recipe makes enough for four servings, perfect for dinner parties or family gatherings. Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. You can freeze the dish for up to 2 months.
FAQs
Yes, you can substitute chickpeas or tempeh for the tofu in this recipe. The chickpeas do not need to be pan fried, so you can skip this step and simply add them to the sauce along with the coconut milk.
Yes, you can freeze the leftovers for up to 2 months.
This Vegan Butter Chicken is a delicious plant-based twist on the classic Indian dish. It only takes 40 minutes all up to prepare, making it perfect for weeknight dinners. Have you tried this vegan butter chicken recipe? Let me know what you think in the comments below 🙂
Vegan Butter Chicken – Made with Tofu!
Ingredients
- 2 medium yellow onions finely diced; approx. 2 cups or 284g
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 2 tsp fresh ginger grated; approx. 4g
- 20 oz extra firm tofu broken into 2 cm chunks; approx. 567g
- 4 tbsp cornstarch approx. 28g
- 3 tbsp vegetable oil (divided)
- 4 stalks green onion sliced; also known as spring onion
- 13.5 oz coconut milk 1 can; full-fat, well-shaken; approx. 400ml or 384g
- 2 14.5 oz cans diced tomatoes do not drain; approx. 822g total
- 2 tbsp granulated sugar approx. 25g
Spice mix
- 3 tsp garam masala
- 2½ tsp cumin powder
- 1½ tsp ground coriander
- 1 tsp ground turmeric
- kosher salt to taste
To serve
- cooked white rice for serving
- sliced green onion optional, for garnish
Instructions
- Finely dice the onions. Mince the garlic and grate the ginger. Slice the green onions and set aside for garnish.
- In a small bowl, combine the garam masala, cumin, coriander, and turmeric. Set aside.
- Heat ½ tablespoon of the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the onions and cook for about 4–5 minutes until soft and translucent. Add the garlic, ginger, sugar, and spice mix. Cook for another 1 minute, stirring to bloom the spices.
- Add the diced tomatoes (with their juice) to the saucepan. Stir and bring to a gentle simmer. Let it simmer while you prepare the tofu.
- Break the tofu into 2 cm chunks with your hands. Place in a large bowl and toss with the cornstarch until well coated.
- Heat the remaining 2½ tablespoons of oil in a medium frying pan over high heat. Once hot, fry the tofu in batches until golden and crispy, about 4–6 minutes. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate to drain excess oil.
- Stir the coconut milk into the tomato-spice mixture. Let it heat through, then taste and season with salt as needed.
- Add the crispy tofu and half of the sliced green onions into the sauce. Stir gently to coat the tofu.
- Spoon over cooked white rice and top with extra green onion if desired.
Amelia says
Love this. Butter chicken is my favourite, so good to have a go-to vegan version! Thanks
Lorena R. says
Did this one a few nights ago and my boys loved it. Thanks for the inspiration.
Liz says
I’m so glad they enjoyed it!!
Grace says
Made this for my family and it was a hit 😍
Jade H says
Curry is life! And finding a great vegan recipe is a godsend.
Great flavors, easy and quick enough to wow the daily dinner crowd. Thanks Liz!
Patricija says
Thank you for recipe !
Gareth Tan Yiam Leem says
Loved this recipe
Sarah says
Been trying your recipes all week and I’m hooked! This one tops the list.
Hong Nguyen says
Can’t wait to try more of your recipes
Kayla says
Soooo yummy and easy to make! I omitted the sugar, halved the onion amount, and added chopped zucchini, carrots, and spinach!
Liz Douglas says
yummmm, those veggies sound sooo good in there. glad it still turned out great for you Kayla 🙂
Tine says
this tasted just like the classic version, I love it! its so easy to make!