This vegan butter chicken is a vegan curry adaptation of the popular Indian butter chicken. Below are all the tips and tricks to make the best vegan butter chicken with chewy, tender pieces of vegan protein, and a creamy, buttery tomato sauce. The classic butter chicken sauce is not vegan because, as it names suggests, it contains butter and heavy cream. But making a vegan version is super easy, just like I did with my Vegan Bolognese, Vegan Stir Fry, or Vegan Chickpea Curry.
Ingredients and Substitutions
Tofu – I prefer to use extra-firm organic tofu. This tends to keep its consistency when cooking whereas soft or silken tofu can disintegrate. Olive Oil – For the marinade. Cornstarch – This creates a coating around the pieces of tofu, making them a bit crunchier on the outside, similar to how chicken cooks. Garam Masala – This is the essential Indian spice for the butter chicken flavors. Garlic Powder – Garlic adds a bit of zing to the dish. Turmeric – Turmeric adds both flavors and a lot of color to the dish. Coconut Oil – You can use refined coconut oil to avoid any coconut flavor or olive oil. Vegan Butter – There’s no butter tofu without butter. You can use vegan butter or even margarine. Onion – for the sauce, white or yellow onions can be used. Fenugreek Powder – This is optional but it’s a typical Indian spice that creates all the difference in this butter chicken sauce recipe, so highly recommended! Ground Cumin – for more balanced spice flavors. Ginger and Garlic – I used ground ginger and fresh garlic, but you can also use fresh ginger. Tomato Paste – Tomato paste gives the sauce its richness and flavor. Coconut Cream – You can also use canned coconut milk to decrease the saturated fat in this recipe, but the sauce won’t be as creamy and buttery. You must use canned coconut cream or coconut milk, not long-life milk, or the sauce would be too thin!
How To Make Vegan Butter Chicken
This easy Vegan Butter Chicken recipe is made in two steps. First, you need to prepare the tofu. Then, you make the vegan butter chicken sauce. Finally, you can assemble the dish and serve it with your favorite side dishes. Let’s see each step in detail with the ingredients needed to make this easy vegan curry recipe.
Spicing It Up
A classic butter chicken recipe is mild in flavor, which means that it doesn’t include chili powder. However, if you love spicy curry, follow the rules below to adjust the curry spiciness:
Mild curry – don’t add chili powder. Follow the recipe as is. Medium – add 1/4 teaspoon of chili powder to the sauce. Spicy – add 1/2 teaspoon of chili powder to the sauce.
Serving Suggestion
You can serve this Indian curry with many different side dishes like:
Classic Jasmine Rice or Coconut Jasmine Rice. Brown Rice or Quinoa – for a healthy high-fiber side. You can cook your quinoa in the rice cooker. Cauliflower Rice – for a low-carb vegan meal. Naan or flatbread – like my Vegan Naan Bread or 2-Ingredient Flatbread
Tofu Swaps
You can make this recipe with many different vegetables or vegan proteins. For example, you can replace the tofu pieces with the same amount of canned chickpea. Marinate and cook the chickpeas as for tofu. Bake them in the oven to make them crispy, or skip the marinade for a quick chickpea curry and add the drained, canned chickpeas directly into the sauce. Other great tofu substitutions for this curry are:
Chickpea Cauliflower Florets Steamed Potatoes and Peas Green Beans Sweet Potatoes
More Easy Vegan Dinners
If you enjoyed this vegan butter chicken recipe, you’ll love these other easy vegan dinners.
