Vegan tikka masala, deliciously flavorful and perfectly spiced. It is warming, filling, and comforting, my favorite Indian dish.
I can’t stress enough how much I adore Indian cuisine. Oh, the flavors! I try to make at least one Indian recipe every week, and this vegan tikka masala is definitely my favorite.
I love how comforting and filling it is, I promise it’ll warm you up during the cold winter days! Besides, it is also very nutritious and packed with good-quality vegan protein. I hope you like it as much as I do!
How to make vegan tikka masala
- Preheat the oven to 400ºF or 200ºC.
- Press the tofu while the oven is preheating.
- Add all the marinade ingredients to a large mixing bowl (except the tofu cubes) and mix until well combined.
- Then add the tofu cubes and mix again. Let marinate for at least 15 minutes, ideally for at least 1 hour, and even better if you let it marinate overnight.
- Drain the tofu and place it onto a lined baking sheet. Bake the tofu cubes for 25 to 30 minutes or until golden brown.
- In the meantime, cook the sauce. In a large skillet, add the oil, and when it’s hot, add the onion, garlic, and ginger and cook over medium-high heat until golden brown, stirring occasionally.
- Then add the spices, stir, and cook for 1 to 2 more minutes, stirring frequently.
- Add the tomato puree, coconut milk, water, and brown sugar, and stir. Bring to a boil and then simmer for 10 to 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Finally, add the tofu, stir, and cook over medium-high heat for about 5 more minutes.
- Serve your vegan tikka masala immediately.
Ingredients and tips
- Firm tofu: use firm or extra firm tofu to make this vegan tikka masala recipe. Silken tofu will fall apart.
- Unsweetened plant-based yogurt: I used soy yogurt, but any other type of vegan yogurt will do, such as coconut yogurt (homemade or store-bought).
- Garlic.
- Onion.
- Fresh ginger.
- Lemon juice.
- Garam masala: use store-bought garam masala or make it at home using our recipe!
- Paprika.
- Ground cumin.
- Ground coriander.
- Turmeric powder.
- Salt: I used ionized salt, but any salt will do.
- Cayenne pepper.
- Ground black pepper: fresh ground black pepper tastes amazing. However, I find the store-bought one to be more convenient and also easier to measure with a teaspoon.
- Oil: I used extra virgin olive oil, but this vegan tikka masala recipe will work with any type of oil will work. You could also use vegan butter instead.
- Tomato puree: feel free to use tomato sauce or even chopped tomatoes.
- Full-fat coconut milk: you can replace it with any other kind of unsweetened plant-milk, but coconut milk is the best choice.
- Water.
- Brown sugar: you can omit this ingredient or use any other sweetener you like instead.
What is tikka masala?
Tikka masala is a traditional Indian dish originally made with marinated chicken served with a special sauce. However, this vegan tikka masala recipe is 100% plant-based, cruelty-free, and packed with lots of protein. Delicious!
Looking for more Indian recipes?
Did you make this vegan tikka masala?
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PrintVegan Tikka Masala
- Prep: 15 mins
- Cook: 35 mins
- Total: 50 mins
- 4-6 1x
- Main Dish
- Indian
- Vegan
Servings 4-6 1x
Vegan tikka masala, deliciously flavorful and perfectly spiced. It is warming, filling, and comforting, my favorite Indian dish.
Ingredients
For the marinade:
- 28 oz firm tofu (800 g), cubed
- 1 cup unsweetened plant-based yogurt (240 ml), I used soy yogurt
- 4 cloves of garlic, minced
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 2 tsp garam masala
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp salt
- ¼ tsp cayenne pepper
- ½ tsp ground black pepper
For the sauce:
- 2 tbsp oil, I used extra virgin olive oil
- 1 onion, chopped
- 4 cloves of garlic, sliced
- 1 tbsp fresh ginger, minced
- 1 tbsp garam masala
- 2 tsp ground cumin
- 2 tsp paprika
- 2 tsp ground coriander
- 1 tsp turmeric powder
- 1 tsp salt
- ¼ tsp cayenne pepper
- 14 oz tomato puree (400 g)
- 1 cup full-fat coconut milk (240 ml)
- ¼ cup water (60 ml)
- 2 tsp brown sugar
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400ºF or 200ºC. If you don’t have an oven or don’t want to use it, omit this step.
- Press the tofu while the oven is preheating (just wrap the tofu in a clean towel and apply a steady weight to squeeze out moisture). This step is optional, but your tofu will be tastier if you do.
- Add all the marinade ingredients to a large mixing bowl (except the tofu cubes) and mix until well combined.
- Then add the tofu cubes and mix again. Let marinate for at least 15 minutes, ideally for at least 1 hour, and even better if you let it marinate overnight.
- Drain the tofu and place it onto a lined baking sheet. Bake the tofu cubes for 25 to 30 minutes or until golden brown. You could also sautée the tofu cubes in a skillet with some oil until golden brown, but I think baking them is the best choice.
- In the meantime, cook the sauce. In a large skillet, add the oil, and when it’s hot, add the onion, garlic, and ginger, and cook over medium-high heat until golden brown, stirring occasionally.
- Then add the spices (garam masala, cumin, paprika, coriander, turmeric, salt, and pepper), stir, and cook for 1 to 2 more minutes, stirring frequently.
- Add the tomato puree, coconut milk, water, and brown sugar, and stir. Bring to a boil and then simmer for 10 to 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Finally, add the tofu, stir, and cook over medium-high heat for about 5 more minutes.
- Serve your vegan tikka masala immediately.
- Keep the leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 week.
Notes
- Use firm or extra-firm tofu to make this vegan tikka masala recipe. Silken tofu will fall apart.
- Although to make this dish I used soy yogurt, any type of vegan yogurt will do, such as coconut yogurt.
- Use store-bought garam masala or make it at home using our recipe!
- I used extra virgin olive oil, but feel free to use your favorite type of oil. You could also use vegan butter instead.
- Tomato puree can be replaced with tomato sauce or even chopped tomatoes.
- You can replace the full-fat coconut milk with any other unsweetened plant milk such as soy milk, but coconut milk is the best choice.
- Feel free to omit the brown sugar or use any other sweetener you like instead.
- If you can’t find any spice, just omit it.
- Customize your vegan tikka masala with any veggies you want.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1/8 of the recipe
- Calories: 228
- Sugar: 5.8 g
- Sodium: 621 mg
- Fat: 16.2 g
- Saturated Fat: 8 g
- Carbohydrates: 13.4 g
- Fiber: 3.7 g
- Protein: 11.7 g
Delicious. It was a bit too spicy for me so I am going to add less black pepper next time. I also added just 14 oz of tofu and then added broccoli, carrots and mushrooms! Thanks – I love your website!
★★★★★
Hi Susie! Sounds so good 🙂
This is delicious Iosune!
The only thing I changed was that I used a full can of coconut milk (instead of 1 cup), and I also added a can of (undrained) chickpeas. I just wanted to bulk it up a bit as we are a large family, and that way it provided a little more sauce to go over everyone’s rice 🙂 The flavours were spot on, and even the younger ones were asking for seconds. Will add this to my recipe collection xxx
★★★★★
Hi Annelies! I’m so glad you all liked it 🙂