A super simple Vegan Butter Chicken Recipe! Crispy, buttery, tofu pieces simmered in an incredible creamy Indian curry sauce. Simple Ingredients. Ready in 30 minutes. Dairy free, Gluten free.
Yes you heard me Vegan Butter Chicken! Butter chicken without chicken or butter! Ha! Well it works! And it’s amazing. And it’s made from scratch in one pot! What replaces the chicken? - Tofu!
I adapted my own butter chicken recipe for this homemade veganized version and it will rival any Indian Restaurant! It turned out better than I even expected. Just took a few tweaks. The tofu works so well, has the best texture, kind of like chicken, moist, tender and slightly chewy.
The Butter Sauce is out of this world good!
I have made this recipe with tofu or chickpeas and both versions are equally delicious!
What is Butter Chicken?
Butter Chicken (Makhan Murg) is a popular Indian dish that originated in India in 1948. Chicken simmered in a super flavourful, mildly spiced, creamy tomato sauce, similar to British Tikka masala.
Ingredients for Vegan Butter chicken:
- Tofu
- Cornstarch
- Oil
- Vegan butter
- Ginger
- Garlic
- Garam Masala
- cumin
- cardamom
- Chili powder
- Curry powder
- Coriander
- Onion powder
- Salt and pepper
- Coconut milk
- Vegan yogurt
- Tomato sauce
- Tomato paste
- Canned green chilies
What is the difference between Butter Chicken and Tikka Masala?
Tikka Masala is more intensely spiced, less creamy with more of a tomato base where as butter chicken, is creamier less intense and of course buttery? Both are mouthwatering Indian dishes! that can easily be made vegan! Yay for us!
How long will Vegan Butter Chicken Keep?
It will Keep covered in the fridge for 3-4 days
Can I freeze Vegan Butter Chicken?
Absolutely, freeze in a ziplock freezer bag or a plastic Tupperware container. It will keep in the freezer for 1-2 months. I like to freeze mine flat in a freezer bag for easy stacking.
To reheat from frozen: defrost in the fridge overnight and reheat on stove or in microwave.
How to Make Vegan Butter Chicken:
First prep all your spices, chop the ginger and garlic and measure out all the wet ingredients.
Puree the tomato sauce and the green chilies in your Nutra bullet or blender and set aside.
Slice the tofu lengthwise into three slabs. wrap in a couple layers of paper towel and gently press with your hands to remove some of the moisture. Slice into strips and then cubes.
Add the tofu to a medium bowl, mix in the oil first and then add in the cornstarch and salt. Mix thoroughly but gently.
Preheat a large non stick skillet to medium heat. When hot add the other tablespoon of oil and the tofu. Spread evenly in the pan. Cook for 3 minutes without stirring. Give it a a toss and cook for an additional 3 minutes. Remove tofu from the pan.
In the same pan add the vegan butter, ginger and garlic, cook for a minute while stirring then add in the spices. Stir for 30 seconds or so until fragrant
Add in the rest of the ingredients (minus the tofu) and stir until everything is combined. Bring to a simmer on medium heat and cook for 3-4 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add in the tofu . Simmer for an additional minute. Remove from heat.
Serve with basmati rice, little chopped cilantro and Vegan Naan Bread. Raita sauce and Mango chutney are also great additions. For full recipe ingredients and instructions, see recipe card below.
Enjoy!
Ok let's make Vegan Butter Chicken! it's:
super satisfying
buttery
gluten free
savoury
mouth-watering
full of spices
quick and easy
healthy
filling
delicious
creamy
Enjoy guys! Happy day to you? feel free to leave a comment and a rating below. I would love to hear from you.
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Here are some more Indian recipes for you:
- Vegetable Chickpea Indian Curry (Coconut Milk) (Vegan)
- Indian Mulligatawny Soup
- Easy Vegan Naan (Indian Flatbread)
- Vegan Raita (Indian Cucumber Yoghurt Sauce)
Vegan Butter Chicken
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 4-6 servings 1x
Description
A super simple, Vegan Butter Chicken Recipe. Crispy, buttery tofu pieces simmered in an incredible creamy Indian curry sauce. Simple Ingredients. Ready in 30 minutes. Dairy free, Gluten free.
Ingredients
For Tofu:
- 1 package extra firm tofu, I use water packed
- 2 tablespoons oil, divided
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- pinch of pepper
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
For Butter Sauce:
- 2 tablespoons vegan butter, I use Earth Balance
- 1 tablespoon fresh ginger, peeled, grated and finely chopped ( I use a box grater)
- 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1 tablespoon garam masala
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1/2 teaspoon curry powder
- 1/2 teaspoon granulated onion (powder)
- 1/8 teaspoon cardamon powder
- 1/4 teaspoon chili powder or 1/8 cayenne
- 1/2 cup plain vegan yoghurt, I use Silk Cultured Coconut Plain Unsweetened
- 1 can coconut milk
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 cup tomato sauce
- 1/2 can (2 oz) (63 mls) chopped green chilies
Instructions
How to Make Vegan Butter Chicken:
- First prep all your spices, chop the ginger and garlic and measure out all the wet ingredients.
- Puree the tomato sauce and the green chilies in your Nutra bullet or blender and set aside.
- Slice the tofu lengthwise into three slabs. wrap in a couple layers of paper towel and gently press with your hands to remove some of the moisture. Slice into strips and then cubes.
- Add the tofu to a medium bowl, mix in the oil first and then add in the cornstarch and salt and pepper. Mix thoroughly but gently.
- Preheat a large non stick skillet to medium heat. When hot add the other tablespoon of oil and the tofu. Spread evenly in the pan. Cook for 3 minutes without stirring. Give it a a toss and cook for an additional 3-4 minutes. Remove tofu from the pan.
- In the same pan add the vegan butter, ginger and garlic, cook for a minute while stirring then add in the spices. Stir for 30 seconds or so until fragrant
- Add in the rest of the ingredients (minus the tofu) and stir until everything is combined. Bring to a simmer on medium heat and cook for 3-4 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add in the tofu , simmer for an additional minute. Remove from heat. Season with a little salt and pepper if necessary.
- Serve with basmati rice, little chopped cilantro andVegan Naan Bread. Raita Sauce and Mango chutney are also great additions.
- Enjoy!
Notes
- you can easily sub chickpeas for tofu!?
How long will Vegan Butter Chicken Keep?
- It will Keep covered in the fridge for 3-4 days
Can I freeze Vegan Butter Chicken?
Absolutely, freeze in a ziplock freezer bag or a plastic Tupperware container. It will keep in the freezer for 1-2 months. I like to freeze mine flat in a freezer bag for easy stacking.
To reheat from frozen: defrost in the fridge overnight and reheat on stove or in microwave.
- Prep Time: 15 Minutes
- Cook Time: 15 Minutes
- Category: Mains, Gluten free,
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Indian
Keywords: vegan butter chicken, butter chicken, easy vegan butter chicken, creamy, indian, curry, curry sauce, tofu, without chicken,
I made your butter chicken and replaced the tofu with seitan Tofurky lightly seasoned chick’n is what I used. Absolutley fantastic the sauce is out of this world good!!
★★★★★
thank you so much!
I did the same thing!! It was fantastic.
★★★★★
Made this last night and it was amazing! The sauce was delicious. Next time I’ll add a bit more tofu as the recipe makes a lot a lot sauce.
★★★★★
Thanks you so much - Thrilled you loved it! More tofu - sounds good to me! (or throw in some chickpeas) Happy day to you Judy!
Just made this...wow! Amazing! Added some spinach, I'll be making this once a week from now on, thanks for the recipe!
★★★★★
Thank you so much Ali! Thrilled you enjoyed it - love the spinach add in!
We made your vegan butter chicken with chickpeas instead of tofu. It was dynamite! We were surprised by how good it was! We are making it again this week for our friends. Wonderful recipe!
★★★★★
Oh that's so great thrilled you enjoyed it. Thanks for your kind words Shay!
I’m vegetarian and this vegan butter chicken recipe was one of the best I’ve tasted! The butter chicken sauce was phenomenal! Cannot wait to make this to surprise my Mom, she is dairy free!
★★★★★
Oh that's wonderful Suzanne! Thank you so much! Hope you're Mom enjoys it!
I am really eager to try and make this dish but I have a quick question about the ingredients. I'm from Ireland and tomato sauce is what we call ketchup. Can you tell me what you mean by tomato sauce please? Thank you 😁
a can of tomato sauce is cooked pureed tomatoes, like what you would use to make a spaghetti sauce. Hope that helps Conie, enjoy!!
I was disappointed the first time I had “real”” butter chicken but was not disappointed with your recipe. My husband had three helpings so that’s his seal of approval.
★★★★★
That's wonderful Judy! so glad you both enjoyed it! Thank you so much for your comment!
this vegan butter chicken sauce is amazing! I roasted vegetables and added them to the sauce. Wow!
★★★★★
Thank you very much Janice, this sauce is one of my favourite recipes so glad you like it!! Sounds great with the roasted veg!
Made your vegan butter chicken with roasted cauliflower! WOW so good! The butter chicken sauce is simply amazing! Love this recipe!
★★★★★
Oh thank you so much! Sounds amazing with roasted cauliflower!! Thanks for your comment Francis!
Verna I made your vegan butter chicken . My son is not a fan of tofu so I added cauliflower and some left over seitan. It was so good! The butter sauce was the best I've tried!! Thank you so much! My kids loved it!
★★★★★
Oh yay!! So nice to hear Molly. Thrilled your family enjoyed it. Those sound like tasty substitutions, thank you so much for your comment.
I made this the other night and it was soooo delicious! I used both tofu and chickpeas because I couldn't pick between them. It was awesome! I do wish I had instructions for using chickpeas because I think it made it a tad watery and the tofu didn't brown, but still it was, oh, so tasty. I also made your naan bread recipe to accompany it. Thanks for two most excellent recipes!
★★★★★
YAY! thrilled you enjoyed the butter chicken and naan bread Sharon! Next time you make it I would add the chickpeas directly to the sauce after draining really well (simmer till warmed through). The tofu is best cooked by itself first 👍 Thanks so much for your comment Sharon
Absolutely delicious recipe!! Thank you for sharing.
★★★★★
you're are so welcome Rita. Glad you enjoyed the Vegan Butter chicken!! thank you for your comment
Made your vegan butter chicken with roasted cauliflower! WOW so good! The butter chicken sauce is simply amazing! Love this recipe!
★★★★★
Thanks Danielle, thrilled you enjoyed it! Lovely idea with the veggies!
I made this last nite ,so good ,especially the crispy tofu part .
★★★★★
so glad you enjoyed it Midge! thank you so much for your comment!
Is that an oxymoron LOL
VEGAN-CHICKEN
Looks delicious.....thank you. 🙂
haha only way to describe it!? Enjoy Wendy