Quick Tofu Tikka Masala
20 min
Meal
Servings
Total
20 minPrep
5 minCook
15 minContains
soy
tree nut
Swap out
gluten
Free from
peanut
sesame
Ingredients
-
2 Tbsp (30 mL)vegetable oil, divided
-
8.8 oz (250 g)firm tofu, cut into 2 cm pieces
-
1medium onion, chopped
-
1 Tbsp (6 g)freshly grated ginger
-
1 tsp (2 g)whole brown mustard seeds
-
-
½ tspsalt
-
¼ tspchili powder, or less for less spice
-
1large tomato, chopped
-
¾ cup (180 mL)soy cooking cream
-
½ cup (120 mL)unsweetened soy yogurt
-
¼ cup (32 g)raw cashews, chopped
-
3 Tbsp (49 g)tomato paste
-
½lime, juiced
-
Make your own
Directions
- To a large pan on high heat, add half of the oil and cook the tofu, turning it periodically so it gets lightly golden on all sides, about 8 minutes.
- Meanwhile, to another large pan on medium-high heat, add the remaining oil and cook the onion for 3 minutes.
- Add the ginger and mustard seeds. Cook for 2 more minutes.
- Add the masala seasoning, salt, and chili and toast for another minute. The dish is spicy, so omit or add less chili if you're not a fan of heat.
- Add the chopped tomato, cooking cream, yogurt, cashews, and tomato paste. Cook for 7 - 8 minutes.
- Lastly, add the cooked tofu and stir it through.
- Squeeze over the lime juice, stir, and serve with naan or rice. Enjoy!
Storage
- Keep in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Let us know what you think
Plate method
The Plate Method is a visual tool that helps us ensure our dietary needs are on track. Touch the image below to see how this recipe measures up.
Grains & Starches 51%
• vegan naan
Proteins 22%
• firm tofu
• unsweetened soy yogurt
• raw cashews
Fruits & Veggies 27%
• medium onion
• freshly grated ginger
• large tomato
• tomato paste
• lime
Calcium
• firm tofu
• unsweetened soy yogurt
Fat
• vegetable oil
• soy cooking cream
• raw cashews
Nutrition info
We believe that focusing on numbers can harm our relationship with food. Instead, our philosophy is to Nourish the Cells & the Soul. If you require specific nutrition information due to a medical condition, please consult with a dietitian or physician. The nutritional information provided is composed with the utmost care. However, we cannot guarantee the correctness of the displayed values, see also our disclaimer.
Watch it step-by-step!
Discussion & Rating
It’s very bad with coconut milk
This looks so good! I love tikka masala and I'll have to try this.
I do have a question: Sadia has mentioned before that European chili powder is pretty different from North American chili powder. Here in the US it's more of a blend that's used in Latin American/Tex Mex cooking. Is the chili powder in this recipe more like pure ground chili peppers?
Thanks!
This recipe is sooo good! Simple and effective: super delicious. I made it once with rice and spinach on the side for a simple evening dinner, and once with two other PUL recipes for a dinner with friends: the garlic naan and the potato and green pea curry. It was just a feast and everybody thought all the food was so delicious. Thank you for sharing these amazing, often fairly easy, recipes!
I made this today, it was so delicious! I love tofu and tikka masala, so this was perfect.
This is SUCH a good recipe! It's become a staple in our household now and I'm so happy I found it. Even though I'm more of an OG butter chicken fan (but I can't handle dairy), I actually liked this recipe more. It's so filling along with the naan that I sometimes omit the tofu!
HOW??? How did I live without this until today??? This is going straight to my "go to" recipe for quick dinners. I had all ingredients ready, and when I came from the gym, in less than half hour the tofu tikka masala was on my plate. I used regular yogurt, but had vegan cream...and oh my sweet Goddess of indian food! Thank you so much for sharing such high quality content for "regular people" :)))
I'm making this tikka masala again tonight, since my Indian husband loves it so much! A couple of weeks ago I made it for his colleagues who came over for dinner, including a couple of other Indians, and yes, they also loved it. I guess that says it all, if Indians love it, than it really must be good. 😉
First time cooking with tofu and I loved it!! Thanks. When is the app out ? :)
Actually, I'm not a big lover of Tikka Masala. But I had some leftover Tofu that I wanted to use and as I saw your video with the recipe, I gave it go. For Tikka Masala, it was very delicious. Still not my favorite dish, but I would cook it again and even my husband liked it. Thanks for all the ideas. You inspire me a lot when it comes to the question what to cook during the week.
Love from Germany
It would be cool if there was a timer for step 3 too!
This recipe is amazing! I’ve been making it ever since you posted the youtube video with the recipe. I only switch the vegan cooking cream and yoghurt with dairy as I’m not vegan, but otherwise I follow the recipe.
This recipe is divine!
I enjoyed cooking it, the tasting was delicious. Excellent also for kids.
Thank you so much, your channel created a significant added value in my cooking skills.
Amazing recipe. Again, your repice never disappoints
This is truly an amazing dish... it takes so little time (even if I decided to use the same pot for the tofu and for the sauce, I still doubt it even took 25 minutes from start to belly.) and still comes out so fantastic! It's one of the very best dishes I have tried and a super easy recipe, too - if I could give it 6 stars out of 5, I definitely would.
I made this last night and loved it! I haven't access to soy cream so I made cashew cream and it was divine! I fried the tofu in my air fryer and it was perfect and cut down on my time at the stove. Will definitely be making this again and I have leftover spice mix for next time too. For leftovers today I added steamed kale which was yummy and garnished with cilantro! Thanks for another wonderful recipe.
Only five minutes total to press and cut the tofu; chop the onion, tomato, and cashews; grate the ginger; juice the lime; and measure the eight other ingredients? Maybe for The Flash.
I enjoyed the recipe well enough, but dishonest prep times are a pet peeve of mine, and they're rampant on cooking sites. Why? Just be honest, it's okay.
Simply delicious and warm, perfect for a winter day, many thanks for the recipe! I did not have cashews so I used walnuts instead but it was amazing, the gentle sweet taste it gave to the sauce is incredible. Also I did not have the tikka masala ready at home, so I used your recipe to mix the ingredients, the feature to mark the used spices is extremely helpful, you have a fantastic website. The only tricky part was to make golden all sides of the tofu cubes. Is there a quick way or insider suggestion how to rotate the tofu cubes quickly or more effective?
I made this dish two weeks ago and it was quite good. So I decided to make it again yesterday. My husband bought vanilla flavored soy yogurt instead of plain yogurt and I realised it after I used it in the dish, I was very upset with myself, but when I tasted it, it tasted just the same as the last time, despite using the wrong ingrediënt. For the next time I am tempted to try some other flavored yogurt besides vanilla, jk hehe. Thank you for this recipe.
Love this recipe! Quick and easy, perfect to make ahead and enjoy later throughout the week!
Thanks for the recipe!
what kind of chili powder do you use? The one I have is not very spicy at all? Just curious.
Thanks!
This is such a lovely recipe! Really quick but very delicious. I have made this twice already the past two weeks, definitely recommend!!!
Made it today and overate like it was christmas, unbeliveable delicious. I had to make some changes because I didn‘t have everything at home: I left out the joghurt and just took more cream (I did the same with the naan) and I swapt the tofu for some dry soy „meat“ I had in my pantry. It worked out perfectly well and I will cook it again a lot of times.
Thank you so much!
Wow! Just tried this recipe and it was PERFECT!! We don’t have Indian food widely available in Mexico and I’m just so happy I can now make my own 🥳
This was AMAZING and so easy to prepare. Didn't have lime so I added your Afghan Chutney to the top (the chutney has been a staple in my house over the last year and has a permanent spot in my fridge) for some acidicy and it was perfect!
I second the below reviewer that said you need a physical cookbook. I would swoop that up and a copy for all my family in a heartbeat! Thank you thank you thank you for these recipes.
Amazing!
I just tried this recipe today and I am shocked. And in love because this dish is superior 😍❤️Even my family who isn't the biggest Indian food fan found it delicious...the different textures hit just different. I loved the crunch of the cashews and the softness of the tofu paired with the flavourful sauce😍still in food heaven😊I made it with your homemade tikka masala mix and I think it couldn't have been any better❤️
20/10 !!! This dish right here??? Amazing! I went with the coconut milk substitute and I couldn't find soy unsweetened yogurt so I used vanilla almond milk yogurt 😅. I was nervous about the sweetness but it all balanced out honestly. Another top tier recipe 👌🏾
10/10 - so tasty!
Hi!!! I absolutely loved this recipe.😍😍😍
Ive started to get into cooking just recently and I'd love to try more recipes like this, easy delicious.
This recipe was absolutely delicious!! All the flavours and textures came together so perfectly and I made the PUL naan recipe to accompany it too which was so tasty. I already cannot wait to make this again!
My goodness this was incredibly tasty. Will be making it again!
I was really excited to try it, it really is quick to prepare but unfortunately the taste was disappointing - it had a strong mushroom aroma for some reason... I used curry powder, maybe that was the reason? Anyway it was worth a try :)
That was the recipe that I'm looking forward to making! Can I swap cooking cream with anything? I never have cooking cream at hand as I don't use it for anything (and vegan or vegetarian version is hard to come by where I live).
Also - hope that someday there will be a physical copy of your updated cookbook! It is my favorite - it's gotten me through the pandemic!
Thank you for yet another amazing recipe! It's very similar to a recipe an Indian friend taught me years ago, but she eyeballed everything so I could never get it to taste quite how hers did. I will definitely be making this regularly.
This recipe is perfect! I love Tikka Massala and never got it righty thanks so much.
Loved it! I have done a vegan tikka masala before but I will definitely be using this recipe over the others from now on. It’s full of flavour. Annoyingly I forgot to squeeze over the lime but it just means I’ll have to make it again in a couple of days. Thank you for yet another great recipe!
Is it freezer friendly?
Tasted incredible! The cashews made it for me.
I have to say that mine came out a bit thicker and drier than the usual tikka masala I've eaten in restaurants (and the one seen in the video). Maybe I just need to take it off the heat earlier next time?
It was also much redder in color than orange. I think I went overboard with the tomato paste, haha.
Thanks for the recipe, anyways :)
The flavors were bold and absolutely delicious!!
Just made this and it's so good. 10/10 would recommend! Will definitely be making this again.
One of the best !
I'm sorry Sadia but I just can't stop trying your recipes! I made this one today and it was delicious!!! It has that Indian kick to it and I'm all about that
I don't love cooking, but this was really easy and super delicious. Will be making it again!
Okay WOW this recipe was unbelievably good! 20/10 recommend. How are these recipes FREE?!
It is night here, in India and I realized I was running out of time for dinner. Made the tikka masala, including the homemade powder and wow, it definitely hits the spot! My family loved it, especially the spices prepared were fresh and vibrant. Thanks, PUL and Team! Looking forward for such wonderful recipes in the future.