Easy Vegan Butter Chicken

Name: Easy Vegan Butter Chicken
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 25 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Indian
Ingredients: 1/2 cup raw cashews + 1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk or water; 1 tbsp coconut oil (use vegetable stock or water if you prefer); 1 tbsp fresh ginger, minced; 3 clove garlic, minced; 1 medium white onion, finely diced; 2 tsp mild chili powder; 1 tsp ground turmeric; 1 tsp ground coriander; 1/2 tsp cumin; 1/2 tsp cinnamon; 1 tbsp pure maple syrup; 1 – 28 oz can diced tomatoes, with the juice; 1 package organic firm or extra firm tofu, pressed and cubed; salt and pepper, to taste

posted: 12/14/19 — updated: 09/14/21 by Deryn Macey

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This gluten-free and vegan butter chicken is made with tofu instead of chicken and wonderfully rich cashew cream instead of dairy. Serve over rice for a hearty, filling and flavourful plant-based meal.

Vegan butter chicken with tofu on top of white rice on a plate.

This dish is rich and creamy, high in protein and packed with nutrition. The creaminess comes from blending raw cashews with almond milk, my typical go-to for replacing heavy cream in recipes.

This recipe is one of my favourites, the flavour is unreal and it takes less than 30 minutes to make! I hope you enjoy it.

Ingredient Notes

The ingredient might seem a bit long but most of it is spices so don’t be intimidated! Let’s go over a few notes about the ingredients:

Raw cashews. You’ll need plain, raw cashews to make the cream base for this recipe. Raw cashews are light beige in colour and have no other added ingredients like oil or salt.
Spices and herbs. You’ll need onion, garlic, ginger, chili powder, turmeric, coriander, cumin and cinnamon. 1 tbsp fresh ginger, minced
Diced tomatoes. You’ll need 1 28 oz can of diced tomatoes and you’ll be adding the entire can right into the recipe. Choose organic and no salt added tomatoes if you can!
Tofu. Firm or extra-firm tofu is best for this recipe. For best results you can press it before hand but it’s not totally necessary.

How to Make this Recipe

This recipe is super easy to make. You’ll need just 30 minutes to make it and served over jasmine rice it makes a wonderfully flavourful and nutritious meal.

To make it, first you’ll need to blend up some raw cashews and almond milk or water to make cashew cream. You can find full details on how to make cashew cream here.

Next, saute the onions, garlic and ginger then add the spices and cook for a few more minutes. Finally, stir in the diced tomatoes, sweetener, tofu and cashew cream. Simmer until heated through and enjoy!

Diced tomatoes in vegan butter chicken in a white skillet on the stovetop.

Spices being added to sauteed onions, garlic and ginger in a skillet.

Cashew cream being poured from a blender into tofu butter chicken in a skillet on the stovetop.

Thick and creamy butter tofu in a skillet on the stovetop.

Vegan butter chicken with tofu on top of white rice on a plate with a skillet of butter chicken in the background.

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