Easy Vegan Butter Chicken
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.
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!
Related Recipes
Here are some more delicious recipes you’ll love:
- Best Red Lentil Coconut Dahl
- Red Curry Lentil Cauliflower Stew
- Vegetable Korma
- Vegan Panang Curry with Tofu
- Vegan Biryani
Easy Vegan Butter Chicken
-
Prep Time: 10 mins -
Cook Time: 15 mins
-
Total Time: 25 minutes
-
Yield: 4 1x -
Category: Main Dish -
Method: Stovetop, Blender -
Cuisine: Indian - Diet: Vegan
Incredible, vegan “butter chicken style” tofu ready in less than 30 minutes. This is so easy to make for a quick weeknight dinner!
Print Recipe
Pin RecipeIngredients
- 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
Instructions
- Press your tofu for at least 20 minutes.
- Place the raw cashews and almond milk in a high speed blender and mix until completely smooth. Set aside.
- In a large pan, heat the coconut oil over medium heat.
- Add the ginger, garlic and onion and cook for 5 minutes while stirring.
- Add all the spices and cook for a few more minutes.
- Add the diced tomatoes, maple syrup, cubed tofu and cashew mixture. Mix well and simmer for 10 minutes.
- Season with salt and pepper, if needed.
- Serve with rice and fresh cilantro.
Notes
- It’s not 100% necessary to press your tofu if you’re in a pinch. However, I would recommend it if you have time. Simply fold a dish cloth around the block of tofu and set a few heavy books or plates on top of it. Let it sit for about 20-30 minutes. This presses all the water out so it’s able to soak up all the yummy Indian flavours!
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1/4 of recipe
- Calories: 307
- Sugar: 7.5 g
- Sodium: 377 mg
- Fat: 20 g
- Carbohydrates: 18 g
- Fiber: 4 g
- Protein: 15 g
Keywords: vegan butter chicken, vegan butter tofu
This recipe as originally published January 19, 2015. It was updated December 2019 with new photos and text.
Loved this recipe! easy, tasty and satisfying on so many levels. It’s going into regular rotation.
★★★★★
Just finished making this for lunch and it was 6 thumbs up!!!!!
★★★★★
Amazing! So glad to hear it.
I made this for lunch today, it was delicious! My whole family enjoyed it! I used to think plant-based eating was bland and boring until I started experimenting with different recipes and this site is awesome for the variety of recipes! Thanks!
★★★★★
You’re welcome, Carmen! Glad everyone enjoyed it!
One to write home about!! My home smelled amazing. Thank you for making my transition to whole food plant base so tasty.
★★★★★
Awesome! So happy you enjoyed it!! Thank you very much for the review.
I personally absolutely loved this recipe, I used oat milk instead of almond milk. My partner didn’t enjoy so much as he thought it was quite watery from the tin of tomatoes but I think this is just the cheaper brand we used. Overall love this, and will definitely be making it again.
★★★★★
Awesome! Glad you enjoyed it! Tinned tomatoes definitely vary in quality, let me know if you get a chance to try it with a different kind.
This was delicious, I followed the recipe exactly! Served with brown rice.
★★★★★
I’m so very glad to hear that! Thanks for letting me know!
Can this be made minus the tomatoes (severe tomato allergy) & if so what is a good substitute?
Unfortunately the tomato is a key part of this recipe, so I can’t recommend a substitute. You could try it without but it would be a much different flavour and consistency. Sorry!
Although it would be very different still, you might want to try pureed roasted red pepper.
This looks great! do you think it would work if I replaced the tofu with seitan? Thanks!
Sure! Enjoy!
It was so good! My (non-vegan) roommates couldn’t believe how creamy it was. Definitely will make again (and next time I will try with tofu instead of seitan). Thanks so much!
★★★★★
Does the calories include one serving with rice or is it just one serving if the curry alone?
It’s just the curry. Thanks!
Very easy and tasty recipe!
★★★★★
Absolutely excellent! I added a zucchini and some sliced cabbage to make it a one dish meal with veggies. So good!
★★★★★
My family loved this! The only changes I made were to add 3/4 tsp salt to the curry on the 6th step, and to coat the tofu in 3 tbsp soy sauce, and 2 tbsp cornstarch and then bake the pieces at 350°C for 20 minutes (flipping halfway though). Thanks for the great recipe Deryn!
★★★★
You’re welcome! Thanks for adding your feedback. So glad it was enjoyed!
Ah one of my favourite recipes, we do this fairly often and enjoy it every time! I tend to do extra coriander and chilli, and let it simmer a bit longer. If the texture of the tofu is too soft, I’d recommend baking it first 🙂
Also great for lunch the next day
★★★★★
Thanks for the feedback, Kelsey! So glad it’s a favourite!
This recipe is SO GOOD and one of our family favorites. I’ve made it multiple times and this is what makes it the best for us – bring cashews to a boil and let them sit in hot water while the tofu presses. Rinse and add 1/2 cup more water than the recipe calls for in the blender and it makes a delightfully creamy sauce with minimal time. I use 15oz can of tomatoes and since we’re not vegan I also add about 2-3 tbsp of real butter to the sauce while everything simmers. The flavor is DELICIOUS! Thank you for sharing.
★★★★★
This was truly delicious & so easy to make. Fragrant & creamy. It makes a lot of sauce. So if you add more tofu it would feed 6-7 I would say.
Thanks for the great recipe.
So glad you enjoyed it, Josie! Thank you so much for the kind review.
I would double the spices (except the cinnamon) and add a few cardamom seeds.
Reduce the tomato by 1 cup (8 oz.) and add another 1/2 c of the cashew cream.
This tastes much better if the tofu settle sin the sauce for at least a couple of hours or overnight.
Also, because of the absence of most of the ingredients that make butter chicken, butter chicken – I’d call it something else, because it really doesn’t taste like butter chicken. It’s a tasty veg. dish for sure, but don’t expect it to satisfy your craving for something that’s usually loaded with cream, butter and chicken.
★★★
I made this last night and the whole family loved it! Including our picky teen! It will definitely be added to our regular rotation!
Thank you so much!!
You’re welcome! So glad you enjoyed it!
Love it! I didn’t blend the cashews finely enough with the coconut milk, so the cashew cream was a bit grainy. I’ll have to pay more attention to that step next time.
★★★★★
Glad you enjoyed it, Ceara!! Thanks for the review.