I can’t seem to get enough curry lately. Indian restaurants usually feature Chicken Tikka Masala on their menus and it’s one of my favorites. I love the flavors of the sauce but wanted to make it vegan, as well as shed some calories and fat by dropping the ghee (clarified butter), oil, and heavy cream. This sauce has all of the flavor without the calories. To further lighten it up, I serve this over quinoa rather than white rice. Between the tofu, edamame and quinoa, this dish is loaded with protein – about 24 grams per serving!
Don’t let the seemingly long list of ingredients scare you off – this is really easy to make. Trust me, I don’t like to labor over effort-intense recipes. But since almost everything is pre-packaged (doesn’t necessarily mean unhealthy if you use good brands) or spices, this comes together quickly. You’ll be glad you gave this a try!
Ingredients (serves 8)
2 cups uncooked quinoa
2 14-ounce packages extra firm tofu – diced into1-inch cubes
12 ounces edamame (fresh or frozen)
1 medium chopped onion (about 1½ cups)
¼ cup roughly chopped garlic
¼ cup roughly chopped fresh ginger
1 14-ounce can low-fat coconut milk
1 14-ounce can low-sodium diced tomatoes
2 cups low-sodium vegetable broth
chopped cilantro for garnish
1 – 2 teaspoons salt
Spices
1 teaspoon ground cumin
½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon turmeric
½ teaspoon anise seed
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon coriander
½ teaspoon cardamom
Directions
1. Place uncooked quinoa and 4 cups of water in a sauce pan, bring to a boil, reduce to simmer, cover and cook for 15 minutes. Remove from heat and leave covered another 5 – 10 minutes to absorb any excess liquid. Fluff with a fork and leave covered to keep warm until it’s time to serve.
2. Place onion, garlic, ginger, tomatoes, vegetable broth and all spices in a large soup pot. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low and cook for 10 minutes until onions are completely cooked. Stir occasionally to ensure it’s not sticking or burning.
3. Place everything in a blender or food processor along with the coconut milk. You might need to do this in a couple of batches depending on the size of your appliance. Then blend the mixture until it’s completely smooth. You could also leave everything in the pot and use an immersion blender to puree the mixture.
4. Return pot to the burner and bring to a boil. Add in the tofu and edamame. Reduce to simmer and cook another 10 – 15 minutes until edamame is completely cooked and tofu has a chance to absorb the flavors.
5. Salt to taste. Serve hot over a bed of quinoa with chopped cilantro.
Caren says
I have two questions about this recipe, which looks really good!
1 – Your directions don’t say where to add the tofu.
2 – At the end of your directions you say to add the cooked quinoa and edamame to the pot and then to serve over quinoa. I suspect we’re supposed to do only one of those things.
Can you clarify?
Thanks.
Amy says
Hi Caren – Thanks for spotting this! I fixed the instructions under #4. I should have said to add “tofu” – not “quinoa”. Hope this helps!
Caren says
Thanks, Amy. I made this yesterday and all I can say is “Wow”!
Amy says
Yea! I’m so glad you liked it. Thanks for giving it a try, Caren!
Nancy says
Hi – at what point do we add the coconut milk?
Amy says
Arrrrgh! I can’t believe I missed that! Thank you so much for pointing it out. You add the coconut milk in step 3 when you put everything in the blender. I’m updating the post right away. Thanks so much for stopping by!