Home > Recipes > Vegan dinners > Vegan coconut curry

Vegan coconut curry

Name: Vegan coconut curry
Prep time: 25 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 50 min
Cuisine: Indian recipes
Ingredients: 2 tbsp light olive oil or coconut oil; 2 x 280g packs firm tofu, cut into chunks and dried on kitchen paper; 4 large spring onions, white and green parts sliced separately; 4 garlic cloves, crushed; 1-2 red chillies, sliced, to taste; 1 tbsp cumin seeds, bashed; 10 fresh or 15 dried curry leaves; 400ml half-fat coconut milk; 175g frozen peas; 200g tenderstem broccoli; 1 tbsp tamarind paste, plus extra to drizzle

Published: 5 Dec 19
Updated: 21 Mar 25

This vegan coconut curry uses firm tofu for its ‘meatier’ texture and is jam-packed with fresh, zingy flavours from the curry leaves, coconut, tamarind and cumin.

Want to batch cook? Cool the dish completely, then transfer to 1 or 2 freezerproof containers and freeze for up to 1 month. Defrost in the fridge overnight, if need be, then reheat until piping hot throughout or take a look at the tip (below) to find out how to put a Thai twist on this dish. If freezing a batch, omit the peas and add to the defrosted portion to cook through as it reheats.

Check out our warming aubergine and tofu curry made with Greek yogurt, mango chutney and roasted peanuts next.

Easy
December 2019

Test kitchen approved

hands-on time 25 min, cooking time 25 min

This vegan coconut curry uses firm tofu for its ‘meatier’ texture and is jam-packed with fresh, zingy flavours from the curry leaves, coconut, tamarind and cumin.

Check out our warming aubergine and tofu curry made with Greek yogurt, mango chutney and roasted peanuts next.

Nutrition: per serving

Calories: 386kcal
Fat: 24.3g (9.1g saturated)
Protein: 25.3g
Carbohydrates: 12.6g (5.6g sugars)
Fibre: 7g
Salt: 0.3g

Save recipe

Save

Save recipe Print

Rate

Ingredients

2 tbsp light olive oil or coconut oil
2 x 280g packs firm tofu, cut into chunks and dried on kitchen paper
4 large spring onions, white and green parts sliced separately
4 garlic cloves, crushed
1-2 red chillies, sliced, to taste
1 tbsp cumin seeds, bashed
10 fresh or 15 dried curry leaves
400ml half-fat coconut milk
175g frozen peas
200g tenderstem broccoli
1 tbsp tamarind paste, plus extra to drizzle

Cook Mode Sticky screen? No thanks! Tap to prevent your screen from going off while cooking.

Method

Heat the oil in a wide, heavy-based pan over a medium heat, add the tofu and brown for around 2-3 minutes on each side until golden. Remove from the pan and set aside.
Add the chopped white parts of the spring onions, the garlic, half the chilli/es and all the cumin seeds to the pan, mix well and fry for 1 minute, then add the curry leaves and fry for another minute.
Add the coconut milk and 200ml cold water (or veg stock if you have it), then simmer gently over a low-medium heat for 10 minutes, being careful not to let the curry boil or it will split. Add back the tofu, peas and broccoli, then cook for 5 minutes or so until just cooked. Stir in 1 tbsp tamarind paste, then cook for another 1-2 minutes.

Serve sprinkled with the green parts of the spring onion and an extra drizzle of tamarind paste.

Recipe from December 2019 Issue

Nutrition

Nutrition: per serving

Calories: 386kcal
Fat: 24.3g (9.1g saturated)
Protein: 25.3g
Carbohydrates: 12.6g (5.6g sugars)
Fibre: 7g
Salt: 0.3g

delicious. tips

Next time, try our Thai-style tofu curry: fry 2 tbsp Thai green curry paste in a little oil in a large saucepan, add a batch of the coconut and tamarind tofu curry, then reheat until piping hot. Top with a large handful of roughly chopped fresh Thai basil or coriander to serve.