Butter ‘Chicken’ (Well Actually Tofu) Curry

Name: Butter ‘Chicken’ (Well Actually Tofu) Curry
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 20 min
Cuisine: Asian, Indian
Ingredients: 1 onion; 4 garlic cloves; 3cm (1¼in) piece of ginger; ½ red chilli, deseeded (or the whole chilli if you like heat); 40g cornflour; 2 tsp smoked paprika; 3 tsp ground cumin; 3 tsp garam masala; 500ml passata; 1 x 160g tin of coconut cream; 3 tosp vegan butter; 100ml hot water (optional); salt and pepper; 280g (1 block) extra-firm tofu; light olive oil, for frying; handful of fresh mint (optional); handful of fresh coriander; 1 x 250g pouch cooked basmati rice (optional); ½ lime; a few poppadoms (optional); mango chutney (optional)

9 steps

Prep:5minCook:15min

This is similar to the classic Indian dish, butter chicken, but quicker to make, using tofu instead of chicken, and it's one of those dishes that needs to be enjoyed by many. It's a super-filling, super-satisfying showstopper that'll remain in your cooking repertoire for a good few years, until I come up with another recipe.

Updated at: Sun, 24 Mar 2024 11:53:03 GMT

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Instructions

Step 1

1. Blitz the onion, garlic, ginger and chilli in a food processor until smooth.

Step 2

2. Heat some oil in a large saucepan on a medium heat, add the onion, garlic, ginger and chilli mixture and fry for about 5-7 minutes until everything is golden.

Step 3

3. Meanwhile, tear the tofu into pieces with your bare hands and make sure they're uneven and bite-sized, almost chicken-y. Pop the cornflour in a bowl with a lid, season it with salt and pepper, then chuck in the tofu pieces, close the lid and shake it up.

Step 4

4. Heat a little oil in a large frying pan on a medium-high heat, chuck in that tofu and fry for about 5-7 minutes until the pieces go extra crispy on all their sides.

Step 5

5. When the onion-y chilli garlic-y paste is cooked, season it, then add the spices. Once the spices go fragrant, and you'll know when, pour in the passata and coconut cream and stir in the butter. If there's still some coconut cream on the sides of the tin, spoon it into a small bowl and save it for the end. Season with salt and pepper and then let that bubble away until thickened on a medium heat.

Step 6

6. At this point, you may be waiting for things to be done, so la go ahead and chop the mint (if using) and coriander for the finishing bit. If you scrunch the herbs into a tight ball, then thinly slice from one end of the ball to the other you end up with lovely diced herbs in no time at all.

Step 7

7. Once the tofu is cooked and crispy, chuck that into the curry sauce and stir until the tofu is coated - you should be left with a delicious-looking curry. This process should take 3 or so minutes, but you can add the 100ml hot water, turn the heat down and let it reduce for longer if you're waiting for your mates to arrive. You'll know when it's the right consistency when it looks like the photo.

Step 8

8. Pop the rice (if using) into the microwave for 90 seconds at 900W or whatever your packet and machine says to do.

Step 9

9. Serve it with a squeeze of lime and the chopped herbs. Drizzle that with the leftover coconut cream from earlier (if there's any) and give it a final season for good luck. Then just eat with the cooked rice and/or poppadoms, with a side of mango chutney if you fancy it. Happy? You should be.