Vegan Thai red curry with tofu and vegetables

Vegetarian Thai red curry with tofu served in a white bowl

Vegan Thai red curry with tofu and vegetables

This easy Vegan Thai red curry has a base of coconut milk and is loaded with vegetables and tofu. It's made from scratch and even the red curry paste is homemade. This vegetable Thai curry is suitable to be consumed by vegans and vegetarians.

Course Main Course

Cuisine Asian, Thai

Diet Vegan, Vegetarian

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Total Time 35 minutes

Servings

Calories 123kcal

Author Vandana Chauhan

Equipment

Oven
Grinder
Cooking pot

Ingredients

Ingredients for vegan Thai red curry paste

10-12 dried red chilies
1-2 fresh Thai red chilies optional
1/4 cup roughly chopped shallots/ red onion
1 tablespoon roughly chopped garlic adjust to taste
3 stalks lemon grass roughly chopped
1 inch piece of galangal roughly chopped
A handful of cilantro stems/ roots roughly chopped
Zest of 1 kaffir lime/ regular lime-medium sized
1 teaspoon white peppercorns
Salt as per taste soy sauce can also be used instead of salt
1 cup boiling water

Ingredients for baked tofu

1/2 cup medium firm tofu cubes
1/2 teaspoon vegetable oil/ any neutral flavored oil
Salt to taste soy sauce can also be used instead of salt

Ingredients for curry

2 cups diced vegetables of choice I have used cauliflower, mushrooms, French beans and snow peas
4-5 kaffir lime leaves
1 tablespoon lime juice adjust to taste
5-6 fresh Thai basil leaves/ 1/2 teaspoon dried Thai basil
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon tomato paste optional
1 tablespoon coconut sugar/ brown sugar
3/4 cup + 2 cups coconut milk
1.5 cups vegetable stock
Fresh cilantro for garnishing

Instructions

Remove the seeds and placenta of dried red chilies and soak them in hot water for 10-15 minutes.
Wrap the tofu block in a clean kitchen towel/ tissue paper. Cover with a plate and put something heavy on top. Leave like this for 10-15 minutes.
After 15 minutes, cut the tofu block into bite-size pieces. Add oil and salt, toss. Spread the tofu cubes on a baking tray lined with a baking sheet. Bake at 200°C ( 400°F) for 12-15 minutes.
In a grinder add the soaked red chilies and all the other ingredients of curry paste. Also, add 1-2 tablespoons of water in which the chilies were soaked. Grind to make a smooth curry paste.
Heat a pot and add ¾ cup of coconut milk. Cook while stirring in between until the milk starts to thicken. It will take around 6-7 minutes.
Add curry paste, mix, and sauté for around 5 minutes or until the raw smell of shallots and garlic goes away.
Next, add tomato paste, dried Thai basil, and coconut sugar. Cook for another minute. If using fresh Thai basil add it later with kaffir lime leaves.
Add all the vegetables and cook for around 5 minutes or until they are no longer raw but still crunchy.
Add coconut milk, vegetable stock, soy sauce, and crushed kaffir lime leaves. Mix well and let the curry simmer for 10-12 minutes.
Finally, add baked tofu and cook for another 2 minutes.
Add fresh lime juice and cilantro. Serve hot with jasmine rice or any other rice dish of your choice.

Notes

Instead of using coconut milk to saute curry paste in the first step you can also use coconut oil as a cooking medium.
If you don't like the taste of coconut oil, use refined coconut oil.
Don't overcook the vegetables they should remain crunchy.
Though Kashmiri red chili is not a part of Thai cuisine, if your heat tolerance is low but you don't want to compromise with the red color of your curry, use dried Kashmiri chilies. They are used in Indian cooking to add color but are very mild.

Nutrition