Tofu Tikka Masala - a spicy, tangy and tasty tofu recipe that takes Indian food to a whole new level.
Tofu has always been something that I make at least twice a week. It's healthy, delicious and the best part is that my younger son is a huge fan of this. Of course, he likes paneer or cottage cheese as well. But, when it comes to tofu he is not a person who will make faces. In fact, both of my kids love tofu.
Earlier I have made so many tofu recipes such as this Honey Mustard Tofu Stir Fry , Chinese Broccoli Tofu Stir Fry , Grilled Tofu Kabobs , Vegan Tofu Teriyaki, and this Crispy Honey Garlic Tofu. However, this tofu recipe was something else. It has the spices, the heat, the crunch of the veggies and everything that you look for in an appetizing dinner recipe.
This was not the first time that I have made Tikka Masala. Earlier I have made Chicken Tikka Masala and Chickpea Tikka Masala and both tasted amazing. But, this recipe was slightly different than the rest.
I had to marinate my tofu with spicy yogurt and gram flour mix. The gram flour and Yogurt marinate is just your basic marinade which you should be doing for all your Tikka Masala recipes. Although for Chicken Tikka Masala, I do not use gram flour. Just the same spice mix with yogurt works fine. However, with other ingredients such as Tofu or Chickpeas, anything that'll add that extra crispiness is required such as cornflour or chickpea flour.
Another essential thing while making Tofu Tikka Masala is to first wash the Tofu and dry it out using a parchment paper. You just need to wrap the Tofu brick with parchment paper and keep it between two plates. Keep anything heavy over the top dish so that the weight helps ooze out the moisture of the Tofus.
Only after your Tofu is completely dry, cut it out into cubes and then mix it with the marinade. Drying out the Tofus is the key to get crisp Tofus when you grill them.
Tomato Ketchup or Tomato Paste?
The Tikka Masala curry is supposed to be a tomato-based gravy. However, it should also be creamy. I have seen it often that people advise replacing tomato with tomato ketchup. That's just not right.
Tomato ketchup has a sharp salty zing to it which is just not required in your Tikka Masala Curry. It also has so much overpowering acid regulators that when you use it in the gravy it steals all attention towards itself and you do not get any flavors of other spices or the onions or bell peppers.
Whereas if you use Tomatoes, it'll take time to cook and get all mushy, but it'll create an even, balanced and homogenous composition.
So, I highly stress the fact that you should always use Tomato paste in place of Tomato ketchup, especially while making Indian curries.
Chickpea Flour (Garbanzo Bean Flour) replacements?
Well, actually you should not replace Chickpea flour. However, if you just have to then you can use Buckwheat flour or Millet flour or Cornflour. I highly recommend using Cornflour as it will definitely be working perfectly in place of Chickpea (Garbanzo Bean) Flour.
Important Spices for making Tofu Tikka Masala
- Turmeric is one of the most important spices which you cannot ignore while making any Indian curry. So there is no replacement for this.
- You can use Cayenne Pepper in place of Red Chilli Powder. However, be sure to use it in moderation as it might make your gravy too hot!
- Ground Cinnamon, Ground Nutmeg and Ground Cloves are three basic spices that I highly recommend for making Tikka Masala. It'll just magically take your curry a notch higher.
Thick Greek Yogurt
Thick greek Yogurt is one of the most important ingredients in this recipe. You can replace it with Sour cream. However, be sure to use a really thick variety. If it's thin or watery, take it out in a muslin cloth and tie it into a knot to release all the moisture of the yogurt.
Tofu Tikka Masala
Ingredients
For the Yogurt -Garbanzo bean flour mix marinade
- ½ lbs Tofu
- 2 tablespoon Vegetable Oil
- ½ Cup Thick Yogurt
- 2 tablespoon Garbanzo bean flour (Chickpea Flour)
- 1 medium Red Onion Diced
- 1 half Bell Pepper Diced
- ½ teaspoon Turmeric powder
- ½ teaspoon Salt
- ½ teaspoon Freshly grounded black pepper
- ½ teaspoon Cayenne
For Tofu Tikka Masala Gravy
- 2 tablespoon Vegetable Oil
- ½ Cup Red Onions chopped
- 10 cloves garlic chopped
- ½ teaspoon Turmeric Powder
- 2 teaspoon Cayenne Pepper or Red Chilli Powder
- 1 teaspoon Brown Sugar
- 1 Cup Tomato Paste
- As per taste Salt
- 2 teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon Ground Nutmeg
- ½ teaspoon Ground Cloves
- ½ Cup Milk
- 2 teaspoon Cilantro chopped
Instructions
- First marinade the Tofus, Onion & Bell Peppers with the yogurt mix and grill it in the grill pan over some vegetable oil. Charr the Tofus properly and Keep it aside.
- Heat oil in a skillet and add Onions, Garlic, Turmeric powder, Cayenne, Brown sugar, Tomato paste, Ground Cinnamon, Ground Nutmeg, and Ground Cloves. Add salt as per taste and cook well.
- Add the milk and cook until you get a boil. Add your grilled Tofus and veggies to the curry. Cook for 2 more minutes.
- Top with freshly chopped cilantro.
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