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Instant Pot Vegan Butter Chicken with Soycurls and Chickpeas. 15 minute Active time! 1 Pot Creamy Indian Butter Soy Curls, Vegan Murgh Makhani. Use all chickpeas for soy-free. Vegetarian Gluten-free Recipe. Oil-free Nut-free option. Skillet option Jump to Recipe
Its no Butter No Chicken you all. Then why call it that? Well search! Most people search for vegan butter chicken for some reason and not vegan soycurls in no butter butter sauce or other variations ;). So here goes.
This recipe adapted from my popular Butter Tofu recipe. To make a skillet version, use the butter tofu recipe with soy curls. Just simmer the soy curls in the sauce with a up of water for 15 minutes. I use a combination of soy curls and chickpeas in this version and don’t use any oil. You can add some oil or vegan butter with the cashew cream to make it even more like restaurant flavor profile. Don’t have soy curls ? use all chickpeas, beans or veggies.
Its a super simple recipe. Blend up the tomato, garlic, ginger, chile. Add to the IP along with spices, soy curls and chickpeas, close and cook. Add some cashew cream and simmer for a few minutes to thicken, garnish and done! The garnish of fresh minced ginger and chile and some dried fenugreek takes this dish to an amazing flavor level. Make it!
Soy curls are a meat sub made with whole non gmo soy beans. You can find them in some stores or online on amazon. You can also use other bean curls! Look for “Wadi” in Indian stores made of moong dal, black eyed peas and other lentils/beans. The texture is different but they work equally well. You can also use seitan, tvp, soy chunks, beyond meat strips other chickin subs.
More IP recipes.
- Lentil Veggie Dhansak – Lentil Veggie Stew in IP. GF
- Kohlapuri Veggies – Veggies in sesame coconut sauce GF
- Mushroom Matar Masala GF
- Bombay Potato and Peas GF
- Aloo Palak Dal- Potato Spinach Lentils in IP. GF
- Eggplant Sambhar – Eggplant Split pea soup
- Aloo Gobi – Spiced potato and cauliflower
This recipe is adapted from my Butter Tofu “Paneer” recipe and the IP method is adapted from twosleevers’s butter chicken. Urvashi has some great tips on cooking indian food under pressure. This recipe benefits from a good fresh garam masala blend. I usually keep my garam masala in whole spice form and then grind it about a 1/4 cup at a time for a potent spice blend. Dried fenugreek leaves (kasuri methi) can be bought online or from an Indian store. If you cant find them, omit and add 1/4 tsp ground mustard instead. Indian restaurants generally add fenugreek for the flavor and of course a ton of cream and butter.
If you make the recipe, please do rate it. I also love to see your creations, so do tag me #veganricha on Instagram.
Vegan Butter Chicken Video:
Instant Pot Vegan Butter Chicken with Soy Curls and Chickpeas - oil-free
Ingredients
- 3 large ripe tomatoes , or 1 15 oz can diced tomatoes
- 4 cloves of garlic
- 1/2 inch cube of ginger
- 1 hot or mild green chile, , I use serrano
- 3/4 cup water, , use 1 cup if the tomatoes arent very juicy
- ½ to 1 tsp garam masala
- ½ tsp paprika or kashmiri chili powder
- ¼ to ½ tsp cayenne
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 1 cup soy curls, (dry, not rehydrated)
- 1 cup cooked chickpeas
- 1/4 cup soaked cashews blended with ½ cup water, , or 1/2 cup cashew cream or other non Dairy cream
- 1 tsp or more garam masala
- 1/2 tsp or more sugar or sweetener
- 1 tsp kasoori methi - dried fenugreek leaves, or add a 1/4 tsp ground mustard
- 1/2 moderately hot green chile, finely chopped, or use 2 tbsp finely chopped green bell pepper
- 1/2 tsp minced or finely chopped ginger
- 1/4 cup cilantro for garnish
Instructions
- Blend the tomatoes, garlic, ginger, chile with water until smooth.
- Add pureed tomato mixture to the Instant pot or pressure cooker. Add soy curls, chickpeas, spices and salt. Close the lid and press manual/pressure cook at high pressure, for 8 to 10 minutes. (6 minutes for stove top pressure cooker). Quick release after 10 minutes. (See notes for Stove top instructions)
- Start the IP on saute (medium heat for stove top pressure cooker). Add the cashew cream, garam masala, sweetener and fenugreek leaves and mix in. Bring to a boil, taste and adjust salt, heat, sweet. Add more cayenne and salt if needed. Fold in the chopped green chile, ginger and cilantro and press cancel(take off heat).
- At this point you can add some vegan butter or oil for additional buttery flavor. Serve hot over rice or with flatbread or Naan.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Made this tonight. Definite repeat! It was amazing! My non vegan husband loved it too.
Awesome!!
This is a delicious recipe! Thank you for sharing. It was the first time I have ever tried soy curls.
The meat-eater in my household approved too 😉
yay!!
I’ve made this recipe a lot and it stores really well. I was wondering if doubling the recipe would work with just doubling the portions. Would love your advice. Thank you!
Awesome! Yes double everything except the heat, use 1.5 times hot spices. Cook time will be the same. You can add an extra minute.
LOVE THIS RECIPE!! It is so easy and really good!!
Curious, why no onions? I thought onions would have been included in this. Any reason? Thanks!
There are different types of butter masala sauces. The onion version in my Indian kitchen book is similar to the makhani sauce https://fettabbau-trim.today/2013/06/gobi-musallam-whole-roasted-cauliflower.html%3C/a%3E . This one is based on the preferred tomatoey sauce style that some restaurants use(depends on the restaurants and chefs, some use onion, others ingredients and spices as well).
Thank you so much for the response! I learned something today 🙂
You are the best!
I have made your butter tofu recipe, and loved it. Soy curls are new to me, and I made this recipe tonight (IP) for a non-vegan potluck. The host went back for seconds, said it was really good, and knowing I was vegan asked about the chicken in it. I thought maybe it was just me, being away from chicken, thinking soy curls were a good substitute, but he thought it was as good as the real deal. (Of course, I know anything is better than the real deal.). Thanks for so many great recipes!!
thats awesome! So glad everyone enjoyed it! rehydrated soy curls have a eerily chiken like texture and with the right flavors, they can work as a sub in many applications
Hi! I’m new to the instant pot. I have dried chickpeas instead of canned. How would I change this recipe? Thanks!
dried chickpeas take 30 to 35 mins to cook under pressure. mushrooms would overcook in that much time. What you could do is cook the chickpeas in the instant pot for the 30 mins. Remove them, then make the mushroom masala. Add 1 to 1.5 cups of the cooked chickpeas with the mushrooms and proceed. You can also premake the chickpeas and refrigerate for upto 4 days or freeze for upto a month and use directly in recipes that call for cooked or canned chickpeas.
I found a can of chickpeas in the back of my pantry and made this. This recipe is INCREDIBLE. Thanks so much for this!
In the meantime I’m going to cook the dried chickpeas I have and have the recipe handy for next week. Thanks for your quick reply!
Awesome!
Wow!! I bought soy curls on a whim and found this recipe. It is delicious!! And so healthy, compared to all other “butter chicken” recipes I’ve seen! Super excited to have found this. Indian butter sauce was something I missed so much…and this tastes very comparable to the ones I used to order in my pre-vegan days. A new go-to.
Awesome!! for a more restaurant version, add a bit more garam masala and some vegan butter to finish. Restaurants usually add a lot of butter/cream/oil/fat
Wonderful recipe!! Great flavor, we loved it. It was hard I find soycurls where I live so I ordered them online. So glad you have instant pot recipes!! ❤️
Awesome! You can use them as chickin subs in many recipes! You can also use seitan ot other vegan chikin subs in this recipe easily
Can you cook this on the stove or slow cooker? I don’t have a pressure cooker or instant pot.
Yes, added detailed instructions inthe recipe notes. Follow step 1. Add pureed tomato mixture to a skillet/saucepan over medium heat. Add soy curls, chickpeas, spices, 1/2 cup water and salt. Partially Cover and cook for 12 to 15 minutes, until the sauce thickens and garlic does not taste raw. Add the cashew cream, garam masala, sweetener and fenugreek leaves and mix in. Bring to a boil, taste and adjust salt, heat, sweet. Add more water if too thick, more cayenne and salt if needed. Fold in the chopped green chile, ginger and cilantro and 1 tbsp vegan butter if using. Also see my stove top Butter Tofu recipe for reference. https://fettabbau-trim.today/2017/05/butter-tofu-paneer-tofu-butter-masala-recipe.html%3C/a%3E%3C/p%3E