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This Vegan Palak Tofu Paneer is the easiest Vegan Palak Paneer with Tofu. Its dairy-free, gluten-free. Can be made soy-free w/ chickpea tofu, veggies or cooked chickpeas. 20 minute active time and ready in another 10. Serve over cooked grains of choice or with flatbread. Vegan Gluten-free Indian Recipe. Jump to Recipe
Any which way, lets get back to this Vegan Palak Tofu “Paneer”. Palak is Spinach and Tofu acts as the spiced up Paneer. I used to love the creamy palak paneer in my pre-gan days. Since vegan-izing it, I usually make it with Tempeh. With Tofu however it tastes even creamier. And the best part is it takes less than 20 minutes in the kitchen. Saute the Tofu, meanwhile blend up the spinach, no Blanching needed!, add to Tofu and let cook while you clean up, or prep/make the flat bread or rice. Drizzle cashew cream and serve. Done. For a more paneer like consistency, mix the tofu with the oil and spices and bake it for 20 mins. I find that panfrying is much quicker for a weeknight meal.
Another delicious Indian restaurant style curry veganized! Lets make this vegan Palak Paneer.
You can make it soy-free with potatoes and/or cauliflower, cooked chickpeas/beans or Chickpea Tofu . Serve with flat breads, or top a bowl of quinoa or brown rice, or make sandwiches or top a pizza!
The easiest and the tastiest Vegan Palak Tofu Paneer !
Back to this Saag “Paneer”. I often substitute half of the greens with other green leafies, like collard greens or mustard greens. This spinach gravy is a delicious to add greens to meals if you are not fond of green smoothies.
More restaurant style curries on the blog
Vegetable Jalfrezie – Veggies in tangyy smoky curry.
Tempeh Do Pyaaza – Tempeh in double onion curry
Dahl Makhani
Mango curry Tofu
Tempeh Tikka Masala curry
Gobi Makhani – Creamy buttery curry
Step by Step Photos:
Saute the Tofu in a little oil for 2-3 minutes.
Add all the spices and mix and cook for 8-10 minutes.
Meanwhile, collect all the ingredients for the spinach curry and blend them.
The tofu is all seasoned up by now.
Add the spinach puree, mix well and cook for 10-15 minutes.
Drizzle some cashew cream or coconut cream and serve hot.
This popular recipe is also in my cookbook! Now available internationally!
Vegan Palak Tofu "Paneer" - Tofu in Spinach Sauce
Ingredients
Spiced Tofu
- 2 teaspoons oil
- 7 oz firm tofu block, , 1.5 cups cubed tofu, pressed for 10 mins to remove excess moisture and then cubed
- 1/4 tsp salt or to taste
- 1/2 tsp cumin powder
- 1/2 tsp garam masala
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- a generous pinch of kala namak, , optional, or use 1 tsp nutritional yeast
- 1/2 tsp cayenne, Or use paprika for less heat
Spinach curry
- 2 cups packed Spinach, washed, chopped if large, Or 6-8 oz frozen spinach
- 1/4 cup water
- 1/4 cup almond milk or coconut milk, (use less or more for preferred consistency)
- 2 Tablespoons soaked cashews, , soaked for 15 minutes or use ground raw cashew (less or more for creamy consistency to preference)
- 4 cloves of garlic
- 1 inch ginger
- 1 Serano chili pepper , or to taste
- 1 medium tomato chopped
- 1/4-1/2 tsp salt to taste
- 1 teaspoon raw sugar or maple syrup
- 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon garam masala, , less or more to preference, depends on the freshness of the spice mix and your preference of flavor
- cashew cream, pepper flakes to garnish
Instructions
- In a pan, add oil and heat on medium heat. Chop up the tofu and add to the oil. Mix to coat and cook for 2-3 minutes. Add all the spices under Spiced Tofu and mix to coat. (Add 2 tsp nutritional yeast for cheesy flavor if you like) Continue to cook for 8-10 minutes, partially covered on low-medium heat. See video.Alternatively: Toss the tofu in oil and the spices, spread on parchment lined baking sheet and bake at 400 F for 20 mins for a more paneer-ish texture.
- Meanwhile, wash the fresh spinach and add it and all the other ingredients under Spinach curry except garam masala to the blender. Blend into a smooth puree. Add the puree to the sizzling tofu. Mix well. Add garam masala to taste. Cook covered on low-medium heat for 10-15 minutes or until the raw garlic smell is not detectable and desired sauce consistency is achieved. Taste and adjust salt and spice.
- Drizzle some cashew cream and Serve hot with Naan, Roti or other flat breads, or with quinoa or rice. Add pepper flakes for added heat. Sprinkle a pinch of cinnamon powder for variation.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
This was amazing! I doubled the recipe and my husband and I ate the whole dish in one sitting! Also perfect for the cold and flu season. Bookmarked! Thanks!
I really liked this version! It seemed to go a lot faster than when I usually make it – I tend to cook everything, then immersion blend the gravy. Thanks for this tip, and the tasty tasty recipe 🙂
Thanks for this wonderful recipe! My spinach-hating 10-year old requested it again this week. Keep up the good work!
Thank you Carrie. So glad to hear about change! more power to spinach:)
Do you have a garam masala blend you recommend, or do you make your own mix? This looks delicious!
i buy mine from the Indian store. Any brand that is in whole spices and not already ground will do.
That’s good to know! I used a ground garam masala that was a little heavy on the cinnamon and nutmeg… it was still good, just not what I’m used to with a Palak Paneer. I’ll definitely be making this again 🙂
it depends on the brand, non indian brands usually have heavier cinnamon and nutneg ratio. i have a garam masala recipe in my book which i will be posting soon. try the swad or deep brand whole spice garam masala ( available on amazon.com or Indian stores)
When using the whole spice mixtures, do you grind up the entire bag all at once? If not, how do you get a balanced amount of the whole spices for just a teaspoon or two ground?
i grind like a 1/4 to 1/2 cup and store. I go through spices quickly, so often i buy ground spices as well.
I about jumped out of my chair screaming when i read the ingredients. I can eat this! a curry recipe with no onion or tomato! HALLELUJAH.
There is a tomato in there, but you can omit it or use roasted red pepper:)
I love tofu! But I’m super picky about the texture, so there are only certain varieties I’ll eat. I’ve never had palak paneer, since I only really discovered Indian food since becoming vegan. Looking forward to trying your version!
I am looking forward to your vwgan rasmalai recipe!
It took me awhile to warm up to tofu, before I learned how to infuse/marinate/encrust it with yumful flavors. Searing it with a spicy sauce is always my simple favorite but I can’t resist all the fabulous flavors you have in this recipe so I must try it. Many thanks!
Yummy. The color is wonderful and – well, I do like the chunks of tofu :-).
i have still never cooked with tofu, but this looks creamy and delicious. also, i’m just reminded that your vegetable jafrezi has been on my to-make list for a while now. need to make that this weekend.