Vegan Palak Paneer (Healthy Palak Tofu)
This palak tofu recipe is full of spices, creamy and rich, but thanks to light coconut milk and tofu in place of paneer, it’s only about 200 calories for 1/4 of the ENTIRE recipe, and it's gluten-free and vegan friendly too!
Servings: 4 servings
Calories: 183kcal
Ingredients
- 1 10oz package chopped frozen spinach
- 1 14-16oz package extra firm tofu
- 2 medium tomatoes
- 1 tsp chopped ginger
- 1½ tsp ground coriander
- ¼ tsp ground cumin
- ½ tsp ground turmeric
- ¼ tsp cayenne pepper
- 2 tsp coconut oil
- ½ tsp garam masala
- ½ tsp cumin seeds
- 1 Pinch of asafetida hing
- ½ tsp salt or to taste
- 2 tbsp whole wheat flour
- 1½ cups light coconut milk
- ½ tomato diced to garnish
Instructions
- Dice your tofu into big cubes. Spray a large pan with olive oil cooking spray. Pan-fry the tofu on each side until it is firm and slightly browned.
- Take the tofu out of the pan, place in a bowl and set aside. Meanwhile, blend the tomatoes and ginger until they come together in a smooth puree.
- Combine the tomato mixture with the coriander powder, garam masala, turmeric, cumin powder and cayenne (if you are making it for your kids - you can leave the cayenne out here and add it in at the end just for you!)
- Mix the whole wheat flour with the coconut milk and set aside.
- Heat coconut oil in a large pan. Test the heat by adding one cumin seed to the oil; if it cracks/pops right away it is ready. Add hing and cumin seed. After cumin seeds pop, add the tomato puree mixture, and let it cook for a few minutes until the tomato puree is about half in volume.
- Add the spinach and salt. Let cook on low for about 10 minutes.
- Add the coconut milk mixture, and let cook on low another 4-5 minutes until everything is combined.
- Add the tofu and fold it gently into the spinach mixture, let simmer for 2-3 minutes. Serve with diced tomatoes, roti, whole wheat tortillas, naan or rice.
Notes
Top Tips For Making Vegan Palak Paneer
- I recommend measuring out all of your spices and prepping all of your ingredients ahead of time. Once you start, the recipe moves pretty quickly and most of the time involved is in the prep!
- Don't forget to press your tofu to remove all the excess water!
- Make sure you use extra firm tofu - silken or regular tofu will fall apart in this dish.
- You can store this palak paneer with tofu in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. I don't recommend freezing this recipe as tofu changes texture when it goes from frozen to defrosted.
Nutrition
Calories: 183kcal | Carbohydrates: 13g | Protein: 11g | Fat: 10g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Sodium: 472mg | Potassium: 582mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 3g