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This Loaded Veggie Tikka Masala is one THE most popular recipes on my blog and definitely a favorite in our house. I make it for guests on a regular basis and it’s ALWAYS a crowd pleaser. SUPER excited to hear how you like it!
Why you’ll love this reader favorite recipe!
Oh hey, welcome to one of my favorite recipe creations OF ALL TIME! Sometimes (a lot of the time) I exaggerate, but today is not one of those days :)
I didn’t grow up eating a lot of Indian cuisine (and for the record, I’m totally not claiming this recipe to be an authentic tikka masala recipe) but I have definitely made up for that over the past few years. My GO TO meal…..tikka masala! When I get to the point that I’ve eaten the same dish at the same restaurant more than about 5 times, that’s when I decide it’s past time I try the recipe for myself at home. Enter, THIS AMAZING VEGAN TIKKA MASALA! (sorry for yelling….I’m just really in love with this recipe).
Why you’ll love this:
- Extra saucy – this recipe leans into a really generous sauce-to-veggie ratio that I know you’ll love! That tikka masala sauce is SO GOOD.
- LOADED with veggies – cauliflower, carrots, chickpeas, and peas make this a well rounded, one pot meal.
- Fully vegan – coconut yogurt and coconut milk/ cream stand in seamlessly for the dairy.
- Makes incredible leftovers – many readers say it’s even better on day 2!
Out of all the recipes on my blog (and there’s something like 600 of them!), this is definitely the recipe that I have tested the longest and the most amount of times. Actually, I first started making tikka masala recipes from cookbooks that I have and from some of my favorite bloggers. I took the elements that I loved most from each of those recipes and made it into my own veggie packed recipe.
The factors that I was most looking for: 1) LOTS of veggies. It took me a while to get the veggie proportions correct but I found a delicious happy medium. 2) The sauce. The first few times I tested my own recipe, there just wasn’t enough sauce. Or, I think there was just way too many veggies. Either way, I personally like a really saucy tikka masala. So, that’s what my recipe is. 3) I really wanted to create a fully plant based recipe. This was pretty easy actually. I simply subbed the yogurt for coconut yogurt and the cream for coconut cream. Everything else was already plant based and vegan.
Vegetable Tikka Masala Ingredients
The full list of ingredients for this simple vegetarian tikka masala recipe are listed fully down in the recipe card but let’s briefly go over the basics needed including a few substitutions you can make as desired!
- Yellow Onion – half of the onion gets add to the sauce base and the other half is finely chopped and sautéed with the spices (this step alone will make your house smell amazing!).
- Garlic + Ginger – this is the aromatic backbone of the recipe. Fresh ginger and garlic is always ideal but I often cut corners here and use garlic and ginger paste.
- Fresh Cilantro – it’s blended into the sauce for a burst of fresh flavor! Save a little for garnish as well.
- Olive oil –
- Aromatic spices – ground cumin, ground turmeric, cinnamon, paprika, salt, and garam masala are blended together to give this tikka masala it’s signature warmth and depth. Before cooking, I suggest combining all of the spices in a small bowl.
- Canned plum tomatoes – you can also use diced tomatoes but I prefer the plum tomatoes that get broken up as they cook in the skillet.
- Tomato sauce – this forms the base of the sauce.
- Yogurt – this adds tang and creaminess! Be careful to add it in with the coconut milk as to not risk curdling. Vegan yogurt or regular will work well.
- Full-fat coconut cream or milk – bring richness, creaminess, and body to the sauce.
- Cauliflower + carrots – these get simmered in the sauce which soaks into the veggies and adds so much flavor.
- Chickpeas – a can of chickpeas to add more plant-based protein.
- Frozen peas – stirred in near the end for a little pop of sweetness.
How to Make It
Just a reminder that you can find the FULL written vegan tikka masala recipe down in the recipe card, but I want to quickly go over how to make them with visuals for you :)
- Blend half the onion + cilantro.
In a food processor, blend together the cilantro, half of the onion, and some olive oil. You don’t want it fully pureed but simple broken down into a salsa liek consistency.
- Saute the onion + spices.
Next, we saute the onions with LOTS of spices in a large skillet over medium heat. I’ve had a lot of fun lately experimenting with different spices and this recipe was no exception.
- Build the creamy sauce.
Once the spices become aromatic and the onions are translucent, the tomatoes, sauce, coconut yogurt, coconut cream AND the blitzed onion and cilantro mixture is added in.
- Add in the veggies.
Mix in the cauliflower and carrots and continue to cook until the veggies are fork tender. Once the veggies are tender, add in chickpeas and frozen peas. Stir to combine and let cook for 5 more minutes or until peas are fully heated through.
Serve over basmati rice and enjoy!
Don’t feel restricted to these veggies. I felt like peas + cauliflower + carrots + chickpeas was a perfect balance but honestly, a lot of other things would work in this dish! If you try other things, please let me know what and how you liked it!!
This makes AMAZING leftovers. Like, it’s maybe even better on day 2 than the first time you eat it. So, I highly recommend making this with the intention of multiple leftover lunches. GAH, I wish I still had some leftover in the fridge now.
Loaded Veggie Tikka Masala
Video
Ingredients
- Large yellow onion, 1/2 goes in sauce in blitzed sauce, 1/2 is finely chopped
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1 inch ginger, peeled
- 10 sprigs of fresh cilantro, plus more for serving
- 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
- ½ teaspoon cumin
- ½ teaspoon turmeric
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon salt, optional
- 1 ½ teaspoons garam masala
- 400 g canned plum tomatoes, not drained
- 1 15 ounce can of tomato sauce
- 1 small container of vegan yogurt**, roughly 5 ounces (I typically use So Delicious or Kite Hill unsweetened yogurt)
- 1 15 oz can of full fat coconut cream or milk**
- ½ head of cauliflower, chopped into bite sized pieces
- 3 large carrots, peeled and finely chopped
- 1 15 oz can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- 1 cup frozen peas
- Optional for serving: chopped cilantro, extra yogurt, basmati rice cooked
Instructions
- In a food processor, combine half of the onion, garlic, ginger, cilantro stalks, and 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Blitz until fully combined about 1 minute. (see photo above) Set aside.Large yellow onion, 2 cloves garlic, 1 inch ginger, 10 sprigs of fresh cilantro, 2 tablespoons olive oil
- In a large skillet, heat the remaining olive oil over medium heat. Add in the chopped onion and spices, stir to combine and cook gently for 10 minutes.Large yellow onion, 2 tablespoons olive oil, 1/2 teaspoon cumin, 1/2 teaspoon turmeric, 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 1 teaspoon paprika, 1 teaspoon salt, 1 1/2 teaspoons garam masala
- Into the skillet, add the plum tomatoes (with the liquid from the can), tomato sauce, yogurt, coconut milk and the blitzed onion and cilantro sauce. Cook for an additional 5 minutes over medium heat.400 g canned plum tomatoes, 1 15 ounce can of tomato sauce, 1 small container of vegan yogurt**, 1 15 oz can of full fat coconut cream or milk**
- Add in the cauliflower and carrots and bring to a simmer. Simmer for 20 minutes.1/2 head of cauliflower, 3 large carrots
- Once the veggies are tender, add in chickpeas and frozen peas. Stir to combine and let cook for 5 more minutes or until peas are fully heated through.1 15 oz can of chickpeas, 1 cup frozen peas
- Serve with rice and (optional) a bit more cilantro leaves and yogurt. Enjoy!Optional for serving: chopped cilantro
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I never leave reviews, but this one deserves it. It was soooo delicious and my boyfriend agrees! It’s only my boyfriend and I, but I made the whole batch and froze the rest for nights where I don’t want to cook. I left out the peas, subbed 8 oz pack of mushrooms, and added a small zucchini I had sitting in the fridge. I’m going to add some bell pepper to it next time. I also added about 1/4 tsp of cayenne because it is quite sweet without it. So happy I came across this recipe, it is soooo good. This landed in my recipe rotation. Thank you!
The best tikka masala we’ve had! Better than in some restaurants. I came across to this recipe some time ago and honestly I was put away buy the “blending” part, for some reason it seemed so complicated but in fact blending onion, garlic, ginger and coriander made the preparation easier and faster!
For the vegetables I used cauliflower, carrots and peas – as suggested but also threw in some potatoes, bell peppers and mushrooms (a sort of “clean your fridge” recipe ;-) ).
I didn’t add slat while cooking but I suppose that potatoes require some salt so we added some salt directly to the bowl.
The final effect: AMAZING, the sauce is addictive and the best part: we are still having the leftovers!!!!
The only thing missing was naan bread to wipe up the bowl.
YES! Isn’t it SO good! We had this Saturday night for dinner. Usually when I make it, I do the same thing- throw in a bunch of random stuff leftover in the fridge. And the leftovers are even better!! Thanks for coming back to comment!
The recipe itself is just fine. But can you please remove half of the ads, there are too many and makes this recipe hard to read.
Wonderful recipe! Added potatoes, mushrooms, Heavy on the garlic & cilantro & small chopped a large jalapeño. Also omitted the garbanzos but served over basmati with cubed and browned tofu on the side. My love said yummy about 10 times eating last night and made me promise that we could make it again soon! It’s going in my favorite recipe folder! It was simpler and faster than I anticipated it to come together! Thanks for the recipe!
omg yay! So glad that you liked it and thanks for coming back to tell me the alterations that you made. I love hearing those! I’ve actually never tried this with tofu but really want to!
This is so good!!! I made this for my vegan in-laws and they loved it. Even the meat eaters loved it. So much flavor and delicious and creamy. Thank you!
This was so wonderful! I am happy to have a good vegan Tikka Masala recipe! Thank you.
omg yay! so glad that you liked it! This is a household favorite for us!
This was delicious. Definitely restaurant quality. I was not looking specifically for a vegetarian recipe as I had a pound of boneless chicken breasts to use, but I always like the idea of adding vegetables into my recipes. I sautéed the chicken (in 1” cubes) first, removed it from the pan and then followed your directions exactly. I added the chicken back in when I put the veggies into the sauce. Used spinach, yellow pepper and carrots for veggies (add fresh spinach when adding the garbanzo beans at the end). Will make again for sure. Note to all, although pictures show carrots in slices, they took forever to soften. Suggest cutting them about half the size as shown in Brita’s photoshop you will be simmering for quite a while.
The flavor was great, and I really think the vegetables tasted better than the chicken I am use to having in Tikka masala. (Not vegetarian myself but my brother is so I cook vegetarian meals frequently. I often discover that the vegetarian versions of meals are as good or better, just different.) Next time I am going to increase the amount of spices however, it was a little tame with these proportions.
Easy great tasting vegan curry
I made this twice back to back! It’s super delicious, easy to make and so much fun to eat. I added mushrooms, sweet bell peppers, kale and sweet potato and left out the chickpeas.
This is will be added to my family’s weekly meals for now on. Thank you!
aww yay! SO good to hear. This is seriously one of our favorite family dishes as well!