Tofu Tikka Masala

Tofu Tikka Masala is a hearty meal, loaded with authentic Indian flavors! Overnight marinated and baked Tofu Tikka is served with a delicious and creamy masala (sauce). Fragrant, a little rich and a bit spicy makes this tikka masala, the super star of curries!
Serve it over fluffy Basmati Rice or with Parathas, Butter Naan or Tandoori roti.

About Tofu Tikka Masala

This recipe is inspired from the classic Tikka Masala. But meat is replaced with Tofu for a vegetarian/vegan option. Traditionally over-night marinated protein is roasted in a tandoor, a clay oven.

A tandoor can go as high as 900F/ 480C and cooks the foods at high temperatures resulting in a slightly charred exterior and moist interior. During this process the fats from the marinade drip into the hot oven and emit smokes.

So tandoori foods have charred spots and are super tender from inside with a significant smoky flavor. To make a tikka masala, a spicy sauce is made and into that goes these tandoor baked tikkas (cubes/pieces).

To make this Tofu Tikka Masala, you can either bake marinated tofu in the oven, air fry or pan fry on the stovetop. The Tikkas are so delicious and can also be served as an appetizer. Since tofu is marinated over-night, it is full-flavored and tastes delicious!

The masala is not super spicy or hot like the classic version and we felt it did not require because tofu is marinated with generous amount of spices. For the vegetarian tikka, onions and bell peppers (in the skewers) are the key and they add another layer of flavors.

The char grilled onions and bell peppers in the restaurant tikkas are simply superb and they totally elevate the flavors. For the restaurant style, I have used them in this recipe. However if you do not prefer bell peppers, simply replace with thinly sliced carrots.

More recipes,
Indian Tofu Kadai
Tofu Curry
Butternut Squash Curry
Chickpea curry

How to Make Tofu Tikka Masala (Stepwise Photos)

This recipe serves 2 to 3. You will find more quantities in the pictures since I made 2x recipe.

Preparation – Marinade

For best results, freeze extra firm tofu for 2 days and then defrost in the refrigerator. Drain the water, rinse & shake off. Wrap the tofu in kitchen towels, gently press down to remove any excess moisture, weigh it down with a cast iron skillet for 10 mins. Then dice them to 1 inch to make 9 portions. If you want to pan fry the tikkas, make thin slices of larger sizes.

1. You will require the following ingredients for Tofu Tikka:

• 200 grams (7 ounces) extra firm pressed tofu (cubed to 9 pieces)
• ½ teaspoon ginger paste or grated (or use 1 tsp ginger garlic paste)
• ½ teaspoon garlic paste or minced/crushed
• ½ tablespoon lemon juice (omit if your yogurt is sour)
• ¼ cup thick yogurt (dairy or plant, has to be thick enough to hold the tofu)
• ½ teaspoon Kashmiri red chili powder or smoked paprika (less spicy kind)
• ½ teaspoon garam masala
• ½ teaspoon coriander powder
• ½ teaspoon chaat masala (or ¼ tsp ground cumin & ¼ tsp amchur)
• ½ teaspoon Kasuri Methi (dried fenugreek leaves)
• ½ tablespoon oil
• ¼ teaspoon salt (adjust to taste, as per your tofu)

2. Mix together all the ingredients except tofu. Taste test and adjust salt, depending on your tofu.

3. Remove 2 tbsps of marinade to a small bowl and add the tofu to the rest of the marinade. Gently coat them and spread in a single layer. Cover and refrigerate for a minimum of 4 hours and maximum 12 hours.

4. These are the ingredients you need to make the tikka masala:

• 2 inch cinnamon piece
• ½ teaspoon cumin seeds
• 2 green cardamoms
• 1 cup onion sliced, loosely measured – (80 g, 1 medium) 
• 1¾ cups tomatoes sliced/ chopped – (225 g, 2 medium) 
• ⅓ inch ginger peeled & sliced
• 2 small garlic cloves (or 1 large clove)
• ½ to ¾ teaspoon Kashmiri red chili powder (or paprika) less spicy kind
• 1 teaspoon garam masala (more to adjust)
• 14 cashewnuts (or nut butter/sunflower seeds or ½ cup coconut milk)
• ¾ to 1 teaspoon kasuri methi, salt and sugar if needed to taste

Make Tikka Masala Sauce

5. Heat a pan with 1½ tablespoon oil or ghee. Add the onions and saute until golden, for about 7 to 8 minutes. Add ginger and garlic, saute for another 2 mins.

6. Add the tomatoes, salt, nuts and seeds if using. I used 50/50 sunflower seeds and cashews. Just note that sunflower seeds won’t impart creamy flavors and texture.

7. Saute until the tomatoes break down completely. If you want you can also cover and cook to speed up the process. Stir in the garam masala and red chili. Saute for another 2 to 3 mins until the masala smells aromatic. Turn off, remove the cinnamon, cool this and blend to a smooth sauce with 1 cup liquid (water or half cup coconut milk & half cup water).

8. Pour back the sauce and return the cinnamon stick to the pan. The sauce has to be slightly runny at this stage so pour more water if required (Check video for consistency). You won’t need more than 1 cup in total. Cover and simmer until you see traces of oil on top. The tikka masala sauce develops big flavors during this process so don’t undercook. Let it cook and thicken.

Method 1 : Bake the Tofu Tikka in Oven

9. While the sauce simmers, preheat the oven to 460 F or 240 C for at least 15 mins. Line a deep baking tray with foil. To a mixing bowl, add the reserved marinade, ½ cup onions diced & layers separated and ¾ cup carrots thinly sliced or bell peppers diced. Keep the size of onions and bell peppers the same as tofu. Marinate them.

Note: If you are doing it in a OTG or a smaller oven, cut down the temp to 430 F or 220 C.

10. Thread onion, carrots/bell peppers & tofu alternately on the skewers. Place them in the tray. Make sure your tofu does not touch the baking pan at the bottom as they can easily break while turning the skewers. Transfer to the middle rack. Bake for 10 minutes, turn them to the other side and bake for 5 mins more (15 mins total). Keep the skewers close to one another, after turning them else tofu can rotate. Broil 1 to 2 mins for charred spots.

11. If you want to serve them as an appetizer, brush them generously with melted butter or ghee. Sprinkle some chaat masala or lemon juice and serve.

Method 2 : Pan Fry

Please note this method can take really long if are making 2x or 3x recipe.

12. Spread a teaspoon oil/ghee in a wide pan. Heat on a medium high flame, coat each tofu piece with the marinade & place on the HOT (important) griddle. Cook on a medium flame on both the sides till the marinade dries up and tofu turns golden. Similarly place the bell peppers and marinated onions and fry until the marinade dries up.

Make Tofu Tikka Masala

13. When the sauce is thick, taste test and add more salt if you want. Crush kasuri methi in your palms and add along with 1 tsp sugar (optional). Add 1 tsp to tbsp ghee/butter. Turn off the stove. While you can always add the tofu tikka to the sauce, we feel serving them separately retained more flavors in the tofu. Also it is best to add the tikka to the sauce only at the time of serving.

14. Optionally add 2 to 3 tbsps cream of choice to the tikka masala.

Garnish with coriander leaves and deseeded slit green chili if you want. Serve Tofu Tikka Masala with fluffy Basmati Rice, Paratha, Chapati, Tandoori Roti or Butter Naan.

Pro Tips

• Handle with Care: After refrigerating, your tikka marinade can become too thick and the marinated tofu can get stuck to the bowl. Be careful and gently remove them from the bowl.
• Moisture: It is important to use thick yogurt & remove excess moisture from the tofu, else the marinated tofu can let out too much moisture while baking. The marinade won’t stay on the tofu.
• Tikka Masala is not very creamy & rich like the makhani dishes, so you don’t need a lot of cashews or coconut milk or cream. If you use a lot, you will dilute/lose the flavors.
• Use a good aromatic garam masala. Adjust the quantities as needed because every store bought blend is different.

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