Indian style vegan curry - Perfect for simple, easy, and delicious weeknight dinner! Creamy and flavorful curry made with no dairy and no coconut milk. Want to know what makes the curry creamy? Find out here!
Who likes Indian food? Meeee!!! (as I raise both of my hands)
My husband and I both love Indian food. Let's just say if we were to go to one of those Indian lunch buffets, we would get our money's worth and some more! But I have to watch out for food that's garnished with cilantro (since I cannot stand the taste of cilantro) and hubby steers clear of any curry made with coconut milk. Unfortunately, coconut is just not his jam. So I came up with this curry recipe for those of you who are not a fan of coconut milk. Truthfully, coconut milk should not stop you from enjoying this delicious cuisine!
Ingredients for my Indian Style Vegan Curry:
- Vegetables - I use potato, carrot, cauliflower, onion, and frozen peas. But you can use whatever vegetable you have on hand.
- Aromatics - Garlic and ginger are very common in Indian cuisine just like many Asian cuisines. Hmmm...Maybe that's why I love Indian food so much 😉
- Spices - cumin, garam masala, curry powder, turmeric, paprika, and black pepper.
- What's in the gravy portion of the curry - What makes this curry creamy without using coconut milk is cashew and almond milk. When you blend together the raw cashew and almond milk, you get this magical creamy sauce that is better than half and a half! Plus my Vegan Chicken Flavor Bouillon Powder adds additional umami without using meat or dairy.
As you can see from the photos below, cashew cream is doing its magical thing!
How to adjust for the thickness of the curry:
Instead of using coconut milk to thicken the curry, I use cashew cream in the recipe. To adjust the thickness, you can use plant-based milk, vegetable broth, or water. If you follow my recipe exactly, you will end up with a rather thick curry that's hearty.
But if you want saucy curry with plenty of gravy, add more almond milk or vegetable broth (or water) and season accordingly. I personally like to use an additional teaspoon or so of my Vegan Chicken Flavor Bouillon Powder to really amp up the flavor.
What to serve with curry:
- Rice - It doesn't have to be basmati rice. It can be any type of rice. I even served my curry with cooked quinoa before and it was great!
- Naan - Store-bought naan is fine but if you have some extra time, I'd highly recommend making naan at home. It is so satisfying to watch those bubbles form from a naan when cooking. I use this recipe by Budget Bytes. It is honestly the BEST recipe I've found so far.
- Salad - A refreshing side of salad with cool creamy dressing is always a welcoming combination to any curry dishes in my opinion.
When you make this delicious vegetable curry, let me know how you like it!
Happy eating, my friends!
Indian Style Vegan Curry (no coconut milk)
Indian style vegan curry - Creamy and flavorful curry made with no dairy and no coconut milk. Perfect for simple, easy, and delicious weeknight dinner!
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: Serves 4
- Category: Curry
- Method: Simmer
- Cuisine: Indian-Inspired
- Diet: Vegan
Ingredients
- ¼ cup raw cashew
- ½ cup unsweetened almond milk
- 1 tablespoon oil
- 1 tablespoon vegan butter (or use another tablespoon of oil)
- ½ large onion, diced
- 2 teaspoons ginger, minced or grated
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon garam masala (I like this brand)
- ½ tablespoon curry powder
- ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 3 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 cup cauliflower floret
- 1 cup diced potato
- 2-3 small size carrots, cut into small pieces
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup water (or vegetable broth)
- 2 teaspoons Vegan Chicken Flavor Bouillon Powder (omit if using vegetable broth)
- ½ cup frozen peas
- Rice and/or naan for serving
Instructions
- In a high-speed blender, blend together cashew and almond milk until smooth. Set aside.
- In a large non-stick skillet, heat oil and butter together and add diced onion. Cook until onion becomes translucent.
- Add the minced garlic and ginger. Cook until fragrant, about a minute.
- Add tomato paste, cumin, garam masala, curry powder, turmeric, paprika, and black pepper. Stir until everything is well mixed and bubbles a little in the pan.
- Add cauliflower carrot, potato, water, and vegan chicken flavor bouillon powder (or vegetable broth). Add the salt.
- Bring the mixture to a boil and place a lid on top. Reduce the heat to medium and continue to cook for 5-7 minutes until the potato is cooked but not mushy.
- Add the cashew almond milk mixture and frozen pea to the curry. Stir to mix and continue to cook for additional 2-3 minutes.
- Serve hot with rice and/or naan.
Notes
- You can use whatever vegetable you have on hand but adding some sort of starchy vegetables or beans helps thicken the sauce so I highly recommend it.
- If you don't have my vegan chicken flavor bouillon powder, you can replace the water and bouillon powder with a vegetable broth of your choice.
- I personally like my curry thick but if you like your curry to be more saucier side, you are more than welcome to add more water or almond milk to the curry. Season with salt or more of the vegan chicken flavor bouillon powder.
Narae McManus
So quick & easy AND tasty!! I added jalapeno like in the pictures to make mine spicy 🙂
George
I'm so happy to hear you like the recipe! Yay!!
Mary
I’m making this for the second time tonight. It was a great hit with my teenage kids, so it must be good! Really easy and really tasty.
George
Hi Mary!!
I’m so happy to hear that!! Thank you so much for leaving a kind comment! Means a lot 🥰🥰
Valerie
Can you freeze this recipe
George
Hi Valerie, I never froze this curry so I don't want to say "Yes" for sure. But I know cashew cream can be frozen and all the vegetables used in this recipe are freezer friendly so I don't see why you can't freeze this recipe. I hope this helps! Thanks for an excellent question!
Jo
Oh my goodness, this curry is so delicious, I added chickpeas too and it was a winner. The cashew cream made it so creamy.
George
Yay!!! I'm so happy to hear that, Jo!
MJ
It says tomato paste in the ingredients but is not in the instructions?
George
Hi MJ,
Oh my goodness!! Thank you so much for pointing it out. I just fixed the recipe.
Once again, I really appreciate you letting me know!
Robin
I hope you don't mind, but I would like to leave a review. I have been looking for something away from the usual curry that I make with coconut cream as well as tinned tomatoes.
So, making your curry today. Very close to your recipe, I found it an absolute delight to eat. Its almost inbetween a curry and a stew. I served it with thick sticky brown rice and really, throughly enjoyed it. I used dried split peas and next time, I am considering keeping the nut milk out, as it had a really nice taste too, before I added the almond/cashew milk in. I had topped it with some dried parsley, which was perfect, as otherwise it does not get used.
Also, I did a semi- calculation and was, if correct, a very affordable meal to make as well. Alot of the ingredients and spices, I already had in my cupboard.
Thank you for your recipe, greatly enjoyed and appreciated.
George
Hi, Robin! Thank you so much for your thoughtful review!! Dried split pea sounds great in this curry. I also think the curry will be tasty without the cashew cream. Once again, I appreciate your review of the recipe and am really glad you liked it!!
Jill Williamson
Definitely trying this tonight as trying to reduce the amount of meat we eat , best for our healt , will post about what we enjoyed about this recipe , thanks
Angela
I just found you - better late than never : )
Your recipe looks amazing and I can't wait to try it right now! Thank you so much.
It's nice to find a kindred spirit - I loathe coriander (cilantro) but it's supposed to be so good for the body in removing heavy metals.
I'm with your husband on coconut milk/cream - I don't like the taste or the fatty consistency.
Okay I'm off to the kitchen...love and bye from South Australia X
George
Hi Angela!
Hahaha, it’s funny how some people (like us) can’t stand the taste (or the smell) of cilantro! Using cashew is a great way to create creamy consistency without using coconut milk or cream. I hope you like the recipe 😊😊
TP
Omg I made this as I’m on a specific diet for a procedure and I didn’t put any cream just made it with the vegetable broth and it was delightful! I can’t wait to make it again for the rest of the family!! I served with with an oregano cauliflower rice and my goodness it was delicious! 😍
George
Hi TP, the oregano cauliflower rice sounds delightful and healthy! I'm so happy to hear that you enjoyed the recipe:)
K
I use actual chicken, and some cream instead of almond milk. It was freaking amazing! 5 stars!
George
Hi K,
It is very adaptable to make it into non-vegan recipe like you did 🙂
I'm very happy you enjoyed the recipe! Thank you so much for your review!
Suzanne
I made this dish with a can of chickpeas and cauliflower. I loved the creaminess of the almond milk-cashew mixture, especially mixed with the tomato paste. Next time, I think I would add a little heat, maybe some jalapeño or crushed red chilis. Thanks for sharing this recipe!
George
Hi Suzanne,
Thank you very much and I'm glad you enjoyed the recipe! I personally like my curry to be on the spicier side too. If you have some serrano pepper, it is also a great addition to the dish!
Tamara
Hi, thanks so much for your delicious recipe. We loved it, even the kids. My husband can’t stand coconut milk and I don’t like cilantro. I do love curry, so this was perfect.
Greetings from the Netherlands, Tamara
George
Hi Tamara from Netherlands! I'm so happy to hear that your family enjoy this recipe! Thank you so much for your kind review 🙂