Makhani, with its deeply colored and flavorful gravy, is perhaps one of the most fabled and beloved dishes of Indian restaurant cuisine. You can serve my vegan Tofu Makhani with naan or some rice for a delicious, healthy meal.



Here's a master recipe for a gravy you can use to make any kind of "makhani" dish.

If you've eaten at an Indian restaurant, you've likely come across Chicken Makhani, or Butter Chicken. The reason for Butter Chicken's immense popularity is its smooth, signature-orange gravy that wraps itself silkily around your tastebuds, and the fabulously buttery flavor that rounds off sparkling notes of spicy, sour, salty, bitter and sweet.

But Butter Chicken is also not, as the name suggests, a healthy dish. It usually includes cream, butter, and -- of course, chicken, with all of the accompanying fat and cholesterol. All of which makes it a no-no in my kitchen where the only creatures who wander in are there to eat, not be eaten.

A reader recently asked me for a vegan version of Butter Chicken, which spurred me to cook this delicious dish once more and share it with all of you. This gravy is exactly similar to the one typically used for Butter Chicken, with the exception, of course, that there is no butter or cream here. At least not real butter, but we do need a tablespoon of a good quality vegan "butter". It's really not much since this recipe would easily serve four people, so don't try to skimp on it because you won't end up with the desired smooth, rich result.

You can use this gravy with tofu, as I did, or even with meat substitutes and vegetables like mushrooms or eggplant. It is fabulous every which way. Adding tofu to this dish brings it closer to another popular Makhani dish, Paneer Makhani, where paneer, an Indian cheese, is added to the gravy. But tofu has healthy fats, unlike paneer, and it is bursting with good protein.

Dal Makhani is a slightly different dish and you can find my recipe here, but you could easily adapt this recipe to make a dal makhani by simply adding boiled and tender lentils at the stage where the tofu gets added to the dish.

I marinate the tofu for extra flavor, and it really helps, so take the time to do it. If you are using veggies or meat substitutes, you can use the same marinade ingredients and brown the veggies or meat substitutes before adding them to the makhani gravy. Add the veggies or meat substitute at the same stage where you'd add the tofu.

Here's the recipe, then, for an incredibly super and versatile Tofu Makhani. Enjoy, all!

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