Eggplant Tofu Curry
Comfort food has been in heavy rotation lately. I usually find myself spending a lot of time cooking when it comes to food that feels cozy and I needed something a bit quicker that I could make for lunch or dinner. Eggplant and tofu are two of my go-to’s and I loved the idea of making something with them together. I came up with a steaming hot bowl of eggplant tofu curry one day and now we eat it all the time because it’s so easy and the ingredients are simple.
A Note About Eggplant Tofu Curry
If you are not an eggplant fan, you can still make this dish with just the tofu and it is awesome. My husband isn’t the biggest fan of eggplant texture. I love it, but am mildly allergic to it, so sometimes I make it sans eggplant, and we love it all the same.
This also goes for people who don’t love tofu. Skip it! The eggplant can stand alone. Simply roast two eggplants instead of one and proceed without the tofu.
Ingredients for Creamy Eggplant Tofu Curry
These are really simple ingredients, which is something I love. I always suggest having things like garlic, frito puree (basically a super smooth tomato and onion sauce), tofu, limes, coconut milk and red curry on hand. If you usually have those things on-the-ready like me, all you need to worry about is cilantro and eggplant.
If you are interested in a full list of dry goods, shopping lists, and help stocking your vegan kitchen, I put together a guide here for free.
Canned Full Fat Coconut Milk
Full fat canned coconut milk is really what drives the comfort in this curry. The creamy consistency blended with the flavorful spice combination and the tomato puree work in perfect harmony. If you go low fat or fat free with the coconut milk, it’s not going to have the same richness and cozy effect.
If this is your first time buying canned coconut milk, it’s pretty easy to find in the Thai section of your market. It usually comes in a smaller can and a regular sized can. Get the regular size and save what you don’t use in this recipe and start to experiment with it! It will quickly new a staple once you have a few dishes you love using it in.
Oven Baked Eggplant
This is literally the easiest thing you can do. Clean and put an eggplant into the oven and let the heat do it’s magic. If you are in the EU, set the oven to 200* if you are in the states set it to 400*.
See how easy it is to peel the skin once it’s roasted a bit?
Pan Fried Tofu Cubes
I like the texture of pan friend tofu and it lends well to this dish. I don’t over do it, just a slight crispiness on the exterior is perfect.
Red Curry Paste
Most red curry paste is vegan, but you should check. It’s another one of those ingredients that is very easy to find and you just may not have noticed it in the market if it’s your first time buying it. Do not skip this ingredient, or the dish will lack the right flavor! If you have red curry powder, you can use that too and follow the instructions as is.
Smooth Tomato Sauce
Frito puree works so much better than simple tomato sauce. It has the perfect texture and flavor for this and blends so perfectly with the coconut milk. Heinz makes the one I use.You can make your own for sure as well. You just need to get the tomatoes really creamy. If you are using fresh tomatoes make sure to remove the skin before bending.
Making the Eggplant Curry
Once your have roasted your eggplant and add it to your fry pan make sure you evenly cook all sides so it gets a nice brown color on it. You want to get it caramelized a bit to bring out the flavor.
Only shred the eggplant after you add the curry sauce and be super careful not to scrape your fry pan with your forks when you shred it. If you are worried you will scrape or ruin your nonstick pan, use a flat wooden spatula to break up to eggplant.
Plating Tofu Eggplant Curry
Add your cooked rice to the bottom of the bowl, then tofu, then eggplant, then smother in your delicious curry sauce. I like to squeeze lime and add cilantro. My husband likes to add jalapeño slices. Even if you don’t do anything, it’s delicious how it is!
Eggplant Tofu Curry
This creamy and comforting dish is so quick and delicious! With a few pantry staples, you can easily make this for a lunch or dinner midweek. The combination of coconut, tomato, eggplant and red curry are a match made in heaven.
Ingredients
- 1 eggplant, washed
- 300 ml coconut milk, full fat
- 300 ml tomato pure (fritto preferred)
- 300 g tofu, cubed
- 1 lime
- 2 tbsp red curry paste
- 250 g rice
- a few sprigs of fresh cilantro, washed
- 5 garlic cloves, minced
- olive oil for frying
Instructions
- Set your oven to 200* C and roast your eggplant for 25-30 minutes. You will see it become concave a bit when it's ready.
- While eggplant is roasting, cook your rice according to it's instructions.
- Pan fry your tofu cubes on medium heat with a little bit of olive oil. Set aside tofu in a bowl.
- In the same frying pan on low-medium, add the minced garlic.
- Fry the garlic until fragrant and add red curry paste and mix well.
- Add coconut milk and tomato sauce and increase heat to medium-high until it begins to simmer, then reduce to low and let it cook for 10 minutes while occasionally stirring.
- Once the eggplant is the oven is cooked, let cool a bit and remove it from the oven and then peel and remove it's stem so you only have the flesh.
- In a new frying pan, add strips of the eggplant with a little bit of olive oil and lightly fry on medium heat until all sides of the eggplant strips are browned.
- Add 1/4 cup of the curry sauce to the eggplant frying pan and begin to lightly shred using two forks. Be careful not to scrape the frying pan.
- Reduce heat to low and let the eggplant lightly simmer in the curry for 5 minues.
- To assemble the bowl, add rice to the bottom, then add tofu cubes, then add the curry eggplant. Top with more curry sauce, juice from the wedge of a lime and fresh cilantro leave. Serve with an aditional lime wedge.
- Enjoy!
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