Vegan tempeh tikka masala made with coconut yogurt and coconut milk that will leave you with all the comfort feels minus all the heavy feels. You’ll love this healthy spin on traditional Indian food.
If you’ve been following EBF for a minute, you know that I’m obsessed with tempeh and that I LOVE Indian food, so it was only a matter of time before I created a vegan version of one of my favorite Indian dishes.
Healthy Indian Food at Home
Indian food is one of our go-to takeout options, so when I created my own version of tikka masala with tempeh we had a little celebration. Now we can enjoy this Indian dish any night we please (and don’t have to wait 45 minutes for delivery!). The longest part of the recipe is when the tempeh is marinating; besides that, this is ready in no time.
What is Tempeh?
It’s a plant-based protein made of cooked soybeans that have been fermented. It’s a great plant-based protein option that’s a great source of fiber and is high in vitamins and minerals.
Tempeh is similar to tofu, however there are some differences – tempeh is less processed, fermented, has a stronger flavor and a bit more texture. The flavor is usually described as nutty or earthy, but there are different varieties with subtle taste differences.
My biggest tip when it comes to tempeh is to marinate or pair it with a flavorful, robust sauce so it can take on the flavors of the dish it’s a part of. This tempeh tikka masala is a great example of both! Not only are you marinating the tempeh in advance, but you’re also coating it in a well-rounded sauce with tons of flavor.
I’ve tried a ton of different tempeh varieties and Lightlife is definitely my favorite for a few reasons: it’s organic, GMO-free and easy to find at mainstream stores.
Tempeh Tikka Masala Ingredients
tempeh
unsweetened plain coconut yogurt
apple cider vinegar
coconut oil
onion
garlic
fresh ginger
tomato sauce
full-fat coconut milk
frozen peas
cilantro
spices and seasonings: ground cumin, ground ginger, garam masala, chili powder, turmeric and sea salt
rice or cauliflower rice (for serving)
hot sauce of choice or cayenne pepper (optional)
How to Serve Tempeh Tikka Masala
Make this dish your own by pairing it with sides of your choice and adjusting the spice level to your taste. I highly recommend serving it over rice or cauliflower rice with a few pieces of naan to soak up the delicious sauce. And of course we like things spicy over here, so we added a little sriracha on top. There’s no shame in my hot sauce game. I add it to everything… even salads!
Be sure to let me know if you try this vegan tempeh tikka masala recipe by leaving a comment and rating the recipe below. Your feedback is so helpful for the EBF team and other EBF readers.
Vegan tempeh tikka masala made with coconut yogurt and milk. You’ll love this healthy spin on traditional Indian food.
Ingredients
Tempeh:
8 oz package Lightlife Original Tempeh, chopped into cubes
1/2 cup unsweetened plain coconut yogurt
2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon garam masala
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
Tikka Masala Sauce:
1 Tablespoon coconut oil
1 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1-inch knob of ginger, grated
1 teaspoon garam masala
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 teaspoon turmeric
1 cup canned tomato sauce
1 cup canned full-fat coconut milk
2 cups frozen peas
fresh cilantro, chopped
rice or cauliflower rice for serving
hot sauce of choice or cayenne pepper (optional)
Instructions
Make tempeh marinade by combining all ingredients (yogurt, apple cider vinegar, cumin, ginger, garam masala and sea salt) in a bowl. Add chopped tempeh and stir until well coated. Place bowl in the fridge to allow the tempeh to marinate for at least 1 hour.
Once tempeh is done marinating, start preparing the sauce. Heat a large skillet on medium-high heat with coconut oil. Add onion, garlic and ginger and sauté until fragrant, about 5-7 minutes. Add spices and toss to combine, then add in tomato sauce, coconut milk, frozen peas and marinated tempeh.
Turn heat down to medium-low and let mixture simmer for 15-20 minutes or until sauce has thickened and everything is heated throughout.
Remove from heat and serve tempeh tikka masala over a bed of rice (regular or cauliflower) with fresh cilantro on top.
Notes
For extra heat feel free to add a little ground cayenne to the spice mixture while cooking or top with hot sauce.
Category:Lunch/Dinner
Method:Stovetop
Cuisine:Indian
Nutrition
Serving Size:1/3 of recipe
Calories:430
Sugar:14g
Fat:23g
Carbohydrates:39g
Fiber:13g
Protein:21g
Keywords: Tempeh Tikka Masala, vegan Tikka Masala
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This was so delicious! My mom does not typically love Indian food OR tempeh, but she loved this! It is so yummy, comforting, and nutritious. We served over brown rice and was great.
Fantastic! This is so rich, flavorful and delicious you don’t miss that there isn’t meat. Feel better after, both physically and cognitively from eating plant-based. This recipe is great because it’s adaptable too — I only had 1/2 can of lite coconut milk, didn’t have peas so I cut kale steams into pea size and added chopped kale leaves later, served it over brown rice noodles. Great recipe, thank you!
Can not wait to try this tonight for dinner. I transitioned to veganism 3 months ago and feel amazing. I have been surprised there is such a great amount of flavors/recipes available to make this lifestyle change so easy. I do not have coconut plain yogurt only cashew plain yogurt so I’m hoping this substitution will not make a difference in the flavor. I will update.
I’m looking forward to making this for dinner this week! However I’m unsure if I’m supposed to add both the tempeh AND the marinade to the sauce, or just the tempeh? Thanks for your help 🙂
I am a vegan and my boyfriend is not but likes to try everything I cook. He likes tempeh which we always fry in a pan and serve in a sandwich. I really love Indian food. Wasn’t too sure about the mix of tempeh with Indian spices and yogurt but just made it anyway. It was absolutely amazing. The taste was perfect! Thanks for sharing this recipe.
Ahh yay!! That makes me so happy to hear, Chantal. I’m so glad this recipe was a hit! Thanks for giving it a chance and for coming back to leave a comment + star rating. I so appreciate it!
I think this might be my favorite of your tempeh recipes. I use light coconut milk and sometimes have to substitute pureed tomatoes plus a tablespoon or so tomato paste when I don’t have tomato sauce on hand…it always turns out absolutely deliciously. I especially like it over cauliflower rice.
Oh my gosh! This was so delicious!! We made a double batch for leftovers and served over cauli rice and Banza rice. Perfect Tikka flavor – definitely a new recipe to add to the regular dinner rotation!
I haven’t tried it with tofu yet, but I think it should work just fine. Just be sure to use extra-firm tofu and press it to remove all the liquid. Let me know if you try it! 🙂
I’ve got some tempeh in the fridge that needs using and have wanted to try something different than my usual tempeh buffalo wings–came upon this recipe and will be trying it this week!
I have been wanting to substitute tofu with tempeh in my meals because tempeh is fermented and a better form of soy to have, but was seriously struggling to get a good recipe. I tried this today and it was just DELISH!My husband loved it too and was digging into my plate after he was done with his :D. I could not have imagined this happening ever for a tempeh dish – lol. Bonus points also because it was so easy to prepare. In fact, I am going to use the same recipe to make Paneer tikka masala too. Thank you – this recipe is indeed a find!
Awesome, delicious recipe. I’ve made it twice now, once with double tempeh because I needed more protein. I add extra spices (nearly double what is listed, plus curry and cayenne). I serve it with brown rice. Such incredible flavor! I’ve never been happy with tempeh until this recipe. Thank you!
This is fantastic! Made it exactly as written and really loved it. My first time cooking with tempeh. I am not vegan but feel and look better with more plant based foods in my diet. I am freezing the rest of it in containers with rice for my lunches. I have gotten in the habit on Sunday of cooking healthy soups and other things that freeze well to grab on my way out the door every morning. It is so nice to have a healthy and delicious meal at work.
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Can you use tofu in place of tempeh? I’d imagine so, but not sure.I was going to make this today. Not sure if you’ll get this question in time.
That should be just fine!
This was so delicious! My mom does not typically love Indian food OR tempeh, but she loved this! It is so yummy, comforting, and nutritious. We served over brown rice and was great.
★★★★★
Woo!! I’m so glad it was a hit!! Thanks for the review, Kristen. I so appreciate it. 🙂
Fantastic! This is so rich, flavorful and delicious you don’t miss that there isn’t meat. Feel better after, both physically and cognitively from eating plant-based. This recipe is great because it’s adaptable too — I only had 1/2 can of lite coconut milk, didn’t have peas so I cut kale steams into pea size and added chopped kale leaves later, served it over brown rice noodles. Great recipe, thank you!
★★★★★
I’m so glad you enjoyed this recipe, Leola. Thanks for making it and for coming back to leave a review. I so appreciate it!
Excellent recipe! Prefer it to non-vegan recipe. The whole family loved it. Thanks!
★★★★★
Ahh yay!! That makes me so happy to hear. Thanks for the review, I so appreciate it!
So yummy! And so so easy to make! It was perfect for me as a vegan and my husband who follows a Keto diet.
★★★★★
So glad this recipe was a hit, Anne! Thanks for making it and for coming back to leave a review. I appreciate it!
Can not wait to try this tonight for dinner. I transitioned to veganism 3 months ago and feel amazing. I have been surprised there is such a great amount of flavors/recipes available to make this lifestyle change so easy. I do not have coconut plain yogurt only cashew plain yogurt so I’m hoping this substitution will not make a difference in the flavor. I will update.
Let me know how it turns out for you!!
This turned out AMAZING!!! One of my top favorite vegan recipes now! Thank you for sharing and love your site!
Woo!! That makes me so happy to hear. I’m glad this recipe was a hit. Thanks for making it. 🙂
I’m looking forward to making this for dinner this week! However I’m unsure if I’m supposed to add both the tempeh AND the marinade to the sauce, or just the tempeh? Thanks for your help 🙂
Hey Millie – the marinated tempeh is added to the sauce all together.
I am a vegan and my boyfriend is not but likes to try everything I cook. He likes tempeh which we always fry in a pan and serve in a sandwich. I really love Indian food. Wasn’t too sure about the mix of tempeh with Indian spices and yogurt but just made it anyway. It was absolutely amazing. The taste was perfect! Thanks for sharing this recipe.
★★★★★
Ahh yay!! That makes me so happy to hear, Chantal. I’m so glad this recipe was a hit! Thanks for giving it a chance and for coming back to leave a comment + star rating. I so appreciate it!
I think this might be my favorite of your tempeh recipes. I use light coconut milk and sometimes have to substitute pureed tomatoes plus a tablespoon or so tomato paste when I don’t have tomato sauce on hand…it always turns out absolutely deliciously. I especially like it over cauliflower rice.
★★★★★
Ahh yay!! That makes me so happy to hear, Yvonne. 🙂 Thanks for coming back to leave a comment and star rating, I really appreciate it!
Can this be done with chicken?
Hey Emily – I haven’t tried it, but I’m sure it would turn out delicious with chicken. Let me know if you end up trying it and how it turns out.
Oh my gosh! This was so delicious!! We made a double batch for leftovers and served over cauli rice and Banza rice. Perfect Tikka flavor – definitely a new recipe to add to the regular dinner rotation!
★★★★★
Yay!! I’m so glad you enjoyed this recipe Allie. 🙂 I really appreciate you coming back to leave a comment + star rating!
Could you use tofu instead?
I haven’t tried it with tofu yet, but I think it should work just fine. Just be sure to use extra-firm tofu and press it to remove all the liquid. Let me know if you try it! 🙂
I’ve got some tempeh in the fridge that needs using and have wanted to try something different than my usual tempeh buffalo wings–came upon this recipe and will be trying it this week!
I have been wanting to substitute tofu with tempeh in my meals because tempeh is fermented and a better form of soy to have, but was seriously struggling to get a good recipe. I tried this today and it was just DELISH!My husband loved it too and was digging into my plate after he was done with his :D. I could not have imagined this happening ever for a tempeh dish – lol. Bonus points also because it was so easy to prepare. In fact, I am going to use the same recipe to make Paneer tikka masala too. Thank you – this recipe is indeed a find!
★★★★★
Awesome, delicious recipe. I’ve made it twice now, once with double tempeh because I needed more protein. I add extra spices (nearly double what is listed, plus curry and cayenne). I serve it with brown rice. Such incredible flavor! I’ve never been happy with tempeh until this recipe. Thank you!
★★★★★
This is fantastic! Made it exactly as written and really loved it. My first time cooking with tempeh. I am not vegan but feel and look better with more plant based foods in my diet. I am freezing the rest of it in containers with rice for my lunches. I have gotten in the habit on Sunday of cooking healthy soups and other things that freeze well to grab on my way out the door every morning. It is so nice to have a healthy and delicious meal at work.
Making this for my special Valentine! It smells so delicious in my kitchen right now. Can’t wait to eat!!
Yay!! I hope it turned out to be delicious for you and your Valentine. 🙂
Is it okay to marinate the tempeh overnight?
Totally!!
this looks amazing! cant wait to try it. would the recipe work with light canned coconut milk?
Totally. I love using full-fat because it makes things extra rich and creamy but light canned coconut milk will certainly work!