Yellow Curry Veggie Quinoa with Tofu

I love Thai and it’s my 2nd preferred cuisine after Italian. I have been trying to prepare Thai curry powder from scratch at home and I was surprised that it’s super easy to make. I wonder why I always thought that some magical spices are required for Thai dishes to make it so scrumptious.

Believe me you don’t require any exotic grocery planning, it’s simple and can be made with the already available spice rack in our kitchen pantry. The aromatic and beautiful yellow curry powder took me by surprise with its taste and outstanding flavor. This curry powder can be prepared in just a few minutes and without any mess. I usually make batches of this curry powder and store it for a month in a cool dark place along with my other spices.  I wanted to make a healthier version of Yellow Curry fried rice that we eat in our favorite restaurants so that we can practically indulge while maintaining our fitness. 🙂  . Also I am not very fond of the Fish oil/sauce and wanted to create some vegan version.

Therefore, after trying few times to perfect the taste today I am finally sharing my healthy vegan Yellow Curry Veggie Quinoa with Tofu made from scratch and it takes only 30 minutes to prepare. Even then if you fall short on time prepare the curry powder during weekend and store in an air tight glass jar container in your spice rack along with your other spices. Simple solution! Right? 🙂

For quinoa I just made a small change. While cooking quinoa instead of boiling only in water I combined coconut milk along with water to bring out that delicious Thai flavor in this protein rich grain.  This can also be cooked ahead of time.

Now that all the prep is done let’s get started with combining all the ingredients to cook Yellow Curry Veggie Quinoa with Tofu. Just heat oil in a pan and add herbs, curry powder, vegetables, seasonings, tofu and quinoa. Serve hot with a lemon wedge and enjoy healthy Thai cuisine guilt free in the comfort of your home. 🙂

Print

Yellow Curry Veggie Quinoa with Tofu

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

Serves 5

Per Serving 458 calories

Fat 23 g

Carbs 43 g

Protein 22 g

5

Ingredients

For quinoa

• 1 ½ cups water
• 1 ½ cups quinoa
• 2 cups unsweetened coconut milk

For curry powder

• ½ tsp fennel seeds (crushed)
• ½ tsp yellow mustard powder
• 1 tsp ginger powder
• 1 tsp cumin powder (dry roasted)
• ¼ tsp cardamom powder
• 1 ½ tsp turmeric powder
• 1 tsp cayenne pepper powder
• ½ tsp coriander powder
• 1 tsp dried fenugreek leaves

Others

• 2 tbsp. olive oil
• 4 Thai basil leaves
• 1 tsp lemongrass (chopped)
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 1 tsp dried garlic
• 1 tsp white sesame seeds
• 1/8 cup scallions
• ¼ cup julienned carrots
• ¼ cup baby corns (chopped)
• ¼ cup celery (diced)
• 1 15 oz. pack extra firm tofu (drained and chopped)
• 1 ½ tsp salt
• ¼ tsp sugar
• 1 tsp lemon juice

Instructions

1. In a saucepan bring water to a boil and then add quinoa.
2. After few minutes when the water starts to dry add coconut milk. Keep stirring at intervals for quinoa to stay fluffy. When the liquid starts to dry simmer the flame and cook covered until quinoa absorbs all the liquid.
3. While the quinoa is being cooked combine all the ingredients for curry powder in a glass bowl and mix thoroughly with a spoon and set it aside.
4. Turn off the flame for quinoa once cooked and set it aside and fluff with a fork.
5. Now, in a nonstick pan/ wok heat oil and add basil leaves, lemongrass, garlic, sesame seeds and cinnamon stick.
6. Immediately add the scallions and stir.
7. Add carrots, baby corn and celery and mix very well.
8. Now add tofu and curry powder to the pan and mix gently so that tofu does not break but at the same time all the tofu pieces are well coated with the curry powder.
9. Cover and cook for 3-4 minutes. (Avoid browning of tofu).
10. Now add quinoa, salt, sugar, lemon juice of the ingredients and mix very gently to maintain the tofu pieces.
11. Take it out in a serving bowl and serve warm.

Notes

The above recipe of curry powder yields little less than ¼ cup.

You can make more quantity of curry powder and store in a glass container in your spice rack for 3-4 weeks.

This recipe is slightly spicy. Feel free to adjust the spice level according to your preference. If you reduce the cayenne pepper the color of the yellow curry may become bright yellow which is perfectly fine.

If you adjust the spice level you may want to adjust the measurement of the salt, sugar and lemon juice according to taste in this recipe.

When you are making this recipe and plan to make the recipe for fewer people make sure to adjust the curry powder measurement according to your other measurements.

If you buy products from this recipe using below links I get small affiliate commission.