Recipe- Creamy And Buttery Tofu Makhani Bake

Indian vegan Tofu Makhani Bake recipe is creamy, buttery, and absolutely delicious! Here, crispy baked tofu is cooked in a rich and creamy homemade Makhani sauce!The perfect holiday centerpiece that will make you want to skip the takeout and go for seconds!

It comes from the Hindi word - Makhan which means butter. The Makhani gravy is creamy and buttery. It's a blend of spicy, sour, salty, bitter, and sweet flavors. This extremely flavorful orange tomato-based gravy mainly uses dairy products like milk, butter, and cream.

Ingredients

30 oz Extra-firm Tofu
2 tbsp cooking oil or vegan butter
1 tsp cumin seeds
2 green chilies
1 tbsp ginger paste
2 tbsp garlic paste
1/2 onion roughly chopped
1 tbsp poppy seeds
1-2 bay leaf
1 cinnamon stick
2-3 cloves
2 cardamom pods
1/4 cup cashews
3 tomatoes roughly chopped
2 tsp garam masala
2 tsp paprika
1 tsp turmeric powder
3 tbsp tomato ketchup
1 tsp sugar
1 tbsp dried fenugreek leaves
salt
1/4 cup water
1 cup vegan cream

For Tofu Makhani Bake

1/2 tbsp cooking oil
1/2 onion thinly sliced
1/2 cup mushrooms sliced
cloves for garnish optional
2 tbsp nutritional yeast
2 tsp black sesame seeds
2-3 tbsp cilantro
2-3 tbsp grated vegan cheese
1 tbsp lemon juice optional

Method

To Prepare Tofu

* Drain the water from the tofu packet.

* Place it inside the Tofuture and press it as shown in the video. Refrigerate it for 1-2 hours or you can leave it overnight.

* Once pressed, remove the tofu and pat dry. Drain out the water that's collected below and the tofu is ready for use.

* Whenever you plan on making Tofu Makhani Bake, prep tofu this way, on the previous day.

Vegan Makhani Sauce

* Heat a pan and add oil or vegan butter. Once, it's hot enough, add and fry cumin seeds, green chilies, ginger, garlic, onions, poppy seeds, bay leaf, cinnamon, cloves, cardamom, and cashews.

* Fry for 1-2 minutes. Then add chopped tomatoes, garam masala, paprika, turmeric, tomato ketchup, sugar, salt, and dried fenugreek leaves.

* Cook till the tomatoes turn soft and pulpy. Take it off the flame and allow it to cool down. Discard the bay leaf and cinnamon stick.

* Transfer all the contents to a blender and blitz to make a smooth puree. Add 1/4 cup of water if needed.

* Alternatively, you can also use a hand blender to make a puree.

* Pass this puree through a sieve. Do not throw away the pulp.

* Transfer the makhani puree to the same pan and bring to a boil.

* Add vegan cream and give it a good mix. Check the taste and add more seasoning if necessary.

* The consistency of this Vegan Makhani sauce should be thick and creamy. Do not thin it down. Transfer it to a bowl and keep it aside for now.

To make Tofu Makhani Bake

* Cut off the edges of the pressed tofu to give it a clean shape. This is an optional step though.

* Lightly saute the discarded tofu along with sliced onions and mushrooms in the same pan along with the discarded pulp.

* It just gives the veggies so much more flavor rather than adding them raw plus there is zero wastage!

* Dip the prepared tofu in the makhani sauce and place it in a greased baking dish. Stuff all the sides with the sauteed veggies.

* Make diagonal slits all over the tofu in opposite directions, so you get a criss-cross pattern. Stick a clove where the slits cross.

* Garnish with chopped cilantro, nutritional yeast, black sesame seeds, and vegan cheese and bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees F.

* Once it's golden brown, take it out, remove the cloves using kitchen tweezers.

* Then drizzle some lemon juice, and vegan cream over it if needed, and then immediately serve this crispy baked tofu.

* Cut and take a generous helping of this tofu Makhani Bake and pair it with naan, roti, or any other flatbread. It will also taste great with some Jeera Rice or just plain steamed rice.