Easy Vegan Vindaloo

Course: Dinner

Cuisine: Indian

Prep Time: 15

Cook Time: 25

Marinating time: 1

Total Time: 1 40

Servings:

Calories: 344kcal

Author: Jacq

Our Easy Vegan Vindaloo is a Goan inspired curry that can be prepared on the stove-top or slow cooker for a deliciously easy family meal. No food processor required! Just simple family friendly tasty food that's perfect for vegans, vegetarians, plant-based diets, no-oil diets, gluten-free diets, omnivores, and anyone and everyone who loves good meat-free family meals prepared with tasty veggies!

To make things even easier and quicker prepare the marinade 1-2 days in advance and store within the refrigerator.

Print Recipe

US Customary - Metric

Equipment

Non-stick large skillet, deep fry pan, Wok, or similar with a lid, or use a heat-proof plate
Mixing bowl

Ingredients

Marinade:

280 grams vegan meat-free chunks [or an alternative see recipe notes]
6 large garlic cloves [fine diced or minced, or replace with 1 tablespoon of garlic powder, or 1-2 tablespoons garlic puree]
1 medium-large onion [diced, or 1 tablespoon of onion powder]
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar [or balsamic vinegar]
2 tablespoons curry powder [such as Madras]
1 teaspoon chilli powder [use mild, medium or hot depending on preferences, and use more chilli powder to taste]
1 teaspoon paprika powder
½ teaspoon turmeric powder
1 tablespoon tomato paste
⅛ teaspoon black pepper [either powder or freshly ground]
1 teaspoon sugar [use your regular sugar, we used granulated]

Curry:

2 tablespoon coconut oil [or replace with ¼ cup vegetable broth, adding more as required]
1 can kidney beans [400grams/ 14oz, drained, or 1 ½ cups cooked beans]
2 medium sweet potatoes [sliced into 1 inch pieces]
1 can chopped tomatoes [diced tomatoes] [400g/14oz can, or replace with passata]
240 millilitres vegetable stock

Optional, garnish:

fresh coriander [cilantro], sliced spring onions [green onions], fresh sliced red chilli's or chilli flakes
home-made raita easy method in recipe notes

Instructions

Marinade:

To a bowl add the chilli powder, curry powder, paprika powder, garlic, red wine vinegar, black pepper, and meat-free chunks or an alternative. Give it all a good mix and place a cover or a plate over the bowl.
This step can be prepped a day in advance, or at least a few hours before cooking.
280 grams vegan meat-free chunks, 6 large garlic cloves, 1 medium-large onion, 3 tablespoons red wine vinegar, 2 tablespoons curry powder, 1 teaspoon chilli powder, 1 teaspoon paprika powder, 1 tablespoon tomato paste, ⅛ teaspoon black pepper, ½ teaspoon turmeric powder

Prepare the curry:

Melt the coconut oil [or heat the vegetable broth] in a non-stick pan over a medium heat.
2 tablespoon coconut oil
Once hot add the marinade, scraping all the sauce into the pan. Cook for 5 minutes, while stirring frequently.
Next, add the sweet potato chunks, kidney beans, canned tomatoes, and vegetable stock, give it all a good stir, pop a lid over the pan, and cook for 8-10 minutes or until the sweet potato is soft.
1 can kidney beans, 2 medium sweet potatoes, 1 can chopped tomatoes [diced tomatoes], 240 millilitres vegetable stock
Remove the lid and cook for a further 2-3 minutes.
The curry will be ready once the sweet potato is nice and soft, so depending on the size of the chunks your curry may require a few more minutes. Add a little extra vegetable stock if required to the curry and pop a lid over the pan so that the sweet potato can cook through.
Once cooked, season with salt and pepper. A small squeeze of fresh lemon can also be added if liked and a few pinches of sugar stirred through to balance the flavours if necessary.

Optional:

Sprinkle fresh coriander [cilantro], fresh chilli's and sliced spring onions [green onions] over each serving and add a few tablespoons of a simple home-made vegan raita. See recipe notes below for how to prepare raita.
Sides of rice and naan breads are a delicious accompaniment.

Slow cooker variation:

We used a 3.5 litre slow cooker which has a ceramic cooking pot.
Add all the ingredients to a slow cooker.
However, reduce the amount of canned tomatoes to ¾ of the can so just use 300grams [10 ½ oz].
Also, if preferred the coconut oil can be omitted and if you were replacing the oil with vegetable stock omit this as the extra liquid is not required in the slow cooker.
280 grams vegan meat-free chunks, 6 large garlic cloves, 1 medium-large onion, 3 tablespoons red wine vinegar, 2 tablespoons curry powder, 1 teaspoon chilli powder, 1 teaspoon paprika powder, ½ teaspoon turmeric powder, 1 tablespoon tomato paste, ⅛ teaspoon black pepper, 2 tablespoon coconut oil, 1 can kidney beans, 2 medium sweet potatoes, 1 can chopped tomatoes [diced tomatoes], 240 millilitres vegetable stock
Switch to the high setting and cook for 4 hours. Once cooked the sweet potato will be soft and the curry sauce nice and thick.
Season to taste with salt and black pepper. Some chopped coriander stirred through the curry is a tasty addition as is some sliced spring onions [green onions] as a garnish.
Please note: For our slow cooker vindaloo we made a few optional changes to the ingredients: we used 1 tablespoon of onion powder and 1 tablespoon of garlic powder instead of their fresh counterparts. And we replaced the canned tomatoes with tomato passata.
We also replaced the meat-free chunks with 100grams of dried soya chunks or textured vegetable protein [TVP] and before adding to the slow cooker we rehydrated those in 600 millilitres of hot vegetable stock that we prepared with 2 OXO meat free beef flavour stock cubes. After 30 minutes of soaking, drain the liquid but keep it to use as the stock required for the recipe.

Notes

Nutritional data is estimates only and is not an exact calculation as ingredients can vary.
Store leftovers for 3 days within the refrigerator.
Or freeze for 2-3 months.
Reheat by adding to a non-stick pan and over a medium heat stir and heat until piping hot. A small amount of vegetable stock or coconut milk can be used to thin the sauce down in necessary.
Instead of the individual spice powders - curry, chilli, turmeric, and paprika, - replace these with a few tablespoons of a vindaloo spice mix or paste. However, check the package instructions for guidance on how much to add to recipes especially if you are looking to moderate the spicy-heat level!
Chilli powder in the US is often a blend of spices whereas in the UK chilli powder is ground red chilli's that vary in heat - mild, medium & hot.
Adjust the chilli powder to taste - so add more if liked.
If Kashmiri chilli powder is used you can add extra as it can be on the milder spice level - start with 2 tablespoons and add more to taste.
We used plant-based Dopsu No-Pork pieces for our stove-top version and dried soya chunks for our slow cooker version.
Meat-free chunks alternatives:
rehydrated dried soya curls or soya chunks/textured vegetable protein chunks [TVP], tofu, seitan, tempeh, vegan Quorn pieces, butterbeans, chickpeas, or mushrooms]. For rehydrating soya chunks see the recipe above for the slow cooker variation.
Easy home-made raita: [optional garnish]
Add about 2-3 tablespoons of plain plant-based yogurt, per person, to a bowl and stir through diced cucumber and shredded mint leaves. The exact amounts will be personal preference so add as much as you like. If preferred omit the mint or use dried mint, or stir through a small amount of mint pickle.
If you're having a side of rice you might like this optional garnish that we like to sprinkle over our cooked rice:
Toasted coconut:
Heat a small pan over a high heat, add a layer of desiccated coconut, along with some salt and pepper, and shake the pan back and forth. Turn the heat down to medium and once the coconut begins to brown remove the pan from the heat and shake or stir constantly until the coconut is a nice toasty brown colour. Instead of coconut use chopped cashews or peanuts, flaked almonds, or sunflower seeds.
For more useful information do have a look at our recipe notes and FAQ section above this recipe card.

Nutrition