Vegan, Dairy-free Creamy "Chicken" Curry
Aging is a bitch. I have become completely dairy intolerant and I'm looking for ways to replace dairy in my diet. My heart problems add new issues so I eat two salt free meals a day. (Fruit, you guessed it, fruit meals!) So when I have my third meal I want something tasty. This Indian dish is vegan and dairy-free but has plenty of salt. If you want to lower the salt content, consider tofu as a lower salt option to the vegan chicken. There are low sodium curry powders and low sodium vegetable bouillon/stock options also.
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| Even for my salt added meal each day I still eat smaller portions. |
CREAMY CHICKEN CURRY (vegan, non-dairy)
THE BASE
Add just enough oil to cover the bottom of a deep covered saute pan.
Chop one large sweet onion.
Heat over medium high heat until the onion is browned. Keep the lid on between stirring.
Turn heat to medium low and add
1 TBSP minced garlic
1 TBSP garlic paste
1 TSP mustard seeds
1 dozen curry leaves
Mix well.
Cover with the lid.
THE PROTEIN STAGE (options to soy chicken listed below)
Open one bag of frozen Morning Star Meatless/Vegan Chicken strips, 13.5 oz size.
Microwave open bag for two minutes on high.
Chop into bite size pieces.
Stir chicken into the pan. Mix well.
Cover with the lid and keep on medium low, stirring every so often as you prep the dry spice mix.
DRY SPICE STAGE
Mix together dry spices
2 TSP ground Coriander
3 TSP Curry powder (mine has salt and is regular heat)
¼ TSP Turmeric powder
1 TSP smoked Paprika
2 TSP Masala Biryani I prefer this blend over garam masala because Garam is cinnamon heavy in its flavor.
1 crushed vegetarian bouillon cube
I used a Maggi Vegetarian cube which is used with 1 cup water BUT I did not add the extra water. You may opt to use 1 cup prepared vegetarian stock but the cooking time will increase. I opted not to add any water as I wanted this to cook more quickly.**
Add the dry spices to the pan and stir well.
CREATING THE CREAMINESS**
Immediately add one can of coconut milk (not coconut cream). Scrape the can as coconut milk tends to separate and cling to the sides.
Mix well. Turn to medium heat and stir gently until thickened. This will take less than 5 minutes.**
**Adding vegetable stock will increase the time it takes to thicken. That is why I opted for the quicker version using only the bouillon cube with no water added.
Taste and salt as needed. I added ½ TSP salt.
SERVE
Serve over fresh Basmati rice.
SO YOU WANT SOME HEAT...
Add 1/2 TSP cayenne pepper with the dry spices OR
1 whole dried fingerling pepper after the onion browns OR
Opt for a HOT Curry powder
Here are substitutions for the protein stage
TOFU OPTION
If you want to opt for a lower sodium protein consider baked firm/extra firm tofu. While you can use it unbaked, tofu tends to lose its shape in stirred dishes.
Preheat oven to 400F.
Generally tofu doesn't need to have the water pressed from it for very long. Place between two plates with something weighted on the top plate for 5 minutes. Drain off the water. Remove the tofu and place on a cutting board. Cut one block of tofu into small cubes (bouillon sized).
Season the cubes if you wish with curry powder or just dust with corn starch which crisps the tofu nicely. This is optional. The tofu will just absorb the curry's flavor so seasoning isn't really necessary.
Prep a non-stick baking sheet with parchment paper. Lay out the tofu cubes flat, not touching. Bake 20 minutes at 400F. Remove the pan and toss the tofu off the parchment paper and place on bare baking sheet. Use spray on the pan if it is not non-stick. Bake another 10 minutes. Add tofu in at the same stage as the chicken.
MUSHROOM OPTION
Replace chicken with sliced mushrooms at the same stage. Toss to brown the mushrooms before adding the dry spices. Because mushrooms greatly reduce in size use 2 pounds to reduce to the equivalent of 16 oz of tofu or 13 oz of soy chicken.
CHICKPEA OPTION
Use one to two cans of drained, rinsed chickpeas, an excellent source of protein and calcium and fiber. They absorb flavor nicely and can be smashed gently to thicken the sauce further if you choose.
VEGETABLE OPTION
Green peas are high in protein and can substitute nicely. But any vegetable can be added into this dish at the protein stage. The options are endless but remember that they each bring their own flavors to the dish. A brussel sprout may be too much cabbage odor. Broccoli is lighter than cabbages but it is still strong. A green bell pepper will bring more flavor but a red bell pepper is lighter in flavor, sweeter, and balances better with the curry.
Just add a tablespoon or two of water to the covered pan to help harder veg steam cook. Keeping the lid on will keep the veg's water and the tablespoon or two of water in the pan and allow it to cook. Remember that when adding vegetables add the hardest first to allow them to cook the extra minute or two that the softer veg may not need. Leafy greens like spinach need only a minute to cook at the protein stage, only enough to wilt them.
All the vegetables will have extra time to cook as the coconut milk begins to thicken so keep that in mind. Better a crisp veg than an overcooked limp veg. This is a great way to eat the last bit of something fresh left in the frig. And always add veg that you like and will eat.
