This Vegetarian Tikka Masala recipe is super easy and one of my favorite freezer-friendly meals. Creamy, aromatic, and super satisfying it makes for a crave-worthy dinner.

While we are omnivores in our household I see many benefits of eating more vegetable-forward meals. This dish is equally satisfying with or without meat. It is fairly easy to make two versions of this dish simultaneously to satisfy multiple dietary preferences.

Here is a link to a Chicken Tikka Masala.

What you need to make to make Vegetarian Tikka Masala:

Equipment:

dutch oven
sharp knife
vegetable peeler

Time:

60 minutes

Produce:

1 head of cauliflower chopped
6-8 carrots chopped
1 onion chopped
6 cloves of garlic chopped
1 bell pepper chopped
2 tablespoon grated ginger

Dairy:

butter (optional)

Pantry:

3-5 tablespoon Olive oil for cooking
3 teaspoon garam masala (spice)
3 teaspoon turmeric
3 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 28oz cans of tomatoes
1 6oz can of tomato paste
1 15.5oz can of coconut milk
2 cups vegetable stock
2 15.5oz cans of chickpeas

To start, drizzle a little olive oil (1-2 tsp) in the bottom of a Dutch oven set at medium-low temperature. Allow the oil to heat up and cook the onions on medium-low heat for 5 to 10 minutes, occasionally stirring. If I have time, I try to cook my onions closer to 10 minutes or longer, but if I’m in a rush, I do 5 minutes. You at least want the onions to soften a little before adding anything else.

Next, lower the heat to medium-low and add the chopped garlic and carrots. Cook the mixture for 5-7 minutes, stirring relatively frequently so the garlic does not burn.

Now it’s time to add the tomato paste and actively stir for 2 minutes so that it fully coats the garlic, onions, and carrots. Next, add the grated ginger, garam masala, chili powder, and turmeric, again actively stir for 2 minutes so that it coats the veggies. This gives spices time to fully develop over the heat before adding in the liquid.

Add the vegetable stock, coconut milk, chopped bell pepper, canned tomatoes, and chickpeas, gently mixing them all together. Cover the pot and cook at an active simmer for about 20 minutes.

At this point, add the cauliflower and cook for another 5 minutes. I like to add the cauliflower towards the end of the process so that it doesn't get too soft.

For the final touch, stir in 2 tablespoons of butter. I know this might seem a bit over the top, but trust me, it’s not that much butter and there is something about the fat in the butter that helps bring out all the richness of the spices.

This Vegetarian Tikka Masala makes for an absolutely scrumptious meal at the end of a long day and is freezer-friendly for you to serve as a future meal with minimal effort.

If you’ve tried this Vegetarian Tikka Masala recipe or any other recipe on BalancingBowls, please let me know how it turned out in the comments below! You can also follow me on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest to see more tasty meals and anything else I’m up to.

Recipe