Thai Green Vegetable Curry with Tofu

Name: Thai Green Vegetable Curry with Tofu
Total time: 35 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Thai
Ingredients: 400 g firm tofu; 2 tbsp neutral oil; 3 tbsp vegan green curry paste; 400 ml coconut milk; 1 aubergine, about 300 g, in chunks; 200 g green beans, halved; 1 tbsp soy sauce; 2 tsp brown sugar; 1 lime, juiced; 240 g jasmine rice; 1 small bunch Thai basil

Curry paste fried in the thick cream off the top of the coconut milk until the oil splits out, then aubergine, beans and crisped tofu. Twenty minutes.

VeganMeal prep

A bowl of pale green coconut curry with cubes of golden fried tofu, aubergine pieces and green beans, scattered with Thai basil leaves, beside a mound of jasmine rice.

Servings: 4
Total time: 35 min
Hands-on: 20 min

What you need

Wok or wide pan
Saucepan with a lid
Kitchen paper

Ingredients

400 gfirm tofu— pressed and cubed
2 tbspneutral oil
3 tbspvegan green curry paste— many brands contain shrimp paste — check the label
400 mlcoconut milk— full-fat; do not shake the tin
1aubergine, about 300 g, in chunks
200 ggreen beans, halved
1 tbspsoy sauce
2 tspbrown sugar
1lime, juiced
240 gjasmine rice— weighed dry, 60 g per portion
1 small bunchThai basil— ordinary basil if you cannot get it

How to make it

Press the tofu for 15 minutes, cube it, pat it dry and fry it in the oil over high heat until three or four sides are golden and crisp. Lift it onto kitchen paper and set it aside — it goes back in at the very end so it keeps its edge.
Open the coconut milk without shaking the tin and spoon the thick cream from the top into the hot wok. Fry the curry paste in that cream for 2–3 minutes until it darkens and you can see the oil separating out at the edges. This step is the difference between a fragrant curry and coconut soup with paste stirred in.
Add the aubergine and turn it through the paste for 2 minutes, then pour in the rest of the coconut milk and 100 ml of water. Simmer for 10 minutes until the aubergine is completely soft — undercooked aubergine is spongy and ruins the dish.
Add the green beans and cook 4 minutes more; they should keep a snap.
Season off the heat with the soy sauce, sugar and lime juice, tasting as you go. A green curry needs all three — salty, sweet and sour in balance — and it is flat if any one is missing.
Fold the crisp tofu back in and serve immediately over jasmine rice with Thai basil.

Per serving, roughly

Energy: ~615 kcal
Protein: ~23 g
Carbs: ~58 g
Fat: ~27 g

These are estimates calculated from standard ingredient values. Your numbers will shift with the exact products you buy and with how generously you fill the plate — oil, sauces and cheese move them the most.

Variations

Lighter

Use 200 ml of coconut milk and 200 ml of vegetable stock. About 140 kcal and 14 g of fat less per portion; still good, noticeably thinner.

With chicken

Swap the tofu for 500 g of chicken thigh, browned first and simmered with the aubergine. About 40 kcal more and 8 g more protein per portion — and no longer a plant-based dish.

Coach's tip

23 g of protein from the tofu, and the coconut milk means the calories are real — this is an eating-day curry, not a cutting one. If you are watching calories, the lighter variation keeps the dish intact in a way that skimping on the rice does not.

More recipes

Other recipes worth a place in your week.

MealsButter ChickenChicken thigh marinated in spiced yoghurt and charred under the grill before it meets a tomato sauce finished with butter and cream. 43 g of protein.MealsCrispy Tofu & Edamame Rice BowlCornflour-crusted tofu, blanched edamame and rice with a ginger-soy sauce. Two plant proteins in one bowl carry it past 46 g — the meat-free bowl that actually keeps up.MealsChili sin CarneTwo kinds of bean, charred peppers and a spice base of smoked paprika and cumin. Half an hour of simmering that tastes like a whole afternoon.

General information only, not medical or nutritional advice. If you have a health condition, an allergy, or specific dietary needs, talk to a qualified professional.

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