Make it mild or spicy and serve with roti, paratha or naan. Rice is also a great partner for this high-protein vegan curry.

What does Dopiaza curry taste like?

Dopiaza is a deeply aromatic dish, with a mellow onion sweetness, tomato tang and a fresh sweep of ginger. Serve it dry style like this version, or add a splash of water to give the curry a sauce, the choice is yours. I like it dry, and almost stir-fried.

What is in Dopiaza?

Dopiaza is named for its’ use of double onions. Double onions typically refers to the double addition of onions at different stages of the cooking process. The first for flavour in the masala paste. The second addition as a vegetable for texture and crunch.

The technique and terminology has Persian roots but shoots influences many other South Indian cuisines. It is a Mughal style of cooking, rich with spices and aromas.

What is Pyaza or Piaza?

“Do” means two and “Pyaza” or “Piaza” means onions. My recipe embraces the “do” (two) of dopiaza twice. It features two different varieties of onion, which I add at two stages of the cooking process.

What type of onions are in Dopiaza?

Any you like! The typical Indian restaurant version will use white and/or red onions. My recipe for Tofu Dopiaza puts both mellow leeks and sweet red onions to work. This vegan curry will blow you away with its’ deeply savoury aromas and flavours.

Can I add something other than tofu to this curry?

Feel free to swap the tofu in this recipe with your choice of vegetables or protein. My preference is to add tofu but that doesn’t mean you have to.

You can also make use this recipe to make:

• Paneer Dopiaza (Paneer Do Pyaza)
• Mushroom Dopiaza (Mushroom Do Pyaza)
• Bhindi Dopiaza (Bhindi Do Pyaza)
• Aloo Dopiaza (Aloo Do Pyaza)
• Or any other variety of Dopiaza you want to cook! Popular non-vegetarian varieties of Dopiaza are made with chicken, lamb, mutton and prawns.

How to serve Tofu Dopiaza

My favourite way to serve this dish is simply with paratha but you can also enjoy it with naan, roti or rice.

What are the key spices in Dopiaza?

Recipes differ from cook to cook. Warm spices and a souring agent like yoghurt, dried mango or lemon give the dish its’ characteristic tang. This sour note is important as it balances the sweetness of the onions.

My recipe uses a combination of tomatoes and vegan yoghurt to achieve this effect.

Spices in my Dopiaza recipe: Bay leaves, dried red chillies, cassia bark, black stone flowers, cloves, turmeric, chilli powder, coriander seeds, dried fenugreek leaves and green cardamom.

Some recipes also include black cardamom and peppercorns, however I don’t find they are essential ingredients in this case.

What are Black Stone Flowers? (Dagad Phool)

While it’s called “flower”, Dagad Phool (in Hindi) is actually a type of fungus/dried lichen. The black petal-like shape of the fungi grows on stones. Indeed, this is why people also call it “Pathar ke phool” which means stone flower.

It has a characteristic unmistakable musky aroma. Think mellow woody perfume, but not at all like your grandad’s Old Spice. It adds background umami-ness to masalas. I find that once I start eating a dish with dagad phool in it, I can’t stop.

10 tips for restaurant-style Dopiaza

1. Be sure to use a large, metal kadai or wok. I like to use a carbon steel wok.
   
2. The kadai or wok should be smoking hot.
   
3. There’s no need to add lots oil, but some is required to help extract the oils from the spices. Use any cooking oil with a high smoke point. You can also use ghee if you’re not vegan.
   
4. Add whole spices first, then the ground spices later to ensure the ground spices don’t burn.
   
5. Cook the first addition of onions until their soft, mushy and slightly caramelised. This makes for the perfect sweet base.
   
6. Add the yoghurt and stir quickly so it doesn’t split in the sauce.
   
7. Reduce the tomatoes and yoghurt until thick and pasty.
   
8. Keep the vegetables crunchy. Try not to overcook them.
   
9. For a saucy version of the Dopiaza, add 250-350ml hot water to the paste before you add the onions and peppers.
   
10. Pan-fry the tofu first so it doesn’t break in the curry. I like the texture of pan-fried medium firm tofu.

My essential ingredients homemade Tofu Dopiaza

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Tofu Dopiaza Recipe | How to Make Tofu Dopiaza Curry

This is my favourite vegan curry recipe and one I cook often for the family. It’s the perfect balance of light and tasty, but also packs that restaurant-style punch. No dairy needed.

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Tofu Dopiaza

Kadai-fried tofu cooked dry style with two types of onions, crunchy green peppers and aromatic masalas. Make it mild or spicy and serve with roti, paratha or naan. Rice is also a great partner for this high-protein vegan curry.

Course Main Course

Cuisine Indian

Keyword curry, ginger, onions, peppers, tofu, vegan, vegetarian

Prep Time 25 minutes minutes

Cook Time 25 minutes minutes

Total Time 50 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Author Sanjana

Equipment

• Large kadai or wok

Ingredients

To pan-fry the tofu:

• 400 g medium or firm tofu
• 3 tbsp any cooking oil
• 1/4 tsp salt

For the rest of the curry:

• 50 ml any cooking oil or ghee if you're not vegan
• 300 g leeks, halved lengthways and finely sliced if leeks are unavailable, try spring onions/scallions
• 2 dried red chillies
• 2 dried bay leaves
• 5 cm piece cassia bark or cinnamon
• 3-4 pieces black stone flowers optional but recommended
• 4 cloves
• 2.5 cm piece ginger peeled and julienned
• 4 large cloves garlic peeled and crushed (about 1 tbsp)
• 390 g tin chopped tomatoes
• 1 tsp ground coriander seeds
• 1/2 tsp ground turmeric
• 1/4 tsp ground cardamom
• 1/2 tsp Kashmiri chilli powder optional
• 1 tsp salt
• 3 tbsp non-dairy yoghurt
• 10 small mild green peppers (the kind that look like chillies) or 1 large green capsicum cut into rings
• 2 red onions cut into quarters and then separated into petals
• 1 1/2 tsp kasoori methi

To garnish:

• 2 tbsp freshly-chopped coriander
• 2.5 cm piece ginger julienned
• Onion flowers optional (I grow them in the garden!)

Instructions

To prepare the tofu:

• If using medium tofu, drain and pat gently with absorbent kitchen towel. If using firm tofu, drain and press firmly with absorbent kitchen towel to remove excess moisture. Some extra-firm tofu may need to be pressed between paper towels for 30 minutes or so. Just use a couple of tins of beans for weight. I use medium tofu so skip this step.
• Slice the tofu into triangles, about 1cm thick but you can cut the tofu into any shape you like. Cubes and batons are also a good choice.
• Heat the oil in a large frying pan. Pan-fry the tofu on both sides, until golden all over. A sprinkle of salt over the tofu will help draw out any moisture from the tofu.
• Place the tofu on a plate lined with kitchen towel. Set aside.

For the rest of the curry:

• Heat oil in a smoking hot wok or kadai. I like to use a carbon steel wok for the smokiness it imparts on the curry. Add the bay leaves, dried chillies, cinnamon, black stone flowers and cloves. Sauté for 10-15 seconds and then add the sliced leeks.
• Cook the leeks over a medium-low heat 10 minutes, stirring all the time, until very soft. When they begin to caramelise, it's time to add the crushed garlic and ginger juliennes. Cook for a further minute.
• Next, tip in the tomatoes and add the ground spices: coriander seeds, turmeric, cardamom, optional chilli powder and salt. Stir well. When the mixtures comes to a volcanic bubble, add the yoghurt and stir vigorously until incorporated to prevent the yoghurt splitting in the sauce. Keep the heat high the entire time.
• Continue to cook the masala for 7-8 minutes, stirring all the time, until it becomes a thick paste.
• Add the onions and peppers. Toss or fold to combine with the masalas. Stir-fry for 2-3 minutes until only slightly softened. Add the tofu to the pan. Rub the kasoori methi between your palms to crush and add this to the pan too. Use a large spatula to fold everything together and coat the tofu with the masalas. Cook 1-2 minutes to heat everything through.
• Garnish with fresh coriander leaves and ginger juliennes and serve.

Video

Notes

• If you’d like a curry with more sauce, simply add 250ml hot water to the paste before you add the onions and peppers.
• Serve this Tofu Dopiaza with paratha, roti or naan. Rice is also a great accompaniment.
• Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Reheat thoroughly before serving.
• This Tofu Dopiaza freezes particularly well. Pack it into an airtight container and freeze for up to 3 months. Defrost at room temperature and ensure the curry is reheated and piping hot before serving.

 

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If you like this, you’ll love my recipe for Vegan Kadai Tofu

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We rarely ate out at Indian restaurants in those days. The vegetarian options were limited to side dishes of random “mixed vegetables” swimming in generic curry sauces and quite frankly, homemade was better.

As the millennium approached, more and more options bubbled up, beginning with areas populated with a high density of Indian residents. Leicester, Wembley and Southall were all on the radar and we visited often. It was in Leicester that I first read the words “Indo-Chinese fusion dishes” on a restaurant menu and this immediately grabbed my attention. I wanted to know more. A whole list of dishes to choose from and I made it my mission to try them all. Chilli Paneer, Gobi Manchurian, Hakka Noodles, Spring Rolls, Mixed Rice & Noodle Sizzler and even Szechuan Dosa were options. I ordered as much as I could manage and that was the day I fell in love with Chilli Paneer.

I later learned that Indo-Chinese food, also known as Desi Chinese was a cuisine developed by the Chinese community of Kolkata, West Bengal. It became a lifelong dream of mine to visit Kolkata’s Chinatown and enjoy Hakka-Indian food in its original birthplace. Just as my grandparents and thousands of other families brought Indian cuisine to East Africa and the British embraced Indian curry, this small community of Hakka settlers shared the gift of their ancestral cuisine with Kolkata. Little did they know that it would lead to the creation of a truly exquisite Indian-Chinese food culture that’s now internationally sought after. Food travels regardless of borders. This is pure comfort food which is why it’s such a treat when eating out. It’s spicy, garlicky, smoky and umami-rich with a liberal attitude towards rivers of soy sauce and the addition of MSG (ajinomoto) in most dishes. It’s not a style of cooking that shys away from battering and deep frying either. Green chilli, spring onions, ginger, garlic, tomato ketchup, soy sauce, chilli sauce, vinegar, turmeric, black pepper and sugar are all widely-used ingredients in Indo-Chinese dishes. A smoking hot cast iron wok is essential for the highly coveted wok hei caramelisation and aromas.

Indo-Chinese food is all about taking an abundance of fresh veg, protein and Indian spices and pairing them with sticky, umami-rich cornflour-thickened sauces. These sauces are unlike anything you get in traditional Indian cooking. If you’re a fan of Singapore Noodles, Laksa and Nasi Goreng, it’s worth giving Indo-Chinese food go.

My Instagram family have recently made their love of Chilli Paneer very clear. After a poll, they voted Leicester restaurants Indigo, Chai Paani and Tangoe as the best places to eat the famous dish. Special mention for Sakonis which isn’t in Leicester (they have restaurants in Wembley and Hatch End) but still do a delicious Chilli Paneer. Luckily, I’ve tried them all (several times over) and did my best to recreate the best version in my kitchen at home. The criteria was as follows: The paneer needed to be juicy on the inside and crispy on the outside, the peppers needed some crunch, the sauce had to be loaded with garlic, no tomatoes, lots of green chillies, soy sauce-rich and slightly sweet. Well my friends, I think I may have nailed it but I’ll let you have the final say on that. If you’ve never tried Indo-Chinese food before, Chilli Paneer is one fusion dish worth trying.

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Restaurant-Style Chilli Paneer

Crispy paneer wok-fried in a light chilli and garlic sauce with lots of crunchy veg. A real Indo-Chinese crowd pleaser.

Course Appetizer, Main Course

Cuisine Chinese, Indian

Keyword cheese, chilli, paneer, stir fry, vegetables, vegetarian

Prep Time 30 minutes minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Author Sanjana

Ingredients

• 450 g paneer cut into 2cm cubes
• 2 tbsp cornflour
• 1 tsp ground white pepper
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 3 peppers sliced into 3cm strips (I use red and green)
• 10 spring onions sliced on the bias, some greens reserved for garnishing
• 3 tbsp sunflower or rapeseed oil
• 8 large cloves garlic crushed
• 4 green chillies sliced on the bias
• 3 tbsp lighy soy sauce if you want a darker colour, use dark soy sauce
• 1 tsp sugar
• 2 tbsp fresh coriander chopped
• Shredded lettuce to serve

Instructions

• Mix together the cornflour, white pepper and salt. Coat the paneer in the cornflour mixture.
• Heat the oil in a large wok and add the paneer. Fry until crispy and golden all over. Remove with a slotted spoon and place on a plate lined with kitchen paper to absorb any excess oil.
• In the remaining oil, add the garlic, chillies, 3/4 of the spring onions, peppers, soy sauce and sugar. Saute over a high heat for a minute and then add the paneer. Toss to combine.
• Serve on a bed of shredded lettuce, garnished with the reserved spring onions and fresh coriander.

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