I’ve been wanting to start including a few more plant based meals here on Ambitious Kitchen and this recipe is honestly the most perfect way to begin again. Nutritious brown rice cooked with coconut milk, colorful vegetables, a hint of curry, turmeric, cilantro, cranberries and then tossed with crispy Nasoya tofu. It’s such a cozy recipe, I know you’re going to fall in love!
Benefits of tofu
Tofu is such an easy, inexpensive plant based protein to incorporate into your meals, plus it’s incredibly nutritious. Tofu contains amino acids, calcium (making it wonderful for babies!), a plant source of iron and plenty of other vitamins and minerals. You can check out more of our tofu recipes here.
Ingredients you’ll need
This flavorful coconut curried brown rice is basically made with veggies, rice, tofu and tons of amazing warming spices. It’s the perfect mix of savory, a little sweet and fresh all in one bit. Here’s what you’ll need to make it:
- For the tofu marinade: you’ll toss together Nasoya Extra Firm Nasoya Tofu, olive oil, yellow curry powder, coconut sugar, garlic powder, cayenne pepper and salt & pepper.
- For the veggies: we’re using baby bella mushrooms, white onion, red bell pepper, carrots, peas and garlic.
- For the coconut rice: you’ll need jasmine brown rice, light coconut milk (from the can), water, yellow curry powder, ground turmeric, salt & pepper.
- To garnish: I love topping the rice with fresh cilantro and sweet dried cranberries, cherries, golden raisins or dates.
Can I use another grain?
Yes! I think this tofu brown rice would be delicious with white jasmine rice, quinoa or pearl couscous. Just note that white rice, quinoa or couscous will not need to cook as long as the brown rice listed; instead these usually only take about 20 minutes.
Customize this coconut curried brown rice
The great thing about this one pot curried coconut brown rice and tofu recipe is that it’s super easy to customize!
- Try adding other veggies like broccoli, cauliflower, brussels sprouts, spinach or even something unique like eggplant!
- Feel free to top with your fav hot sauce to add a kick of heat
- A scoop of Nasoya Kimchi would be delicious on top as well
- Add a fried egg for a fried rice vibe! This recipe is amazing the next day for breakfast.
How to make tofu crispy (and delicious)
The key to crispy tofu is to make sure that most of the water is squeezed out from your block. I like to use Nasoya Extra Firm Tofu, stays intact well and because it’s easy to work with and doesn’t retain as much water. Here’s how to make tofu extra crispy:
- Wrap your extra firm tofu block with a dish towel and place it on a plate
- Place a wooden cutting board on top
- Put something heavy on top of the cutting board like a pot of water, books, etc. so that the water begins to squeeze out into the towel. Press for at least 10 minutes.
Alternatively, you can also use a tofu press specifically designed for squeezing out tofu!
Storing & reheating tips
Store any leftover rice in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. The rice is delicious cold, but feel free to warm up a serving in the microwave until it’s nice and heated! That’s the way I like to serve it (with extra hot sauce, of course!)
Let’s talk Nasoya Plantspired Toss’ables
Lastly, I’m so excited to share another great product from Nasoya: their Plantspired Toss’ables! The Toss’ables are vegan, ready to eat tofu cubes that come already baked and seasoned with garlic & herb flavor (yum).
You can literally throw these flavorful tofu cubes into any dish — pastas, stir frys, burritos, you name it. I’m a big fan of these with grain bowls, and they’d be super easy to add to a rice dish like this one!
More one pot & one pan meals to try
Actually, the Best Vegetarian Chili Ever
One Pan Thai Coconut Yellow Curry Chicken & Rice
One Pot Moroccan Chickpea Quinoa Salad
One Pan Tandoori Chicken with Spiced Coconut Rice
I hope you love this delicious vegan curried coconut brown rice with tofu! If you make it, be sure to leave a comment & a rating so I know how you liked it. Enjoy, xo!
Ambitious Kitchen
Cookbook
125 Ridiculously Good For You, Sometimes Indulgent, and Absolutely Never Boring Recipes for Every Meal of the Day
One Pot Vegan Coconut Curried Brown Rice with Tofu
Ingredients
- For the tofu:
- 1 package Nasoya Extra Firm Tofu, drained and cut into 1 inch cubes
- 1/2 tablespoon olive oil, plus more for cooking
- 1 teaspoon yellow curry powder
- 1/2 teaspoon coconut sugar
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- pinch of cayenne pepper (1/8 teaspoon)
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- For the veggies:
- ½ tablespoon olive oil
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 8 ounces sliced baby bella mushrooms
- 1 white onion, diced
- 1 red bell pepper, diced
- 2 large carrots, sliced
- For the rice:
- 2 cups jasmine brown rice
- 1 can (15 oz) light coconut milk
- 2 cups water
- 1 cup frozen peas
- 1 tablespoon yellow curry powder
- 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
- 3/4 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste
- Freshly ground black pepper
- To garnish:
- ½ cup diced fresh cilantro
- ½ cup dried cranberries (or sub golden raisins, dried cherries or chopped dates)
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, mix together the ingredients for the tofu marinade: olive oil, curry powder, coconut sugar, garlic powder, cayenne, salt and pepper. Add tofu cubes and toss with the marinade. Let sit while you chop all your veggies, or place the tofu in the fridge for up to 24 hours.
- When tofu is done marinating, add 1 tablespoon of olive oil to a large pot and place over medium high heat. Once oil is hot, add in tofu and cook for 3-6 minutes until tofu begins to brown and crisp up. Slowly stir tofu so that it browns on all sides as best you can. Once tofu is done browning, transfer to a plate and set aside.
- In the same large pot, place over medium heat and add ½ tablespoon olive oil, plus garlic, mushrooms, onion, bell pepper and carrots. Saute for 5 minutes until mushrooms and onions begin to cook down.
- Next add in brown rice, coconut milk, water, peas, yellow curry powder, turmeric, salt, pepper. Bring mixture to a light boil, then cover, reduce heat to low and cook for 40-45 minutes, then remove from heat and let sit for 10 minutes before fluffing rice with a fork.
- Carefully fold in the tofu, dried cranberries and cilantro. Serves 6.
Recipe Notes
Nutrition
This post is in partnership with Nasoya Tofu. All text and opinions are my own.
38 comments
Hearty and delicious! Will definitely be making again. One point of advice on the recipe: you don’t mention what to do with the tofu after setting it aside (toss it in, of course) and the tofu is supposed to “marinate” but the mixture is not liquid (more of a spice coating), so I would suggest changing the wording.
Thank you for the tip! Updating 🙂
This was delicious! The addition of fruit at the end (I used pomegranate arils!) was a necessary flavor balance. Also, I know the tofu wouldn’t keep well in the freezer but do you think the base of rice/veggies would freeze well?
(Adding the tofu/garnishes on top seems to be missing from the instructions, too!)
So glad you enjoyed! I think this should freeze fine without the tofu. And thank you for the catch!
Very good and easy to make! Would taste amazing with red beans or chickpeas as well, will try that next time 🙂
Absolutely! Glad you enjoyed 🙂
I was honestly shocked at how amazingly delicious this was. The tofu-perfection. My husband loved it as well and he is sometimes a hard sell on both tofu and curry. Followed the recipe exactly and topped with some nuts and feta. So good!! And easy!
Love that! So happy you both enjoyed!
Wow! This was so good! It had tons of flavor with the coconut rice and the curry marinaded tofu. I added chopped broccoli to it. I am vegan and appreciate all your vegan recipes!
Love it! Glad you enjoyed 🙂
So easy and full of flavour. Loved by everyone in my family toddlers included. Made this in my instant pot the second time and it turned out perfectly.
I was wondering how this would work in the instant pot! How long did you set the IP for after adding the rice and liquid?
Delicious!
Meal prepped this for lunch this past week – it was so so good! I often have trouble with my rice not cooking completely in one pot situations so I made the rice separately in my rice cooker. I combined the veggies rice and coconut milk at the end and let it cook for a couple minutes to meld the flavors. Worked like a charm! Will definitely be making this again.
Perfect! I’m glad that worked out well!
I made this for the first time tonight and my husband and I both LOVED it. We added the dried cranberries and the mix of spice/sweet was perfect. We will be adding this to the regular rotation!
So happy to hear that!
It’s delicious!! The rice is so nice and creamy and I love all the veggies and tofu too. It smells divine! Thank you for a great recipe, this will be a keeper.
YAY, I’m so happy to hear you loved it! Thanks, Lenka 🙂
I made this tonight and it is absolutely delicious. If you add the peas when you add the rice and cook them for 45 minutes, they will lose their beautiful color. Next time I will toss them in (frozen) when the dish is a few minutes away from being fully finished. Also, trying to brown cubes of tofu is time-intensive and an invitation for mashed cubes. Next time I’ll split the tofu block into thirds (horizontally), pan sear the flanks, and then cut into cubes. I foresee making this recipe several times a month. Thank you!
Thanks so much for sharing all of this, Alicia! I’m so glad you loved this one 🙂 Can’t wait for you to make it again soon!
Absolutely delicious. To save myself time and sanity, I never cube my tofu before I brown it. I slice it vertically into thirds, pan sear the planks, then cube and use as directed.
Such a smart tip–thanks for sharing! And glad that you loved it 🙂
We loved this meal! It lasted us several days, and we never got tired of it, and the dried cranberries were a perfect addition! Served with a small green salad on the side. We’ll definitely be making this one again soon!
I made this tonight and it was very good. I took other commenters suggestions to cut the tofu into sheets and brown it this way. It still took quite a while to crisp up but there was less flipping. I would also closely follow the recipe to only cook all the veggies until the onions cook down. I didn’t pay too much attention and probably overcooked them just a smidge.
Is it ok to cook this in hot pot or slow cooker? I’m looking forward to trying it!
I actually haven’t tried it, so I’m not sure about the settings/cook time, but I’d assume so! Let me know if you try it 🙂
This is such a great base recipe to be easily adapted! I used broccoli, onion, mushroom, carrots and baby bok choy for my veggies. Added some dried mango in addition to the cranberries. I had some chicken stock I needed to use up so used that in place of the water.
Yummmm that all sounds amazing! So happy you loved it 🙂
Made this tonight and it was excellent! I used short grain brown rice because it’s what I had and used golden raisins instead of dried cranberries. The only reason for 4 stars instead of 5 is that I feel there is nowhere near enough tofu for the amount of rice and veggies that this makes. Since it’s only my husband and me, I think I’ll halve the recipe next time for everything except the tofu to have a better balance of the elements of the meal. But the flavors are delicious and I’ll absolutely make this again!
Glad you enjoyed it! And thanks so much for the note about the tofu to rice/veggie ratio 🙂
The texture of everything turned out nice – the rice, the tofu etc. The draining tofu tip was really helpful. However the end result is not nice – the combination of ingredients and spices is a bit weird and the spices for the tofu marinate and the rice were not enough so it turned out quite tasteless.
I made this a few days ago as a meal prep. YUM. Seriously. Make this. It’s so good, and really not difficult to make. I added a little garam masala to it and it is incredible. Thank you!
Amazing! Glad you’re loving this recipe and it turned out great for you – love this one for meal prep!
I’ve been making this recipe for years and it never misses! Love how easy, flavorful and veggie-packed it is. Everyone in my family, even our non-tofu eaters, devours it every time!
So good! Glad it’s a hit with the whole family!
My rating is based off of the ingredients and smell alone; I haven’t eaten it yet. My question is can I freeze it? I was gonna portion out 6 days and then [hopefully] freeze the other half. If this is okay, do you know how long it would be good for frozen? Most likely I would just eat the other half in 6 days, lol. But just want to be sure. Thank you for your recipes; they’re delicious!
Such a great meal! I *think* this should freeze okay, and if you try freezing it it should stay good for up to 2-3 months. Let me know if you give it a try!