Instant Pot Tofu Matar
Jan 22, 2019
Tofu and matar (green peas) cooked together in a spicy tomato based sauce! This vegan and gluten-free curry tastes good with just about any flatbread or rice!
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Instant Pot Tofu Matar – tofu and green peas tossed in a spicy tomato based sauce. The vegan version of the famous Indian dish Matar Paneer tastes goes so well with any flatbread or rice.
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It’s not very easy to like tofu. Isn’t it? I mean, it’s good but you always need to season it well in order to like it.
Once I was served a block of tofu with just some salt and pepper on top. I am usually the least picky eater you can find around but even I was not able to finish that.
Seriously though, who serves a block of tofu like that?
Some of my favorite tofu recipes are obviously Indian. I think all the masala and spices give it so much flavor like in this Tofu Tikka Masala the tofu cubes are marinated with spices making it so flavorful.
If you don’t like tofu or simply want to find a recipe which can make you like tofu, try an Indian recipe. This Instant Pot Tofu Matar is one recipe where you can start from.
It has tons of spices cooked together with tofu and green peas – so good!
Instant Pot Tofu Matar
This instant pot tofu matar recipe is a take on the classic and very popular Indian dish – matar paneer. The combination of paneer and sweet peas goes very well together.
For the vegan version, I replaced the paneer with tofu and it tasted just as good. Sarvesh is not a tofu fan (in fact he usually tries to avoid it whenever he can), but he ate this without a fuss – that itself is an achievement!
This recipe is
✓ is vegan and gluten-free
✓ gets done in 30 minutes
✓ is healthy and nutritious
✓ perfect meal for busy days
✓ goes well with any bread/rice/quinoa/any other grain of choice
This recipe has a ton of spices, there is coriander powder, garam masala, turmeric, cumin, chili powder and some smoked paprika. You can skip the paprika if you want and you can even skip the chili powder if you want to keep it less spicy.
I did not add any green chilies here since there are a lot of spices going on already and I didn’t want it to be super spicy. You may use green chilies if you like.
For this recipe of tofu matar, I have used extra-firm tofu. For most of my Indian recipes, I prefer to use extra-firm tofu. I think it’s important for the tofu to be firm and have a nice bite to it in curries.
While using the extra-firm tofu, I make sure to press it with a heavy object for 10-15 mins to drain the excess moisture and then cut it into pieces.
This dish would actually taste so much better if we used fresh green peas. But since it’s not something readily available, I have used frozen peas. Please use fresh peas if you can get your hands on them!
How to Make Tofu Matar on Stove top
Don’t have an Instant pot or pressure cooker and still want to make this Tofu Matar recipe? No problem! You can make this recipe easily on stove top using a pan.
You don’t have to change much. Follow all the steps as listed until add the addition of tofu and matar.
Once you have added the tofu and peas, stir and cover the pot with a lid. Let the curry simmer on medium heat for 10 to 15 minutes until all the flavors blend in well together.
Garnish with cilantro and serve. You might need to adjust the consistency of water when making this on stove top as water evaporates when you cook on stove top versus pressure cooker.
So thin out the curry towards the end, if needed.
Method
*Drain water from the tofu and then press it with a heavy object for 10 to 15 mins to get rid of excess moisture and then cut into pieces.
1- Press the saute button on the Instant Pot. Once it displays hot, add the oil to the pot and then add the cumin seeds. Let the seeds sizzle for few seconds.
2- Then add the onion, garlic and ginger. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes until the onion is soften.
3- Then add all the spices – coriander powder, turmeric powder, garam masala, cumin powder, red chili and smoked paprika (optional, if using). Stir the spices with the onion for few seconds.
4- Stir in the pureed tomatoes along with the tomato paste and mix well. Cook for 1 minute.
5- Add 1 cup water, salt and mix.
6- Add in the tofu and green peas. Stir and close the pot with its lid.
7- Cook on high pressure for 3 minutes with the pressure valve in the sealing position. Let the pressure naturally for 5 minutes and then release the remaining pressure manually by moving the pressure valve from sealing to venting position.
8- Open the pot and stir in the yogurt. Mix well. Make sure the yogurt is whisked and at room temperature before you add it in.
Garnish instant pot tofu matar with cilantro and serve with rice, quinoa or any bread of choice!
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Instant Pot Tofu Matar
Ingredients
- 2 teaspoons oil 10 ml, use oil of choice, I used avocado oil
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds
- 1 medium red onion 95 grams, chopped
- 3 large garlic cloves chopped
- 1/2 inch ginger chopped
- 1 teaspoon coriander powder
- 1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder
- 1/4 teaspoon garam masala
- 1/4 teaspoon cumin powder
- 1/4 teaspoon red chili powder or adjust to taste
- 1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika optional
- 2 large tomatoes 245 grams, pureed in a blender
- 1/2 tablespoon tomato paste
- 1 cup water 8 oz/240 ml
- 3/4 teaspoon salt or to taste
- 7.5 oz extra-firm tofu cubed, 215 grams, drain the water and press tofu with a heavy object for 10-15 minutes to get rid of excess moisture before cutting into cubes
- 1/3 cup green peas frozen
- 2 tablespoons vegan yogurt 30 ml, whisked and at room temperature, I used plain almond milk yogurt
- cilantro to garnish
Instructions
- Press the saute button on the Instant Pot. Once it displays hot, add the oil to the pot and then add the cumin seeds. Let the seeds sizzle for few seconds.
- Then add the onion, garlic and ginger. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes until the onion is soften.
- Then add all the spices - coriander powder, turmeric powder, garam masala, cumin powder, red chili and smoked paprika (optional, if using). Stir the spices with the onion for few seconds.
- Stir in the pureed tomatoes along with the tomato paste and mix well. Cook for 1 minute.
- Add 1 cup water, salt and mix.
- Add in the tofu and green peas. Stir and close the pot with its lid.
- Cook on high pressure for 3 minutes with the pressure valve in the sealing position. Let the pressure naturally for 5 minutes and then release the remaining pressure manually by moving the pressure valve from sealing to venting position.
- Open the pot and stir in the yogurt. Mix well. Make sure the yogurt is whisked and at room temperature before you add it in.
- Garnish instant pot tofu matar with cilantro and serve with rice, quinoa or any bread of choice!
Stove top Instructions
- Follow all the steps as listed until add the addition of tofu and matar.Once you have added the tofu and peas, stir and cover the pot with a lid. Let the curry simmer on medium heat for 10 to 15 minutes until all the flavors blend in well together.You might need to adjust the consistency of water when making this on stove top as water evaporates when you cook on stove top versus pressure cooker.
So thin out the curry towards the end, if needed.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
#1. Tofu in super markets in the U.S.A. come in 14 oz. packages. So I think recipe should be designed for 14 oz. of tofu. If we use 7.5 oz. tofu as the recipe says, what do we do with the rest of tofu!
#2. Tomato puree and tomato paste. Even if we open a smallest can of tomato paste, and use 1TBS, what do we do with the rest? I wonder if the recipe can be designed to concentrate the tomato puree in instant pot itself instead trying to use puree as well as paste.
#3. I made the dish a few times, and it is quite delicious each time. But there were too few peas in the dish. I wonder if the peas and tofu should be of equal volume measure? Am I wrong? Should I just follow the recipe as it is currently without meddling with it?
1. you cook other things with tofu, there’s so much you can do with it.or you double the recipe.
2. Tomato paste also comes in tubes, I always buy in tubes from Trader Joe’s, use whatever the recipe calls for and keep the tube in refrigerator, lasts for months and can be used in so many recipes.
3. For me the amount of peas is perfect, if it isn’t for you- you are free to add as much as you like.
Thanks for trying.
I know it can be a pain, but whenever I open a can of tomato paste, I scoop 1 tbsp into each of the spots in an ice tray and freeze it. It seems like a lot of recipes call for 1 or 2 tbsp of paste, so while this is a bit of work at first, it pays off in the long run for me. Just an option if you can’t find tubes of tomato paste!
Loved the recipie. Operation of the instaPot is an issue for me! I put high pressure and I could not put sealing, I could only put the vent! Have I messed up my procedure
This came out absolutely superb! The tofu tasted just like paneer. I think the smoked paprika really brought a new dimension to the flavor of this favorite dish. Please make more vegan recipes! 🙂
Thank you for the great recipe!
Hi Manali,
Can the tofu be replaced with paneer with no other changes being made to the recipe?
yes!
Hey Manali.. what’s the difference between tomato purée and tomato paste? And what difference does it make?
tomato puree is diluted whereas tomato paste is concentrated…approx 1 cup tomato puree = 2 tablespoons tomato paste plus water to make 1 cup…paste gives a strong concentrated taste and I love adding it to curries for that rich tomato taste.
Hi Manali, Love your site! I didn’t realize I had just landed on a *new* recipe– would it also work to use dairy yogurt if that’s what I have on hand?
Hi Catherine, yes dairy yogurt works well! Just make sure it’s at room temperature and whisked well before adding else it will curdle. you can always add a little bit of cornstarch also to the yogurt to bind it so that it doesn’t curdle. Hope you like it!