A delicious creamy dish that’s ready to enjoy in 30 minutes! This butter bean tofu stew is packed with a whopping 32g protein and 10g fibre per serving! It’s also super easy to make with easy to find ingredients.
One of the problems with vegan/vegetarian dishes can easily be lacking in protein. I always make a conscious effort to make sure my meals contain 20-30g protein to make sure I meet my daily requirements. Beans are a good source of protein, but you would need to eat a lot of them to get enough protein, which isn’t easy as they’re also high in fibre and can be difficult to digest for some. Tofu is one of the easiest ways to bump up the protein content of a meal.
This creamy butter bean tofu stew is a great recipe to have under your belt for a speedy midweek meal. It’s ready within 30 minutes and tastes amazing!
There’s a lot of texture from the creamy butter beans and chunky tofu bites. The flavours gel so well together – the creaminess of the oat cream cuts through the sourness of the lemon and tomatoes so well. There’s also a bit of sweetness from the tomatoes and heat from the chilli.
Perfect served with a portion of rice. I also made a simple side salad – my go to with tomatoes, cucumber and onions with a simple lemon juice & olive oil dressing. It’s the salad I grew up eating in Iraq – you would find it on the table of every household on the side of almost every single meal. It’s a classic and one I would never tire of eating.
What you need to make this butter bean tofu stew:
Tofu – firm tofu works best as it has a chewier texture and more bite. I find it a lot more satisfying to eat compared to softer tofu. I also prefer to get brands that don’t require pressing to save time. You may need to press yours for 30 minutes depending on the brand you purchase. Check the label for preparation instructions.
Butter beans – they’re fast becoming my favourite type of bean. They’re so satisfying and have the loveliest soft & creamy texture. They also have a mild flavour, so work well in a lot of dishes.
Plum baby tomatoes – to add a bit of sweetness and acidity. They also cook really quickly making them great to use in speedy dishes like this one.
Lemon juice – I love sour foods, so I had to add a squeeze of lemon!
Cream – I usually use oat cream or full fat coconut milk to add some creaminess, richness as well as cut through the acidity of the lemon and tomatoes.
Turmeric – for its anti-inflammatory benefits + antioxidants. It also adds the most beautiful colour.
Chilli powder – for a kick of heat. You can omit if you don’t like chilli food.
Onion & garlic – The backbone to every good savoury dish in my opinion.
Salt & pepper – to enhance all the flavours.
This butter bean tofu stew is:
- Vegan
- Dairy-free
- Vegetarian
- Egg-free
- Nut-free
- High protein
- High fibre
High Protein Butter Bean Tofu Stew
Ingredients
- 280g firm tofu broken up into chunks
- 1 tbsp cornflour
- 2 tbsp oil divided
- 1/2 onion chopped
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- 1 can butter beans drained and rinsed
- 200g baby plum tomatoes slices in half
- 1 tsp turmeric powder
- 1/2 tsp chilli powder
- 100 ml oat cream or coconut milk
- Juice of 1 lemon
- Salt & pepper to taste
To serve
- Fresh coriander
- Chilli flakes
- Rice or quinoa for extra protein
For the salad
- 2 tomatoes
- 1/2 cucumber
- 1 tbsp chopped onions
- 1/2 tbsp lemon juice
- 1/2 tbsp olive oil
- Salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
- Break up the tofu into chunks and place in a bowl. Add 1 tbsp cornflour and toss to coat.
- Heat 1 tbsp oil in a pan and cook the tofu chunks until browned. Transfer into a bowl and set to one side.
- Heat 1 tbsp oil in the same pan and sauté the onions for 5 minutes. Add the tomatoes & garlic and continue cooking until they start to release their juices.
- Add the butter beans, lemon juice, cream, spices and season with salt and pepper. Continue cooking for a further 5-10 minutes until everything is heated through
- Fold in the tofu and cook until everything is heated through.
- Prepare the salad by mixing all the ingredients in a bowl.
- Garnish with fresh coriander, a sprinkle of chilli flakes, rice and the homemade salad.
Nutrition
Love this! It’s delicious and creamy and just so good! Thank you 🙂
So glad you enjoyed it Kerstin 😀 xx
So flavourful! I used chickpeas instead of the butter beans. Please share more simple savoury meals like this 😛
Thank you for your feedback Nicole 😀 I’ll be sharing more savoury recipes soon! xx
YES! We need more high protein plant-based meal!!!!! and the fact it’s so tasty too. Absolute winner!! 😀
So glad you liked it Jeehan 🙂 xx
Would light coconut milk also work?
Yes 🙂 it’ll be less creamy, but still work!