🌱Cooking School · Vegan Indian Cooking
Vegan Indian cooking — without compromise
Indian vegetarian food was always close to vegan. The challenge is dairy — and understanding what dairy contributes makes the substitution work properly.
Indian vegetarian food was always close to vegan. The challenge is dairy — and understanding what dairy contributes makes the substitution work properly.
Indian vegetarian cooking — particularly in South India, Gujarat and among temple traditions — has always been substantially plant-based. The challenge for vegan cooking is dairy: ghee, yogurt, cream and paneer appear throughout Indian cooking, not as background notes but as primary ingredients that contribute fat, body, sourness and protein.
Understanding what dairy contributes to each dish — and finding plant-based sources that contribute the same things — produces excellent results. This section covers the science of dairy substitution in Indian cooking, not just a list of swaps.
Ghee → Coconut oil — for tadka and finishing. Coconut oil's medium-chain fatty acids behave similarly to ghee fat. The flavour is different but works beautifully in South Indian and coastal cooking.
Cream → Coconut cream — emulsifies similarly in hot curries. Contains less protein than dairy cream so sauces are slightly less stable. Add cornflour (1 tsp per cup) if needed.
Yogurt → Cashew-lemon paste — soaked cashews blended with lemon juice provides fat, body and acidity. Use for marinades, raita, any cold application.
Paneer → Firm tofu, pressed dry — marinate in the same spices as paneer. Does not melt the same way but holds its shape better in curries.
Mustard seeds, cumin and curry leaves bloom identically in coconut oil as in ghee. The flavour profile is slightly different — more tropical, less dairy-rich. In South Indian cooking this is actually closer to the traditional approach.
Cashew paste is the vegan cook's greatest tool. Soaked overnight and blended smooth, it provides fat emulsification, body and a mild sweetness that dairy cream provides. Use 30g cashew paste per 80ml of gravy base.
Tamarind, amchur, lemon juice and kokum all provide acidity without dairy. Tamarind provides the deepest, most stable sourness for gravies. Lemon provides bright, immediate sourness for finishing.