TL;DR: Classic Indian scrambled eggs, vegan-ized.
In India, bhurji is something you will find in all sorts of settings: from street stands to dorm rooms to breakfast at homes. It’s really simple to make, packs tons of protein and nutrients, and most importantly is damn delicious. The word bhurji simply means “scrambled”, and it’s essentially just a few simple spices and aromatics cooked with eggs, and sometimes paneer (cheese) instead. While I love both of those versions, I’m always looking for unconventional and healthy ways to make traditional dishes and this tofu bhurji recipe is just as simple and flavorful.
High in protein and low in fats and carbs, this tofu bhurji can be a component of pretty much any meal. You could eat it with roti/chapati for a more traditional Indian style meal, or sans starch just as-is with some spicy pickle (achar) like in my pics here. Or how about wrapping it in a tortilla with some chutney and roasted potatoes? Indian breakfast burritos ftw.
Also, this is a great recipe to try out if you are learning how to cook Indian food. It’s easy, comes together very quickly, and only requires a few spices. Check out my basic Indian spices post if you want to learn more about cooking Indian food.
Tips: Use the kind of tofu that makes you happy. For me, the softer the better.
As an eggaholic, I love the texture of supple and gently cooked scrambled eggs. The get the closest approximation of this texture, you’ll need to use the right kind of tofu. At a high level, tofu ranges in texture from silken (soft and custard-like) to extra firm (stiff and structured). For this recipe, I recommend that you use a silken tofu. Silken tofu is really soft, and doesn’t require as much draining and drying as firm or even extra firm tofu. Also, you don’t need to chop it up beforehand; just dump into a pan and gently crumble and fold. If you like big chunks (or “curds”) then go easy with the folding, and if you like your scrambles really creamy, mash up the tofu until you get the consistency you desire.
Alternatively, if you like your scrambles on the drier and chunkier side, you may want to use a firmer tofu. Regular or firm block tofu will work great here. You’ll just need to spend a bit more time on prep as these types of tofu need to be drained of moisture before cooking. Also you will need to crumble or chop into small pieces before putting into the pan. Using firm tofu will get a final result closer in texture to paneer bhurji than egg bhurji, which is not a bad thing, just different!
If you’re interested in more about the types of tofu and how to use them, Serious Eats did an incredible deep dive on tofu.
The Process: Sauté the spices, aromatics and tomatoes, fold in the tofu, gobble.
Get your stuff ready to go. Tofu bhurji comes together quickly so it helps to prep as much as possible beforehand.
Heat oil in pan, add cumin seeds and cook until sputtering.
Add chopped onions, salt and pepper and cook until onions are translucent and just barely starting to brown.
Stir in tomatoes, chilies and ginger and cook for a minute
Add turmeric, garam masala and soy sauce. Cook until tomatoes start to soften, around 5 minutes.
Dump tofu into the pan and gently crumble and fold until you get a consistency that you like. If there is still excess moisture in the tofu, cook until it has evaporated, should only be a few mins. Otherwise, this is ready to go. Check for seasoning, stir in fresh cilantro, and serve! If you’re like me and need MOAR heat, eat with a dollop of spicy pickle/achar.
Tofu Bhurji | Easy and Healthy Indian Scramble Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp oil
- 1 tsp cumin seeds
- 1 medium onion diced
- 3 chilies minced
- 1 inch ginger minced
- 1/2 tsp turmeric
- 1/2 tsp garam masala
- 2 tsp soy sauce
- 1 block silken tofu
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- salt to taste
- 1/8 cup cilantro chopped
Instructions
- Remove tofu from container and drain out excess liquid.
- Heat oil in pan (I use nonstick for this) over med-high heat until shimmering, add cumin seeds until sputtering.
- Add onions and black pepper to pan, stir occasionally and cook until onions are translucent and barely browned, about 5 minutes.
- Add chilies, ginger, and tomatoes to pan and mix well. Cook until tomatoes are softened, about another 5 minutes.
- Add turmeric, garam masala, and soy sauce and mix well.
- Dump tofu into pan, and gently break up and fold tofu until everything is evenly mixed together. Check for seasoning and add salt if necessary. Garnish with cilantro and serve.
Awesome recipes for vegans!
Thanks Yanina, much appreciated! 🙂
Thanks for another great recipe. Do you think Quron would work in this recipe?
Also, what’s the difference between Kashmiri and Punjabi garam masala?
I have both in my pantry and not sure which one to use.
I use silken tofu specifically because I like the texture and how it emulates real eggs. With that said, yes, you could totally use a Quorn product instead. However you will likely get a very different texture of scramble than if you used tofu or eggs (unless Quorn makes egg-like products now).
As for garam masalas, companies/regions/people make garam masala with different combos of spices but *in general* they can be used pretty interchangeably in recipes. Do either of yours have ingredients listed?
Vik – Sorry no ingredients listed. They were given to me by my close friend from India when he visited recently.
The Punjabi has corriander though, as I can really taste that and seems a bit more cinnamony. On the other hand, the Kashmiri has the taste of fennel instead of coriander and is slightly darker and earthier (maybe mace).
I’ll make a simple curry with them and compare the taste in the near future.
Well if they’re from India then that’s a good sign. 🙂 And yeah in some garam masala blends they’ll include “base” spices like coriander and cumin. I tend to prefer the more aromatic garam masala blends (sounds like in your case that would be the Kashmiri one) because it’s often added at the very end of cooking to make the dish “pop” with flavor. But of course it all comes down to personal preference and what works for the dish. Let me know how the curry turns out!