Easy Vegan Vietnamese Curry
This one-pot Vietnamese curry (Cà ri) is loaded with taro, sweet potatoes, and carrots and infused with citrusy aromatics such as ginger, lemongrass, garlic, and lime. It is super creamy, flavorful, hearty, and takes less than one hour to prepare!
Ingredients
- 8 ounces taro diced into 1-inch cubes
- 1/2 medium white sweet potato diced into 1-inch cubes (about 1 cup diced)
- 1 tbsp oil use annatto oil for a deeper color
- 2 cloves of garlic minced
- 1 shallot finely diced
- 1 tbsp minced lemongrass
- 1/2 inch ginger grated
- 4-5 cremini mushrooms quartered
- 2 baby potatoes peeled
- 1/2 small eggplant diced into 1.5-inch cubes or rectangles
- 1 medium carrot peeled and sliced into thick slices
- 1 cup diced fried tofu optional
- 1 13.5-ounce can full-fat coconut milk
- 1 and 1/3 cup water
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 and 1/2 tbsp sugar
- 3/4 tsp salt or more to taste
- 2 tbsp Vietnamese curry powder see notes
- optional: lime juice, fresh cilantro
Instructions
Fry the taro and potatoes
- Peel and slice the taro and sweet potatoes. Start by peeling the taro and sweet potatoes. Next, dice the taro and sweet potatoes into 1-inch cubes. Transfer to a bowl.
- Soak them. Cover the taro and sweet potatoes with cold water and allow them to soak for about 10 minutes. Rinse and pat them dry using kitchen paper towels.
- Fry them. Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a large non-stick skillet. Once hot, add the taro and sweet potatoes and pan-fry for 7-10 minutes, stirring from time to time, until they are golden brown on each side. Transfer to a plate lined with kitchen paper towels to remove the excess oil.Air Fryer Option: Instead of pan-frying the taro and sweet potatoes, you can air-fry them! Toss the cubed taro and potatoes with a tablespoon of oil and air-fry for 8 minutes in a 355°F (180°C) preheated air fryer.
Cook the curry
- Sauté the aromatics. Heat a tablespoon of oil in a pot (I used a Dutch oven) over medium heat. Once hot, add the aromatics and sauté for about 2 minutes or until fragrant.
- Add the vegetables. Add the mushrooms and sauté for 2-3 minutes. Then, add the remaining vegetables: taro, sweet potatoes, baby potatoes, eggplants, and carrots. At this point, you can also add your vegan protein of choice, such as fried tofu, vegan chicken, seitan, etc.
- Add the coconut milk and seasonings. To the pot, add the full-fat coconut milk, water, soy sauce, sugar, salt, and curry powder. Stir to combine.
- Let simmer. Partially cover the pot with the lid and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer and let simmer for 20-25 minutes or until the taro and sweet potatoes are tender.
- Garnish. Finally, top with fresh cilantro and a squeeze of lime juice, and enjoy!
- You can store this curry for up to 3 days in the refrigerator.
Notes
Cut into large chunks.
The shape you cut your vegetables doesn’t really matter – you can slice them into sticks or cubes. However, when it comes to the taro and potatoes, I highly recommend dicing them into large chunks of about 1-1.5 inches. This will prevent them from crumbling during cooking.Use coconut water!
If you have coconut water in your fridge, use it in place of the water. That’s what my mother-in-law uses when she makes curry, and it does add extra sweetness and more complex flavors.Cook partially covered.
Do not completely cover the pot with its lid during cooking. Allowing the curry to simmer partially covered prevents the steam from falling back into the curry – goodbye watery curry!Nutrition
Serving: 1 serving | Calories: 413 kcal | Carbohydrates: 39.1 g | Protein: 6.8 g | Fat: 26.8 g | Saturated Fat: 21.6 g | Sodium: 275 mg | Potassium: 904 mg | Fiber: 8.1 g | Sugar: 12.3 g | Calcium: 48 mg | Iron: 3 mg