This vegan riff on the viral dumpling bake might just be the easiest weeknight dinner ever! Made with frozen dumplings, tofu, and veggies in a creamy coconut curry sauce, it all comes together in one dish — just assemble and bake. In 35 minutes, you’ve got a comforting, flavor-packed dinner you’ll want to make again and again.
Let's get something out of the way: I did not come up with the original concept for baking frozen dumplings in curry sauce. It's a loose recipe idea that originated on social media, and frankly, I'm a little late to the party on this one. People have been creating variations on the viral dumpling bake for about a year now. I finally decided it was time to make a vegan version.
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The concept is beautifully simple — arrange some frozen dumplings and vegetables in a casserole dish with coconut curry sauce. Pop it into the oven, and a little while later you've got a delicious meal that practically made itself. Once I saw it, I knew I had to try it! If you're familiar with recipes on this site like my dumpling soup or Thai-inspired dishes like my vegan green curry and vegan red curry, you'll see why this one appealed to me. The dumpling bake combines some of my favorite elements of those recipes and puts them together in the easiest possible way, with delicious results.
My vegan dumpling bake takes a couple of detours from the original. I switched up the veggies, using broccoli and carrots instead of bok choy (they roast better, in my opinion), stuck with vegan vegetable dumplings, and added tofu for extra protein. Assembly takes just minutes — then all you need to do is pop it in the oven and start getting excited about your soon-to-be delicious vegan dinner.
Ingredients You'll Need
Below you'll find a list of ingredients in this recipe, with notes and substitutions. Scroll all the way to the bottom of the post to see the full recipe, including the amount of each ingredient.
- Coconut milk. I like to use full-fat coconut milk for a nice, rich sauce. Light coconut milk should work if you want to cut calories and fat, but make sure it's canned — coconut milk beverages sold in carton are too watery for this recipe.
- Curry paste. Make sure your curry paste is vegan. I like Maesri brand, but it is quite spicy. Thai Kitchen is another vegan brand that's much milder.
- Soy sauce. Tamari and liquid aminos also work if you need a substitute.
- Lime juice. Stick with fresh juice (not bottled) for maximum flavor!
- Brown sugar. Use organic brown sugar to keep the dish vegan — conventional brown sugar is often processed using animal bone char.
- Tofu. Use super-firm tofu for this recipe, if you can get it. It requires no pressing and the firm texture stands up well to the long bake time in sauce.
- Frozen dumplings. Many brands of frozen vegetable dumplings are vegan, but always check the ingredients. I've made this recipe with Wegmans vegetable dumplings and Bibigo vegetable potstickers.
- Vegetables. I used broccoli and carrots, but if you have another favorite roasting veggie, feel free to use it!
- Toppings. The recipe calls for cilantro, peanuts, and scallions, but use what you like and get creative.
How It's Made
Below is a detailed photo tutorial on how to make this dish. Scroll all the way down if you'd like to skip right to the recipe!
Step 1: Get ready. Preheat your oven to 400°F.
Step 2: Make the sauce. Mix your coconut milk, curry paste, soy sauce, lime juice, and brown sugar in a small container. Get the mixture smooth — you can warm it up to dissolve any stubborn coconut cream or curry paste chunks if needed.
Step 3: Prepare the tofu. Cut your tofu into 16 pieces, roughly the same size as your dumplings. I like to cut mine into triangles, but squares or rectangles are fine.
Step 4: Assemble the casserole. Start by pouring the sauce into a 9 x 13 inch baking dish, then arrange alternating pieces of tofu and dumplings in the sauce. Tuck the carrot slices and broccoli florets in any spots you can squeeze them.
Step 5: Bake. Cover the dish and bake the casserole for 20 minutes, then remove the cover and continue baking it for 10 to 15 minutes. It's done when the sauce is bubbling all over.
Step 6: Rest, then top. Let the casserole sit for about 5 minutes after you take it out of the oven. Sprinkle on the toppings and dig in!
Step 7: Serve. Your dumpling bake is ready to enjoy! Dish it up by itself, or with rice.
Variations
- Curry paste swap. Not into red curry? Pretty much any flavor of Thai curry paste will work. Try green, yellow, panang, or massaman.
- All dumplings. If you'd like to skip the tofu, bump up the number of dumplings to 24 to 30.
- Veggie alternatives. Cauliflower, mushrooms, asparagus, and bell peppers would all make great alternatives to broccoli and/or carrots.
Frequently Asked Questions
I haven't tested a gluten-free version, but if you're able to find frozen vegan gluten-free dumplings, I think it would work. You'll also need to use gluten-free tamari in place of soy sauce.
Red curry paste can be rather spicy, so the dish will have a kick. To keep it on the mild side, stick with a mild brand of curry paste, like Thai Kitchen, or substitute a milder flavor, like yellow curry paste.
If you have an 11 × 15 inch lasagna pan, that works well. You'll have a little extra room, which you can leave as is or fill with extra veggies. If you don't have one, either get creative with combining baking dishes of different sizes, or just make two casseroles.
Leftover dumpling bake will keep in the original baking dish, covered tightly in plastic wrap, or in an airtight container in the fridge for 3 to 4 days. You can also freeze it for up to 3 months.
More Vegan Casseroles
Like this recipe? If so, please stop back and leave me a review and rating below if you try it! Also be sure to follow me on Facebook, Pinterest or Instagram, or subscribe to my newsletter for more recipes like this one!
📖 Recipe
Vegan Dumpling Bake
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 (14 ounce/414 ml) can full-fat coconut milk
- 3 tablespoons vegan red curry paste (or to taste — I like to use 4 tablespoons)
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
- 1 tablespoon organic brown sugar
- 8 ounces super-firm tofu
- 16 frozen vegan vegetable dumplings
- 1 cup broccoli florets
- 1 cup carrot slices (about 2 medium carrots)
- ¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro
- 2 scallions, chopped
- ¼ cup roasted and salted peanuts, chopped
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F.
- Combine the coconut milk, curry paste, soy sauce, lime juice, and brown sugar together in a small bowl or container. Stir until the coconut milk is smooth and the curry paste is fully dissolved. You can warm the mixture up if it gets stubborn.
- Slice the tofu into about 16 triangles, roughly the same size as your dumplings (Note 1).
- Pour the coconut curry mixture into a 9 × 13 inch baking dish. Arrange the dumplings and tofu in rows, alternating between the two. No need to thaw the dumplings — add them straight from the freezer. Tuck the carrot slices and broccoli florets into the gaps.
- Cover the dish and bake the casserole for 20 minutes, then uncover it and continue baking for 10 to 15 minutes more, until the sauce is bubbling throughout.
- Let the casserole sit for 5 minutes when it comes out of the oven, then sprinkle with fresh cilantro, scallions, and peanuts.
- Serve.
Notes
- The easiest way to do this is by cutting your tofu block in half, to create two rectangles. Cut each rectangle into four slices, then cut each slice in half on a diagonal. If you have an oddly shaped block of tofu, just cut it into 16 evenly sized pieces. They don't need to be triangles — as long as everything fits in your casserole dish, you're good!
- This recipe makes 3 generous servings. You could get 4 more modest servings out of it, or stretch it even further by serving it with rice.
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