20 Minute Vegan Chickpea Curry
Quick and easy 20 Minute Vegan Chickpea Curry is here to help with weeknight dinner! Bold, flavorful, and naturally gluten free. WFPB friendly.
Vegan chickpea curry is a super easy and delicious one-pot meal inspired by the flavors of both northern and southern Indian cuisine. Filled with a flavorful curry base and packed full of flavor thanks to ginger, garlic, and garam masala. Serve it with naan bread, pita bread, and fluffy rice any night of the week for a new recipe the whole family will love.
In the mood for more easy weeknight meals? Check out my Lentil and Fennel Pasta or some Lentil Sloppy Joes!
Ingredients
This meal is not only easy to mix together, but it’s really budget friendly thanks to the use of canned ingredients. Those, along with some simple spices, and you have yourself a perfect weeknight dinner.
- Tomatoes: You can use either fresh tomatoes or a tomato sauce, depending on the season and what you have in your pantry.
- Chickpeas: 2 cans of chickpeas, drained and rinsed.
- Coconut Milk + Plant Based Milk: I love to use the combination of canned coconut milk and a plant based milk (I almost always use unsweetened and unflavored soy milk). The two together keep the dish lighter in flavor and from tasting only of coconut. However, the coconut milk is there to add some flavor.
- Sugar: A little bit of sugar to balance out the acid in the tomatoes. If you want, you can use coconut sugar to make this recipe refined sugar free.
- Spices: Garlic, ginger, paprika, bay leaves, cilantro, and garam masala are all used.
Variations + Substitutions
Vegetables: Toss in a few frozen peas, some bite sized cauliflower, or strips of bell pepper for extra color, and flavor.
Different Beans: Don’t have chickpeas? Want to use a different bean? You totally can! I honestly LOVE this recipe when I make it with cannellini beans. Butter beans or any other kind of white bean will also taste great.
Instructions
Make sure to check out the recipe card below for the full recipe and ingredient list.
Prep Step: Tomatoes
If you want to use fresh tomatoes (which I totally recommend, especially in the summer) you’ll want to blend a pint of tomatoes together with a quarter cup of water until they are smooth.
But if you are using tomato sauce, no need for this step!
Step One: Make the Sauce
Making this dish really can’t get much easier. Into a large pot or skillet, combine all the ingredients, except for half of the garam masala. That is reserved for the end.
Tip! Adding half of the garam masala at the end is a tip that I learned from Madhur Jaffrey. She says that garam masala is full of aromatic spices and you don’t want to cook down those flavors. You want them to be bright and full of flavor right at the top of the dish. That’s what makes it smell (and taste!) so good.
Into the pot, add the rinsed and drained chickpeas, tomatoes, tomato paste, coconut milk, plant based milk, and all the spices and sugar. Mix well to combine.
Step Two: Cook the Curry
Bring the curry to a boil and then reduce the heat to medium-low and allow it to simmer. Cover the pot slightly so you don’t have the sauce jumping everywhere. Let it simmer, stirring every few minutes, for about 15 minutes or until the chickpeas are soft.
Step Three: Serve and Enjoy!
After 15 minutes, remove the curry from the heat and add the remaining garam masala. Stir through, tasting for seasoning. Serve and enjoy!
What to Serve with Chickpea Curry?
Here are a few of my favorite ways to enjoy this chickpea recipe!
- Bread: Serve it with warmed naan bread, pita bread, or any other crusty bread.
- Rice: This is how I eat this meal almost every time. Serve it with some basmati rice made in the rice cooker for a super easy dinner. Use some cauliflower rice for extra veggies!
- Potatoes: Adding this on top of some boiled or mashed white potatoes or sweet potatoes is super amazing and my second favorite way to enjoy this.
- Sides: Some potato samosas and a yogurt dip also taste fantastic with this recipe.
How to Store + Reheat
Fridge: Cool to room temperature and then keep in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Freeze: Cool completely and then transfer to a freezer safe airtight container. Will keep for up to 2 months.
Thaw: Thaw this overnight in the fridge.
Reheat: Reheat in a large pot over medium heat until warmed through. It will thicken, especially if it is frozen. Add some water or a splash of coconut milk to bring it back to the right consistency.
30 Minute Weeknight Recipes
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Equipment
- Large pot or skillet
- mixing spoon
- measuring cups
- Measuring spoons
- Blender (optional)
Ingredients
- 1 pint tomatoes or 1 cup tomato sauce
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 2 cans chickpeas drained and rinsed
- ¼ cup coconut milk canned
- ¾ cup plant based milk soy milk or other
- 1 teaspoon dried garlic or fresh
- 1 teaspoon dried ginger or fresh
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 2 teaspoons garam masala divided
- 1 teaspoon cilantro dried
- 2 bay leaves
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Prep step: Blend the tomatoes. If you are using whole tomatoes, blend them together with a ¼ cup of water in a blender for 30 seconds or until smooth. If you are using tomato sauce, you can skip this step.
- Make the sauce. In a large pot or skillet, combine the tomatoes (or tomato sauce) with the tomato paste, drained and rinsed chickpeas, coconut milk, plant based milk, and all the herbs and spices, adding only half of the garam masala at this point. Mix well and mostly cover with a lid. Bring to a boil.
- Cook the curry. Once it has boiled, reduce the heat so that it simmers and simmer for 15 minutes. Taste and adjust for flavor as needed. When the curry is done, sprinkle over top the remaining teaspoon of garam masala and mix in the spices. Serve with rice, potatoes, or bread and enjoy!
Notes
- How to Store + Reheat
- Fridge: Cool to room temperature and then keep in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
- Freeze: Cool completely and then transfer to a freezer safe airtight container. Will keep for up to 2 months.
- Thaw: Thaw this overnight in the fridge.
- Reheat: Reheat in a large pot over medium heat until warmed through. It will thicken, especially if it is frozen. Add some water or a splash of coconut milk to bring it back to the right consistency.
Nutrition
More Weeknight Recipes
Looking for easy to make and delicious dinner ideas? I’ve gotcha covered! This collection of mains are easy and simple recipes that everyone will go back for seconds over. From quick and easy weeknight meals to impressive dishes for special occasions, there is a recipe for you.
