Coconut chickpea and spinach curry made with a tomato and coconut milk sauce. Eat on its own or spoon over a bed of rice and serve with a side of sourdough naan. This is a great weeknight dinner and makes amazing leftovers.
This curry dish is so simple to make plus it's full of good-tasting healthy foods. The combination of crushed tomatoes, coconut milk, and curry spice will have you spooning up that creamy sauce.
One thing I love about this dish is I typically have just about everything on hand at all times. Chickpeas, crushed tomatoes, canned coconut milk, ginger, garlic, rice, and spices are all pantry staples in my kitchen.
It comes together quickly and makes for even better leftovers for the next day.
Serve with a side of sourdough discard naan.
Ingredients
Chickpeas: Using canned chickpeas, or garbanzo beans for this recipes is a great way to have dinner on the table fast and easy.
They are full of fiber, potassium, B-vitamins, and iron. When prepared correctly, they taste really good too.
While dried chickpeas are the healthier option, canned is a faster, more convenient way to go. If you have the time, dried chickpeas are the better choice.
Red Curry Powder: This recipe calls for a red curry powder. While I typically like to make my own spice blends, for this particular recipe I use McCormicks Red Curry Powder.
Coconut Oil: This oil really compliments the coconut milk and is a great choice. Olive oil or butter can also be used.
Fresh Ginger: The preferred type of ginger is freshly grated. If you do not have fresh on hand, ground can also work. About ½ a teaspoon.
Vegetable Stock: This dish was created to be a vegetarian option but if vegetable stock is not available chicken stock can also be used.
Bastami Rice: Serve over a bed of Bastami rice.
See the recipe card for quantities.
Instructions
First, start off by cooking the rice according to package directions.
While the rice is cooking prepare the curry.
Start off by melting the coconut oil in a large braiser or sautee pan over medium heat.
Add in the onions and cook until soft and translucent. About 3-5 minutes.
Add in the mushrooms and continue cooking until soft. About another 3-5 minutes.
Add in spices, garlic, and ginger then stir to coat. Cook for 30 seconds or until you can start to smell the garlic.
Pour in the vegetable broth and using a wooden spoon, scrape the bottom of the pan incorporating all the brown bits stuck to the bottom.
Allow to simmer for a few minutes until the liquid reduces.
Add in the chickpeas. Make sure the juices from the cans are drained out before adding in the chickpeas. We don't want that extra liquid in this mix.
Add in the crushed tomatoes and canned coconut milk. Stir well to fully incorporate the coconut cream.
Bring the mix up to a low boil and reduce it down to a simmer. Allow cooking for 10-15 minutes or until it has reduced in size and thickened up.
Add in the baby spinach and cook until it has wilted down. Don't cook too much or they will break down and get slimy.
They are done when the spinach leaves shrink up and still look like little spinach leaves. Should only take a minute or two.
The spinach will continue to cook a bit more once removed from heat. Better to have the spinach under-cooked than cooked too much.
Serve over a bed of basmati rice and a side of naan bread.
Do you have a sourdough starter? Make your own sourdough discard naan.
Equipment
For this recipe, I use my 3.5 qt enameled coated braiser. This is the most used pot in my kitchen. It has lower sides making things like this much easier to tend to.
If you don't have a braiser you can also use a large saute pan or dutch oven.
Make sure it's at least 3 quarts.
Storage
Store the curry in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Will keep up to 3-4 days.
Store rice and curry separately so the rice doesn't get mushy.
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📋Recipe
Coconut Chickpea Curry
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 Tablespoons Coconut Oil - Can substitute for olive oil
- ½ Large Onion - Diced
- 8oz Baby Bella Mushrooms - Sliced
- 2 teaspoon Fresh Ginger - Grated
- 2-3 Garlic Cloves - Minced
- 2 teaspoons Red Curry Powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon Turmeric
- 1 Cup Vegetable Stock
- 2 16 ounce cans Chickpeas
- 1 14oz Can Crushed Tomatoes
- 1 14 oz Can Coconut Milk
- 2-3 Cups Baby Spinach - Packed
For Serving
- Basmati rice - Or Jasmine
- Naan
Instructions
- Start off by cooking rice according to the package directions.
- While rice is cooking, prepare the curry.
- Start off by melting the coconut oil in a large braiser or sautee pan over medium heat.
- Add in the onions and cook until soft and translucent. 3-5 minutes.
- Add in mushrooms and continue cooking until soft. About another 3-5 minutes.
- Add in spices, garlic, and ginger and stir to coat. Cook for 30 seconds or until you can start to smell the garlic.
- Pour in the vegetable broth and using a wooden spoon, scrape the bottom of the pan incorporating all the brown bits stuck to the bottom.
- Allow to simmer for a few minutes until the liquid reduces.
- Add in the chickpeas. Make sure the juices from the cans are drianed out before adding in the chickpeas. We don't want that extra liquid in this mix.
- Add in the crushed tomatoes and canned coconut milk. Stir well to fully incorporate the coconut cream.
- Bring the mix up to a low boil and reduce it down to a simmer. Allow cooking for 10-15 minutes or until it has reduced in size and thickened up.
- Add in baby spinach and cook until it has wilted down. Don't cook too much or they will break down and get slimy. They are done when the spinach leaves shrink up and still look like little spinach leaves. Should only take a minute or two.
- Serve warm over a bed of basmati rice and a side of naan bread.
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