Easy Chickpea Curry

This easy chickpea curry takes just 30 minutes to make. It’s full of flavor and protein and makes a fantastic vegetarian quick meal. Perfect for scooping with our favorite Naan bread!

Ingredients

Below you will find information about the ingredients and how to prepare the recipe. For the measurements and detailed instructions scroll down to the printable recipe card.

Here’s what you need to make this easy recipe:

• Chickpeas – chickpeas are a cheap and delicious source of protein. I’m using 1 1/2 cans of chickpeas for this recipe which may sound inconvenient, but the whole 2 cans is too much for me, but maybe won’t be for you! If you won’t be using the whole 2 cans, you can reserve the remaining chickpeas for another recipe, or toss them with spices and olive oil and roast until crispy (at 400°F/200°C for about 20-30 minutes). They are a great topping for salads!
• Coconut milk – use full-fat coconut milk for the best flavor and texture of the sauce.
• Crushed tomatoes – you can also use chopped tomatoes, whole tomatoes (slightly crushed before adding to the pan), or tomato passata – it’s not important because the sauce will be blended anyway.
• Aromatics – onion, garlic, ginger.
• Ghee – is similar to clarified butter. It’s very easy to make at home or you can use store-bought. You can also use coconut oil, regular vegetable frying oil, or even regular butter.
• Spices – mild curry powder (Western-style) and garam masala. Optionally, you can also add a bit of cayenne powder to add some heat to the sauce. If you like it spicier, add chopped fresh chilies or more cayenne pepper.
• Lime juice – makes the sauce bright and refreshing, it cuts through the richness of the sauce and spices. A must in this recipe.
• A little bit of sugar – to balance the acidity from the tomatoes. You can omit it.
• Cilantro – it’s used as a topping, you can omit it but it’s highly recommended!

How to make chickpea curry step-by-step

STEP 1: Prepare the ingredients: dice the onion, peel garlic and ginger, and grate them on the small holes of a grater. Drain and rinse the chickpeas, juice the lime.

(1 medium/large onion, 4 cloves garlic, 1 1/2 inch (4 cm) piece of ginger, 1 1/2 cans (14 fl oz / 400ml) chickpeas, 2 teaspoons lime juice)

STEP 2: Heat 2 Tbsp ghee or oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until soft, about 8 minutes.

Add garlic, ginger, curry powder, garam masala, and cayenne. Cook, stirring, for about a minute.

(2 teaspoons curry powder, 2 teaspoons garam masala, pinch of cayenne powder, or to taste)

STEP 3: Add coconut milk and crushed tomatoes, and simmer over low heat for about 10 minutes.

(1 can (14 fl oz / 400ml) coconut milk, 1 can (14 fl oz / 400ml) crushed tomatoes)

STEP 4: Blend the sauce with a hand (immersion) blender until smooth.

STEP 5: Add chickpeas and simmer for another 10 minutes.

Season the sauce with sugar, lime juice, salt and pepper.

Serve with cooked rice or Naan bread.

Enjoy!

Storage

This sauce reheats beautifully and tastes freshly made. Store it in the fridge for up to 5 days and reheat in a pan.

Did you make this recipe? RATE THE RECIPE or tell me in the COMMENTS how you liked it! You can also add a photo of your dish. It would make me very happy and will help other readers. Thank you!!