This delicious Chickpea and Tomato Coconut Curry is super easy and made with pantry staples. Plant-Based and Meal-Prep friendly!
We’ve been cooking lots of curries during this year-long lockdown and no wonder. They’re delicious, easy to make, and most require just basic pantry staples. Like a can of coconut milk, a tablespoon of curry powder, some chickpeas, a can of diced tomatoes, and you’re in the game!
It’s so easy to make this next Chickpea and Tomato Coconut Curry Recipe, and it’s so tasty, we bet it will soon become a staple in your kitchen as well!
Ingredients & Substitutions
This curry is very simple to make as it only needs a couple of basic pantry staples:
- dry chickpeas. You can substitute with canned but adjust the amount accordingly (see below). We like this recipe best using dry chickpeas that we soak overnight and pre-cook.
- vegetable oil
- onion. We used yellow onion in this recipe, but red onion or even the white bits of spring onions will work just as well.
- carrots
- garlic
- curry powder. You can substitute it with curry paste if you have it on hand. Use about 1-2 tbsp of curry paste, depending on how strong you like your curry. If using the curry powder or yellow curry paste, your curry will turn yellow/orange as pictured.
- diced tomatoes. Use canned diced tomatoes for best results. You will need about 1 can, which translates to about 1 3/4 cups (or 400 ml).
- coconut milk. You will need about 1 can, or about 1 3/4 cup (400 ml).
- vegetable broth
- salt, pepper
- lime juice for acidity
Prep your dry chickpeas the night before
We recommend starting this recipe the day before when you place dry chickpeas in a bowl and cover with plenty of water (about 4 cups to 1 cup dry chickpeas). Cover the bowl and let soak the chickpeas overnight.
By morning the chickpeas will have at least doubled in size.
Rinse the soaked chickpeas, drain and add them to a pot with salted water. Bring the pot to a boil, then lower the temperature and cook on low for about 40 minutes, or until the chickpeas turn tender, but not mushy. Try with a fork or just taste a cooked chickpea – there should still be a bit of a bite to it (“al dente”).
You do not want to overcook the chickpeas, as we will continue cooking them in the curry. Once cooked, drain and set aside.
Can I use canned chickpeas instead?
Instead of using dry chickpeas, you can make this recipe with canned chickpeas to cut down prep and cooking time, but we find the texture and flavors better when cooking from scratch. If you are using canned, you will need about 2 cans of chickpeas, and make sure to rinse them well under running water.
How to make this Chickpea and Tomato Coconut Curry
Once you have your ingredients ready, it’s only a matter of tossing them in a pot, super easy!
Heat a pot, add a drizzle of oil, then toss in sliced onion and carrots. Sauté for a couple of minutes, until the onion turns translucent, and the carrots soften, about 5-6 minutes. Don’t forget to give it a stir once in a while.
Then, add in minced garlic and curry powder and stir for about 30 seconds, until the spices darken and turn fragrant.
Next, pour in your diced tomatoes and vegetable broth, scraping the bottom of the pot. Season to taste with salt and black pepper, then bring to a simmer and cook covered on low for about 15 minutes.
Add the drained chickpeas and coconut milk, and simmer for another 5 minutes so the flavors combine.
Adjust seasoning to your taste with salt and pepper and add in the juice of half a lime. for acidity.
And this is it, your curry is done!
Toast the cashews
Toasting cashews will give them a nice nutty flavor and make them crunchier. It is a nice addition to add to your curry when serving.
To toast the cashews, to a dry pan, add 1/3 cup cashews, and on medium heat gently toast while stirring often, until golden brown in color. Once they start to get color on them, it’s easy to burn them, so keep a close watch. Once toasted to your liking, remove from the pan and set aside to cool.
How to serve this curry
Serve this curry topped with sliced red onion, chopped parsley, toasted cashews, and lime wedges, so you can add more lime juice depending on your taste.
We also recommend serving with some garlic naan bread or cooked rice as a side, to scoop up all those delicious juices.
Storage
The Chickpea and Tomato Coconut Curry will keep well refrigerated in an air-tight container. You can store it for up to 5 days.
Alternatively, you can freeze it for up to 3 months.
Chickpea and Tomato Coconut Curry
This delicious Chickpea and Tomato Coconut Curry is super easy and made with pantry staples. Plant-Based and Meal-Prep friendly!
Ingredients
- 1 cup chickpeas, dry
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1 onion, medium
- 2 carrots, medium
- 4 cloves of garlic
- 1 tbsp curry powder
- 1 3/4 cups of diced tomatoes (about 400 ml or 1 can)
- 1 3/4 cups coconut milk (about 400 ml or 1 can)
- 3 cups vegetable broth
- 1 tsp salt
- black pepper to taste
- 1/2 lime, juiced
Toppings:
- 1 lime
- 1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
- 1 tbsp parsley
- 1/3 cup cashews, toasted
Instructions
- Soak 1 cup dry chickpeas overnight in water, then rinse, drain and add to a pot with salted water. Bring to a boil, then lower the temperature and cook on low heat for about 40 minutes, or until the chickpeas turn tender, but not mushy. Drain and set aside.
- Heat a pot and add 1 tbsp vegetable oil. Add 1 sliced onion and 2 sliced carrots, then saute for about 5-6 minutes, stirring occasionally, until translucent and soft. Add 4 cloves of minced garlic and 1 tbsp curry powder and stir for about 30 seconds, until the spices are fragrant.
- Add 1 can of diced tomatoes and 3 cups of vegetable broth, scraping the bottom of the pan for any brown bits. Season to taste with salt and black pepper. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer and cook covered for about 10-15 minutes.
- Add the drained chickpeas and 1 can of coconut milk. Simmer for another 5 minutes so the flavors combine.
- Season to taste with salt and pepper and add in the juice of half a lime.
- To toast the cashews, to a dry pan, add 1/3 cup cashews, and on medium heat gently toast while stirring often, until golden brown in color. Watch out not to burn them. Once toasted, remove from the pan and set aside to cool.
- Serve topped with sliced red onion, chopped parsley, toasted cashews, and lime wedges. Add garlic naan bread or white cooked rice as a side.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 6 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 354Total Fat: 22gSaturated Fat: 14gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 7gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 828mgCarbohydrates: 33gFiber: 7gSugar: 7gProtein: 11g
Nutrition data is automatically calculated using Nutritionix and may not be accurate.
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