This warm and hearty golden Chickpea Curry is so quick and easy to make. It’s ideal for weeknight dinners, cooking in batches, or freezing. This version uses tomato, which makes it a bit more acidic and savoury than other curries like the dhal recipe posted previously. That’s because tomato is a natural source of MSG, yes, that yummy-tasting Chinese restaurant ingredient that gives an ‘umami’ taste.
Chickpeas, aka garbanzo beans, are a pretty versatile pulse. They can be dried or pre-cooked in cans and even have their own name of flour – gram flour. You can use them in a wide variety of dishes that are hot or cold, sweet or savoury like in this chickpea curry. Indeed, the liquid Chickpeas are soaked in can be made into aquafaba, a recent food craze (where you can make butter and mayo with it!) among vegans that can substitute egg whites. Chickpeas are a great source of plant-based protein, chickpeas also pack a punch, containing a fair amount of calcium, iron, folate, magnesium and fibre.
If you use dried chickpeas, you need to pre-soak them in plenty of water overnight, drained then boil in a pot with fresh water, simmering for about 1.25 hours until tender. Without the pre-soaking, you’re looking for around 4 hours of cooking! Canned chickpeas are a more convenient alternative, just look for varieties that have minimal salt added and rinse well before using in your recipe.
Pre-soaking serves the advantage of making chickpeas not only quicker to cook, but also more digestible and reduces the phytate present in the beans. Phytate is an anti-nutrient which binds to nutrients like iron and calcium reducing how easily absorbed they are. By pre-soaking, more of these nutrients is absorbed – especially important for vegetarians and vegans.
Warm and Hearty Chickpea Curry Recipe
Serves: 4 Time: 20 mins
Ingredients :
- 800g (2 cans) chickpeas, drained
- 4 medium tomatoes, seeded and chopped
- 3 tbsp tomato puree
- One medium onion, chopped
- 1 tbsp ginger, minced
- 1 tbsp curry powder
- 2 large handfuls spinach, chopped
- 1 tbsp olive oil
Preparation :
1. Heat olive oil in a non-stick frying pan, and stir-fry ginger, onion and curry powder until fragrant.
2. Add in chickpeas, chopped tomatoes, tomato puree, spinach and ½ cup of water. Reduce heat and simmer for
10 minutes until sauce thickens.
Tips: Serve hot with a small bowl of brown rice.
Nutritional Facts:
Per serving: 217 calories; 8 g fat; 22 g carbohydrates; 10 g protein
Carbohydrate Servings: 1.5
