Amazingly creamy, saucy chickpea curry served over rice with a dollop of chili crisp and a side of cucumber salad. Ready in 20 minutes!
Steph’s Curry is AMAZING!!! I mean DELICIOUS!!! I ate all of it by myself! Its easily going to be a weekly meal for me!!! Thanks so much!!!
In This Post: Everything You Need For Chickpea Curry
- Chickpea Curry Video
- Ingredients for This Recipe
- Lindsay’s Notes
- Chickpea Curry Recipe
- Frequently Asked Questions (including subs and modifications)
- Reviews
Chickpea Curry Video
Ingredients For This Recipe
Brown Sugar
The perfect little bit of sweetness. The brown sugar helps offset the spiciness and makes everything just deliciously rich.
Curry Paste
This recipe uses red curry paste. Any brand will work, but I usually opt for the Thai Kitchen brand that I can find pretty easily at my local grocery store.
Coconut Milk
Please, please use full-fat coconut milk in this recipe. The perfect thickness and sauciness!
Soy Sauce
We’ve got sweetness, we’ve got richness, we’ve got spiciness, and this is where the saltiness comes in!
Chickpeas
Just one can of chickpeas – my favorite easy plant-based protein.
Spinach
I love adding spinach to this for a little bit of veg. Other veggies you could use: green beans, broccoli, cauliflower, or carrots.
Cilantro
A sprinkling of cilantro finish everything off!
Rice
Heap this delicious mixture over a mound of fluffy rice, and that’s it!
Lindsay’s Notes
How it happened is that I asked my sister Steph what she’s been making for dinner lately, and she said, “I make that salmon recipe but I just use a can of chickpeas instead to keep it easy.” And now, if you ask me what I’m making for dinner lately, I’m going to say the exact same thing because okay wow that is very delicious and it only takes ten minutes.
STEPH FOR PRESIDENT!
This chickpea curry is, well, it’s everything. It’s cozy, it’s pantry-friendly, and maybe even a little elegant? *hair toss* even though it’s super super easy? It’s comforting without being heavy, nutritious without being boring, and beautiful without being high maintenance. I’m no stranger to a delicious chickpea curry, but this one takes it to the next level.
I came into this realization too late to include it in the photos here, but serving this with a little side of pickled cucumber salad (sliced cucumbers, sliced red onion, white vinegar, olive oil, salt, and sugar) is *chef’s kiss* SOS perfection. (I also love this little cucumber salad with these beef skewers. SO GOOD.)
With or without the cucumber salad, I can definitely say that swooping the wooden spoon leisurely through that luscious sauce, piling the saucy goodness of chickpeas and spinach over steaming rice, and then drizzling the chili crisp (affiliate link) over the whole thing… it’s definitely a living-my-best-life type moment.
Description
Amazingly creamy, saucy chickpea curry served over rice with a dollop of chili crisp and a side of cucumber salad. Ready in 20 minutes!
Instructions
- Cook rice according to package directions.
- Heat the avocado oil over medium heat. Add the garlic and curry paste; sauté until softened and fragrant, about 1-2 minutes.
- Add the brown sugar, coconut milk, and soy sauce. Bring to a low simmer until thickened slightly.
- Add chickpeas, spinach, and cilantro; cook until chickpeas are heated through and spinach is wilted. Mash the chickpeas ever so slightly with the back of a wooden spoon if you want to change up the texture and make it more creamy.
- Taste and adjust to your liking – we often add a squeeze of lime or some extra ginger or lemongrass, but it’s really not necessary. The flavor is totally there even with the most basic ingredient list. Serve over rice with a dollop of chili crisp (affiliate link) and a side of pickled cucumber salad if you want (and I promise you do want this – see notes). Top with more cilantro, if you want!
Notes
For the pickled cucumber salad, thinly slice 3 small cucumbers and a small chunk of red onion on a mandoline. Toss sliced cucumbers and red onion with 1 tablespoon white vinegar, 2 tablespoons avocado oil, and 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon sugar. Let them hang out for 20-30 minutes (more if you have time) and just serve with the curry! So good. My kids love these, too!
1 1/2 cups of rice will give you a bit more than you technically need – it’s 4 hearty portions or 6 regular portions. We always use this amount, though, because my girls often want to eat the rice plain, and I’d rather have a bit of extra rice instead of not enough rice!
If your sauce is too runny, this is likely because of the brand of coconut milk. Typically when I use Asian brands of coconut milk (Aroy D or Chaokoh) I do not have this issue, and the sauce consistently turns out thick and luscious and creamy, almost like a gravy. If you find yourself with a runny sauce, just whisk one tablespoon of cornstarch into one tablespoon of cold water and add it to the bubbling sauce in the pan. Within a minute or two of gentle heat, you’ll see it start to thicken up. Works like a charm.
