This incredibly tasty, healthy, filling, vegan, and cheap-to-make chickpea spinach curry, can be made in less than half an hour. It easily doubles up to feed a crowd, or to simply save you cooking another meal a different day.
Tender chickpeas in a tomato-onion gravy with soft spinach, boldly flavored with just a handful of spices, this curry is the absolute business.
This recipe will make four large servings, or six if served with some basmati rice, naan bread, and perhaps a tangy tasty kachumber salad to round it off.
Chickpea spinach curry is tastier and healthier than any take-away, at a fraction of the price, and is also impressive enough to serve if entertaining, with some crispy cauliflower pakora as a starter.
Even my kids go crazy for this mild curry, although feel free to increase the spice if you like it hot. I love spicy curries, and especially chickpea ones.
If you prefer a milder curry simply tamp down the hot spices, or my vegan one-pot Tikka Masala or luscious vegan Dal Makhani might also be better recipes for you.
Lots of iron from the spinach, protein from the chickpeas, and just a touch of coconut milk to add richness, make this one of the healthiest, most flavourful curries you could eat.
I love a beautiful soft garlic naan bread to pair with this chickpea curry as well.
It is perfectly complemented by plain basmati rice, but if you fancy something more flavourful, try it with my easy lemon rice with coconut.
How to make Chickpea Spinach Curry
This is one of the easiest curries I make at home, inspired by my time in India – despite the fact that they don’t really call dishes like this “curries” there (this dish would be called chana palak masala).
Finely chop your onion and fry in about two tablespoons of flavorless oil, such as sunflower oil, over medium heat until golden.
Add in your grated ginger and crushed garlic and cook, stirring often, for one-two minutes until the raw smell of the garlic disappears.
Then add all the spices EXCEPT the garam masala (so the ground cilantro or ground coriander, cumin, turmeric, and cayenne pepper).
Toast the spices for around two minutes, stirring often. You want to toast the spices and flavor the oil and onions and garlic and ginger really well so that they look like the photo below.
Next add your tinned crushed tomatoes (Amer. tomato puree), the chickpeas, and the vegetable stock. If you’re using stock cubes make sure they are high quality or you’ll be sorry as the claggy taste of a bad stock cube can really ruin this curry.
Note that tinned crushed tomatoes and tomato puree are different things in the US and the UK.
In the UK, tinned crushed tomatoes are basically tinned chopped tomatoes that have been pureed, which is what is meant by canned tomato puree in the US (similar to passata but without the herbs).
It does not mean tomato “concentrate”, the thick dark red reduced sauce which is similar to ketchup in consistency.
You can sub out the crushed tomatoes for tinned chopped tomatoes but it will make the curry a little soupier so I would recommend blending the chopped tomatoes before adding, and reducing the vegetable stock by half.
Stir and increase the heat, bringing the curry to the boil, then reduce the temperature to maintain bubbling away at a lively simmer.
Simmer vigorously (a high simmer, nearly boiling) for ten minutes (make sure to stir often so the curry doesn’t stick and burn) and then add the frozen or fresh spinach, sugar, salt, and simmer for a further five minutes.
If your spinach is frozen you may need to increase the heat for a few minutes to bring the curry back to a vigorous simmer. I personally use frozen spinach that has already been chopped and frozen into small pellets, as you can see above.
I find the bigger blocks take forever to defrost in the curry and release too much liquid. Fresh spinach leaves are fine but I do recommend chopping them finely and using 100 grams of baby spinach or the consistency of the curry will be completely different.
Add half a teaspoon of salt first and taste when everything has been added and the curry is finished before adding more, as the amount needed will really depend on the stock you used.
When the five minutes are up, take the pan off the heat and mix in the lemon juice, garam masala, coconut milk, and chopped cilantro leaves.
Make sure to only add the coconut milk if the consistency of the curry has been properly reduced, otherwise you will make it watery. I normally mix in half the chopped cilantro and sprinkle the other half over to serve. Done.
Note that if you want a super-rich curry you can substitute coconut cream instead of coconut milk. Your coconut milk must also be full-fat and shake it well before opening the tin or it will make your curry watery.
It’s that easy. I generally put my rice on before I make the curry so that everything is ready around the same time and I can eat straight away. This curry will last around five days in the fridge and freezes beautifully.
Note that your curry should be the same consistency as the picture above – if you like less sauce, you can halve the vegetable stock, but I love mine with plenty of sauce for the rice to soak up, as in the pictures.
How to cook basmati rice properly
I know, this seems really stupid and unnecessary, right? But the thing is, I’m superrrr picky about my rice, and particularly basmati, which tends to be more expensive than regular rice.
Each fragrant grain must be clearly defined, firm, and fragrant, yet perfectly soft.
I just won’t eat mushy rice and if it happens in our household (I swear I’m NOT looking at you handsome husband…) then it invariably ends up its life back in the kitchen with me, becoming rice pudding.
And to be fair, I had to relearn how to cook rice when I initially came to Spain. In Ireland for most of my life, I thought cooking rice meant grabbing a box of uncle Ben’s and boiling up a bag of it.
I had finally mastered the skill of cooking rice that didn’t come in a bag just before I came here, and then everything changed.
I don’t know if it’s something to do with the water, or whether the grains here are just extra stubborn, but what worked back home did NOT work on Spanish rice.
This method also worked perfectly in India. So I guess it’s rice in Ireland or the water there that’s the issue.
I generally make up a large batch of rice, 4 cups (there are five people in our house…), and put it in a container in the fridge to be reheated for different meals during the week, rather than going to the trouble of making it each time I need it.
There are a few factors that are important when it comes to cooking perfect basmati rice:
- Rinse your rice – I normally rinse my rice at least four times, swishing my hand around the grains each time to get as much of the starch out as possible. It’s the starch that makes your rice gluey so you want as little as possible left. When the water is clear instead of cloudy, you’ve removed most of the starch.
- The ratio of water – I generally allow 1.25 cups of water for every cup of basmati rice. If I’m cooking regular long-grain then 1-to-1 is just fine.
- Steam, don’t boil – Mix your water into your rinsed rice with a generous pinch of salt, put on a tightly fitting lid, and bring to the boil. When it has just started boiling, put the temperature down to the lowest possible (for example I lower it to number one on the induction plate) and leave for 15 minutes WITHOUT PEEKING. Lifting the lid will result in lost steam and the water-rice ratio will be off. After fifteen minutes, take the pot off the heat and leave it aside for a further five minutes.
And that’s it, take off the lid and fluff up the rice with a fork. Serve it with the yummy chickpea spinach curry, which should be done at around the same time, and try to resist eating it all at once! (I dare you…)
If you do end up making this recipe, please leave a star rating in the recipe card and a review, or take a picture and tag me on Instagram @the_fiery_vegetarian, I love seeing what you guys get up to!
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- Quick Spicy Feta Dip (Tirokafteri)
- Easy Mediterranean White Bean Salad
- Easy Zucchini Marinara
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Chickpea Spinach Curry (Chana Palak Masala)
Tired of paying a fortune for takeaways, or just fancy something healthier? Try this tasty healthy chickpea spinach curry, with a tomato and onion spiced gravy and a touch of coconut milk for richness.
Ingredients
- 3 tbsp sunflower or canola oil
- 1 large onion finely chopped
- 4 cloves garlic, crushed
- 1 inch ginger, finely grated
- 1 tbsp ground dried cilantro (coriander)
- 1/2 tbsp turmeric
- 1/2 tbsp cumin
- 1/4 - 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper or chili flakes
- 1.5 cups tomato puree (crushed tinned tomatoes 400g)
- 2.5 cups cooked chickpeas (400g)
- 1/2 cup vegetable stock (120 ml)
- 1 cup frozen chopped spinach or 100gm fresh/frozen chopped spinach
- 1/2 - 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1 tsp garam masala
- 1.5 tbsp lemon juice
- OPTIONAL: 1/4-1/2 cup full-fat coconut milk (50-100 ml)
- 1 tbsp chopped fresh cilantro leaves (coriander leaves)
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a large pan over a medium-high setting. Sauté the finely chopped onion until golden.
- Add the crushed garlic and grated ginger and cook for 1-2 minutes, stirring frequently, until the garlic doesn't smell raw anymore.
- Mix in the next four ingredients (ground coriander, turmeric, cumin, and cayenne) and toast for two minutes stirring often.
- Add the crushed tomatoes, chickpeas and vegetable stock. Increase the heat to high and once boiling, lower to medium-low to maintain at a simmer for 10 minutes, stirring every now and then.
- Add 1/2 tsp salt, the sugar, and the spinach. If the spinach is frozen increase the heat until the curry is bubbling away again. Simmer for an additional five minutes.
- Add the garam masala, lemon juice and coconut milk and stir. Sprinkle over the chopped cilantro leaves and serve hot.
Nutrition Information
Yield
6Serving Size
1Amount Per Serving Calories 417Total Fat 20gSaturated Fat 6gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 11gCholesterol 17mgSodium 669mgCarbohydrates 47gFiber 10gSugar 16gProtein 17g
I´m trying to eat less meat, with the aim to cutting it out completely, if all veggie meals taste as good as this curry it will be a super easy process. Best curry récipe Ive come across´.
Absolutely delicious and super-easy – the perfect recipe for lovers of chickpeas and curries.
Tastes amazing. Simple to make and enjoyable to cook on a week day without too much prep!
So glad you liked it Michaela!
What a great recipe, definitely worth a try, thanks for sharing!
xx
Lisa – Space and Life Style Blog
Loved this dish! Even my chickpea hating mother loved it!
I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
What à delicious récipe !
Thanks David!
Next time I’ll only put it a couple tablespoons of tomato puree. I prefer more of a curry or coconut base vs tomato.
Hi Allison, the tomato flavor should not be strong at all in the base – did you use a tin of crushed or pureed tomatoes (which are just that, tomatoes, crushed and pureed), which is not the same as tomato puree (which is a concentrated tomato paste)? In any case, if you’re looking for an Indian curry with a coconut base, chana palak masala may not be for you, as it is not a creamy dish. For coconut milk-based Indian curries, I would suggest looking for recipes from Goa or Karnataka. Thanks for stopping by!
Absolutely delicious and easy to make! I sub Greek yogurt for the coconut milk and it is beautiful. Rice technique is on point. Thanks for the awesome recipe! The curry freezes well also.
So glad you enjoyed it, and thanks for stopping by to leave a comment Emily!
Thanks for the recipe! We loved this dish. I will definitely be making it again and again
Very tasty!!! But it’s very soupy … is it supposed to be? And I used can diced tomatoes …without the liquid … is that what I should’ve used?
Hi Ashley! It’s not a “dry” curry, it is supposed to have quite a bit of sauce. Having said that, it should still look the same consistency at all the stages of the process photos, so do let me know if it doesn’t. I think canned diced tomatoes without the liquid should still be fine, but I use canned puréed tomatoes. Did you use fresh or frozen spinach? At what point did the recipe deviate from the process photos?
Love chickpea curry anytime of the year… yours look so good!
Chickpea curry is life! Thanks for stopping by Madhavi!
I recently made, twice, another chana palek masala recipe that uses a lot more fresh spinach — 340g — but about the same quantity of chickpeas. I’m saving this one to try next! One thing that both have in common is reserving the garam masala until at or near the end. Why is that?
Hey Brec! Good question! There is no one consensus on this, but generally, I believe it is because:
1) Garam masala is a medley of toasted spices. There is no need to toast them more. In fact, like many tadka (fried in oil and added to an already cooked dish at the end of cooking) the flavour is more muted if added earlier.
2) A good garam masala is the perfect blend of common Indian spices, and adding it just before serving heightens the flavours of spices already in the dish.
For my part, I have found that adding garam masala earlier on really does dilute its flavour – just my two cents!
Hope this helped!
Amazing recipe, Just loved it!
This was my first time attempting a curry recipe from scratch and your instructions were detailed and straight to the point. So useful and the outcome was SO yummy! The taste of tomato was originally too strong for me but later died down after one day. Garam masala is my new favorite spice!! Thank you so much for this recipe. I can’t get enough of it.
I’m so happy you enjoyed it, and yes I agree garam masala is the best!
Out of curiosity, what canned pureed tomatoes did you use? The tomato taste is normally barely noticeable.
Great recepy,
I used fresh spinache and a few mint leaves, tomatopuree,
Dinner in a few minutes together with tandoori chicken and rice….
Mariska
So glad you enjoyed it Mariska!
Am I able to use coconut oil or olive oil instead?
Hey Char,
You can indeed. The olive oil might make it taste a little off but it shouldn’t be too noticeable, coconut oil would be perfect!
This was so delicious and I completely forgot to add the coconut milk (and didn’t even realize it until I revisited this site). My husband said, “I would be happy to eat this every week!”
Awww thanks so much for the lovely comment! My husband is omnivore and funnily enough, he says the same thing!
Hello, I tried this but it also came out quite soupy but still delicious! I am a bit confused which tomato base is supposed to be used is it :
1) Tomato puree
2) Crushed tinned tomatoes
These are two very different things – might be good to change the recipe to only include one or the other 🙂
Hi Jess. Tomato puree is what crushed tinned tomatoes are commonly called in America. I’m not really sure how I can make that any clearer apart form put US and UK next to them, and I do not believe in catering to just one of them.
Quite a few people have made this recipe and loved it but there were around 5 people who also complained it was soupy. I was able to work with them to realise what had gone wrong – it does help if you check the progress photos and tell me at which point it differed from them. It was always due to one of three issues: 1) Substituting ingredients, 2) Incorrectly measuring or 3) Not reducing at a high enough temperature or for long enough. I’d also hazard a fourth one which is that this is not a dry curry – it is supposed to have plenty of sauce for the rice to soak up, as many Indian curries in India do which have a “gravy” – It should still look like the process photos though. If it doesn’t consider the three issues:
1) Use the correct ingredients. There is a reason I do not make curries with chopped tinned tomatoes – even if you blend them, they are much more watery than a tin of crushed tomatoes and you would need to reduce the liquid. Similarly, tomato concentrate (tomato puree in British English) would give an overwhelmingly tomato-ey flavour.
2) Use the correct amounts. For example, “1 scant cup vegetable stock (200 ml)”. The 200ml is there because I know many people will use regular cups or mugs, which hold far more liquid than a standard measuring cup, which is what is always indicated by cup in a recipe. Your coconut milk must also be full-fat and is optional if you prefer your curry dryer.
3) Reduce properly. For example, this curry requires a “lively simmer”. Not a simmer. Followed by additional cooking time if frozen spinach is added until comes back to a simmer. Also, big blocks of spinach are not recommended as they release more liquid.
A million things can go wrong in a recipe, and I always always always recommend people read the “how to make” section in the article, where the majority of bloggers can fit much more detailed information, substitution suggestions and process pictures, which don’t fit into the recipe card. The recipe card is meant to be simple and short enough for you to easily read while cooking, or to print out yet still easily see at a glance what you need to do.
I hope some of this was helpful and you figured out what went wrong, but feel free to contact me if you’d still like more clarification or think you had a different issue. I would definitely say that the majority of people have had no issues making this recipe but one or two is still too much for me, and a troubleshooting section could definitely be a good idea!
i made a batch of this for tasty lunches in a bid to cut down on bread and my word- it’s SO yummy! I used a fresh red chilli (with seeds) which gave a lovely level of heat.
Thank you for sharing – if all recipes are this tasty I could quite happily be a vegetarian!
Thank you so much for stopping by to leave such lovely feedback! So glad you enjoyed it!
made this just now for dinner tonight omg this is heaven on a plate i love it so much. thx for your recipe!!
So happy you liked it Karin!
Have you ever tried to double this recipe?
Hi Heather! I double it every time I make it! There are five of us in my household and the teenager and handsome husband are eating me out of house and home!
Really good, one of the best curries i’ve ever made.
Ok i committed herecy and added mushroom and potato to it. But hey
Thanks Malcom, I too commit heresy the odd time and change up the recipe with mushrooms and potatoes so I’m loving your suggestion!
This was fantastic. I’ve tried to make so many homemade Indian Dishes and get grumpy by the end of it because they are just not as good as our favorite carryouts, no matter how polite my family is about it.
This was it. There were a few things I didn’t have (e.g. a full onion and coriander powder ) and, like the American, I’d already opened a small can of tomato paste concentrate but went with it anyway and it was awesome. The taste but more importantly the depth and heat were there.
THANK YOU for finally helping me make this happen. Stay safe and healthy in the quarantine.
I’m so happy you and your family enjoyed it! And thanks for stopping by to leave such a lovely comment!
Thanks.