Dinner
Chickpea Coconut Curry
This is the meal that convinces people they can cook. It comes together in one pot, it tastes like it took much longer than it did, and every ingredient except the ginger is shelf stable. Make the full batch even if you live alone. It gets better on day two.
Cost a serving$1.65
Time25 minutes
Serves4
Protein17g
Indian takeout entree with rice costs about $17. This costs $1.65 a serving.
You save about $15.35 every time you make it instead.
What you need
Medium pot or deep skillet, Wooden spoon, Can opener
No special tools
No Garlic press?Smash the clove with the flat of a knife, peel it, and mince it. Or use jarred minced garlic and add a little extra, since jarred is milder.
No Microplane for ginger?Buy the tube of ginger paste in the produce section. It lasts two months in the fridge and costs less than a piece of ginger you throw away half of.
No Rice cooker?See our page on cooking rice in a pot. It is one pot, one lid, and 18 minutes.
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, minced (or 1 tablespoon jarred)
- 1 tablespoon ginger paste
- 2 tablespoons curry powder or garam masala
- 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
- 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes, optional
- 1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes, with juice
- 2 cans (15 oz each) chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- 1 can (13.5 oz) full fat coconut milk
- 1 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste
- 2 cups frozen spinach, no need to thaw
- 1 tablespoon lime juice or vinegar, at the end
- Cooked rice, for serving
How to make it
- Heat the oil in a pot over medium. Add the onion and a pinch of salt and cook 5 to 6 minutes, stirring now and then, until it is soft and the edges are turning gold. Do not rush this part. Raw onion in a curry tastes raw all the way through.
- Add the garlic and ginger and stir for 30 seconds, just until you can smell them. Garlic burns in about 45 seconds at this temperature, so stay at the stove.
- Add the curry powder, turmeric, and pepper flakes. Stir constantly for another 30 seconds. The spices should smell toasty, not dusty. This step is the difference between curry that tastes flat and curry that tastes cooked.
- Pour in the diced tomatoes with their juice. Scrape the bottom of the pot with your spoon to lift anything stuck. Simmer 5 minutes until it thickens slightly.
- Add the chickpeas, coconut milk, and salt. Bring it to a gentle bubble, then turn the heat down and simmer 10 minutes uncovered. It should reduce enough to coat the back of a spoon.
- Stir in the frozen spinach and cook 3 more minutes until it wilts in and heats through.
- Off the heat, stir in the lime juice. Taste. It will probably want more salt. Serve over rice.
Protein
About 17 grams per serving from the chickpeas alone. Coconut milk adds a lot of fat and no protein, so if you are watching calories use light coconut milk and add a half cup of red lentils with the tomatoes to hold the body.
Ways to add more
- Add 1 cup dry red lentils with the tomatoes plus 1 cup water, simmer 5 extra minutes
- Add 14 oz cubed paneer or firm tofu in the last 5 minutes
- Stir in 1 cup frozen peas with the spinach
Keeping it
Five days in the fridge, three months in the freezer. Freeze it in single portions in quart bags laid flat, which stack and thaw fast. This is the single best freezer meal on this site.
Change it up
- Swap chickpeas for two cans of white beans or one can each of chickpeas and kidney beans
- Add a cubed sweet potato with the tomatoes and simmer 15 minutes instead of 10
- Use a jar of tikka masala sauce instead of the tomatoes and spices when you are exhausted. Still add the fried onion step.