Vibrant, vegan, Indian-inspired Chickpea Tomato Curry is made with onions, garlic, spices, and vegetable stock for a healthy, and flavorful one-pot weeknight dinner.
This simple tomato-chickpea curry is an old standby dinner recipe of mine. In fact, it was one of the first recipes I learned to cook.
I actually found it in one of those cheap recipe brochures you see in the supermarket checkout line.
I’ve been making it ever since, at least once a month, and tweaking it along the way.
Ingredients for Vegan Chickpea Curry Recipe
The main ingredient in this simple veggie curry is chickpeas, aka garbanzo beans.
Chickpeas are round, buff-colored legumes. They’re a little bigger than regular peas, with a mild, nutty taste and creamy texture.
You probably know them as the base of hummus.
Feel free to use canned chickpeas or cook your own. See the recipe card notes section below for how to cook dried chickpeas from scratch.
You’ll also need:
- ONION and GARLIC, which caramelize to create a deeply savory flavor base.
- FRESH GINGER, DRIED CORIANDER, and TURMERIC, three common ingredients in Indian curry dishes.
- FRESH TOMATOES, which add brightness and acidity to the curry.
- VEGETABLE STOCK, to soften up the chickpeas and add another layer of flavor to the dish. Where other curries feature coconut milk, this dish is lighter and more refreshing with stock as the base.
- LEMON JUICE and CILANTRO, which elevate the whole dish and give it a cool, fresh kick after cooking.
How To Make Quick Chickpea Curry
Here are the four simple steps to make this one-pot vegan curry:
- First, cook diced onion, freshly grated ginger, minced garlic, turmeric, ground coriander, and salt in a bit of olive oil until soft.
- Then, using a wooden spoon, stir in the diced fresh tomatoes and cook them down so the flavors meld together.
- Finally, throw in the chickpeas and stock, cover, and cook for 25 minutes.
- Squeeze in lemon juice and sprinkle with parsley for brightness.
How To Serve Chickpea Tomato Curry
Feel free to dress up this dish however you like:
- You can add a hit of spice with your favorite hot sauce or some fresh chile peppers.
- Or cool things down with a dollop of dairy-free yogurt or coconut cream on top of each bowl.
- Or serve it alongside steamed basmati rice or doughy naan for a complete Indian meal.
Can I Make Curry Ahead of Time?
Yes! In fact, this recipe tastes even better the next day.
The flavors develop overnight, which makes this a great vegan meal prep recipe. Store it in the fridge for up to 4 days.
More Flavor-Packed Easy Dinner Recipes
You can find all of my entrée recipes here, especially these other quick weeknight dinners:
And there are plenty more vegan recipes as well, such as:
- Chickpea Salad with Tomatoes and Cucumbers
- Heirloom-Bean Chili
- Harira: North African Vegetable Stew
- Tempeh Bolognese Pasta Sauce
Now you.
Do you cook with chickpeas? Got any tasty curry recipes?
Tell me in the comments.
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Chickpea Tomato Curry
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 35 minutes
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: Serves 2–4 1x
- Cuisine: American
Description
Vibrant, vegan, Indian-inspired Chickpea Tomato Curry is made with chickpeas (garbanzo beans), onions, garlic, spices, and vegetable stock for a healthy, and flavorful one-pot weeknight dinner.
Ingredients
- 1 cup (120g) finely diced sweet onion, peeled
- 1 teaspoon minced, peeled garlic (about 1 large garlic clove)
- 2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger, peeled (about a 3-inch knob fresh ginger)
- 1 tablespoon ground coriander
- 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/2 cups diced tomatoes (about 3 medium tomatoes)
- 3 cups (500 g) cooked chickpeas, drained and rinsed (about 2 13-ounce cans cooked chickpeas)
- 2 cups (500 ml) vegetable stock or water
- 2 tablespoons (30 ml) freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1/4 cup (60 ml) finely chopped cilantro or parsley
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic, ginger, coriander, turmeric and salt, and sauté, stirring frequently, until soft and translucent, about 5–6 minutes.
- Stir in the tomatoes and cook until they soften, about 3 minutes. Add the chickpeas, pour in the stock (or water) and cook, covered, over medium-low heat for 20–25 minutes. Stir occasionally.
- Stir in the lemon juice and cilantro, and add more salt and freshly ground pepper to taste. Cook for 2 more minutes.
Notes
HOW TO COOK YOUR OWN CHICKPEAS:
Start with 1/2 pound dried chickpeas. Rinse and make sure there is no debris or small rocks (especially when buying in bulk).
Place in a medium bowl and cover with several inches of cold water. Cover and let soak on the kitchen counter for 8 hours or overnight.
Drain the chickpeas, place into a large pot, cover with several inches of water, and bring to a boil over high heat.
Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer until tender, about 60 minutes. The cooking time of chickpeas will depend on their age – older chickpeas will need to cook longer. Taste as you go.
1/2 pound of chickpeas will yield about 4 cups of cooked chickpeas.
Store cooked chickpeas in the fridge for up to 3 days.
HATE CILANTRO? Use finely chopped parsley instead, or skip. Lime instead of lemon is great too.
COOKING FOR A CROWD? Easily double or triple this recipe.
DO AHEAD: This curry tastes even better the next day.
buy me a flat white?
This is my favorite recipe of all time. Making it right now… as I do at least twice a month! Love it Michal. Thank you!!! 🙂 Kelly
★★★★★
So glad to hear Kelly!