Chickpea curry is a one-pot, 30-minute meal with rich flavor and a creamy tomato sauce. It’s hearty, comforting, and perfect with saffron rice, naan, or paratha.
For more Indian-inspired recipes, check out our popular lentil curry, rajma (kidney bean curry), dal makhani (black lentil curry), split lentil dal, and chana masala.
Louise and I love Indian recipes because they’re naturally vegetarian, wholesome, and incredibly good at turning simple legumes like beans and chickpeas into something truly delicious.
For example, chickpea curry is a bold, one-pot dish made with tender chickpeas simmered in a creamy, spiced tomato sauce. Our recipe is inspired by North Indian chana masala and South Indian coconut-based curries, and it comes together in under 30 minutes using pantry staples.
Customize it with coconut milk, cream, or half-and-half to suit your taste and serve it with a topping of tadka or raita. It’s perfect for weeknights, meal prep, and tastes even better the next day – just add basmati rice, paratha, or naan for a satisfying meal.
Why you’ll love this
These are some of the reasons why we think you’ll love this chickpea curry recipe:
- 🍛 Big flavor, little effort – Bold spices, creamy texture, and ready in under 30 minutes.
- 🌿 Plant-based protein – Chickpeas make it filling and nutritious without the need for meat.
- 💰 Budget-friendly – Uses affordable pantry staples like canned chickpeas, tomatoes, and spices.
- ⏳ Meal prep friendly – Tastes even better the next day, perfect for leftovers.
Ingredients
Find complete ingredient list, quantities, and substitutions in the recipe box at the bottom of the page.
This curry is super flexible. Here’s what you’ll need—and how to swap if needed:
- Olive oil – Or use coconut oil, mustard oil, or any neutral oil.
- Onion – Finely chopped for the flavor base.
- Garlic & Ginger – Grated fresh for the best aroma.
- Spices – Curry powder, cumin, turmeric, coriander, red pepper flakes.
- Chickpeas – Canned and drained. Sub dried chickpeas that you previously soaked and cooked until tender. Here’s our how to cook chickpeas guide. Or lentils if you like.
- Vegetable broth – Or just use water.
- Crushed tomatoes – Or diced tomatoes, tomato purée, or fresh ripe tomatoes.
- Coconut milk – Full-fat for richness, or sub light coconut milk, heavy cream, or half-and-half.
- Spinach – Or swap in other veggies (cauliflower, eggplant, sweet potatoes).
- Garam masala – Optional, but adds a lovely warming finish.
- Salt & pepper – Season to taste.
- Sugar (optional) – Helps balance the spices.
How to Make Chickpea Curry
Step 1: Build the Flavor Base – Heat olive oil in a large skillet or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add chopped onion and sauté for about 4 minutes, stirring often. Add grated garlic, grated ginger, curry powder, cumin, turmeric, coriander, and red pepper flakes. Cook for 1 minute until the spices smell amazing. If the pan looks dry, splash in a little broth.
Step 2: Simmer It All Together – Add drained chickpeas and stir them into the spices for a minute. Pour in the vegetable broth, crushed tomatoes, and coconut milk (or heavy cream). Season with salt and black pepper. Bring to a boil, then simmer on medium for 20 minutes until thick and creamy. Stir occasionally.
Step 3: Finish and Adjust – Stir in the spinach and cook for 2 minutes until wilted. Add the garam masala. Taste and adjust the seasoning – add salt, pepper, or a teaspoon or two of sugar to balance the heat or acidity. Make it a full meal by serving it with:
- Grains: Fluffy basmati rice, saffron rice, or quinoa.
- Breads: Warm naan, paratha, or flatbread.
- Toppings: Fresh cilantro, scallions, lime juice, tadka, raita, or a dollop of yogurt.
Tips
- Sauté your aromatics well – Take your time with the onion, garlic, and ginger. Let them soften and caramelize a little; it builds a deep, flavorful base.
- Toast your spices – Add your ground spices to the pan and stir for about a minute. Toasting them in oil brings out their full aroma and richness.
- Use full-fat coconut milk, heavy cream, or half-and-half – For a rich, creamy texture and a luxurious mouthfeel. Light coconut milk works too, but the texture won’t be as creamy.
Questions
Absolutely! You can use dried chickpeas, but you’ll need to cook them first. For every can of chickpeas, you’ll need about 1½ cups of cooked chickpeas. Keep in mind that dried chickpeas expand when cooked—1 cup of dried chickpeas will yield about 3 cups of cooked.
If you’re starting from scratch, here’s our easy guide to cooking chickpeas at home!
You can easily substitute coconut milk with heavy cream, half-and-half, or cashew cream. To replace one 15-ounce can of coconut milk, use about 1 cup of heavy cream or half-and-half for a similar rich texture.
Definitely! You can add a variety of veggies like spinach, roasted eggplant, sweet potato, cauliflower, or bell peppers. We have delicious curries featuring these ingredients––check out our Sweet Potato Curry, Cauliflower Curry, or Eggplant Curry for some tasty ideas!
Chickpea curry is perfect for meal prep. It keeps well and tastes even better the next day as the flavors develop. The sauce may thicken in the fridge—just add a splash of water when reheating.
Refrigerate: Store in an airtight container for up to 4 days.
Freeze: Cool completely, then transfer to a freezer-safe container. Freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge overnight or gently in the microwave.
Reheat: Warm on the stovetop or in the microwave with a splash of water to loosen the sauce.
More Easy Indian Recipes
If you tried this Chickpea Curry recipe or any other recipe on our blog, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let us know how it goes in the comments. We love hearing from you!
Chickpea Curry
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 large onion finely chopped
- 3 cloves garlic grated
- 1 inch ginger grated
- 2 teaspoons curry powder
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon turmeric powder
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 3 cans (15 ounces each) chickpeas or 4½ cups cooked chickpeas
- 2 cups vegetable stock add more if you want a thinner curry
- 1 can (15 ounces) crushed tomatoes
- 1 can (14 ounces) coconut milk sub 1 cup heavy cream or half-and-half
- 4 cups spinach optional
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 twists black pepper
- 1 teaspoon garam masala
- 2 teaspoons sugar optional, to balance the spices
Serve it with
- 1 squeeze of lemon or lime + fresh cilantro
- 4 servings basmati rice or naan or paratha
- 4 dollops raita or Greek yogurt, or tadka
Instructions
- Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large skillet or Dutch oven. Add 1 large onion (chopped) and sauté on medium-low heat for 4 minutes, stirring often.Add 3 cloves garlic, 1 inch ginger (both grated), 2 teaspoons curry powder, 1 teaspoon ground coriander, 1 teaspoon ground cumin, 1 teaspoon turmeric powder, and ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes.Stir and sauté for another minute to toast the spices. If the pan gets dry, add two tablespoons of broth.
- Add 3 cans (15 ounces each) chickpeas drained from their liquid and stir them in the spices for one minute.Stir in 2 cups vegetable stock, 1 can (15 ounces) crushed tomatoes, and 1 can (14 ounces) coconut milk. Season with 1 teaspoon salt and 2 twists black pepper.
- Simmer on medium heat for about 20 minutes until you reach your desired consistency. Stir occasionally.Add 4 cups spinach and cook for two more minutes or until they wilt. Finally, stir in 1 teaspoon garam masala, then taste and adjust for salt. You might want to add 2 teaspoons sugar to balance the spices.
- You can serve chickpea curry with brown or basmati rice, naan, or roti.For toppings, we recommend a squeeze of lemon or lime juice, fresh cilantro or finely sliced scallions, and a dollop of Greek-style yogurt.
Video
Notes
- Chickpeas: Swap with red lentils or yellow lentils.
- Spinach: Replace with vegetables like pumpkin, potato, cauliflower, sweet potato, or eggplant.
- Olive oil: Sub coconut oil, mustard oil, or any neutral vegetable oil.
- Spices: Most are available at your local store or online, and they last for years. Common substitutes:
- Red pepper flakes → chili powder, cayenne pepper, or sliced red chili.
- Garam masala → optional, or swap with 1/8 teaspoon cinnamon.
- Add extra Indian spices: curry leaves, kasuri methi (fenugreek), mustard seeds, or a tiny pinch of hing (asafoetida).
- Tomatoes: Use diced tomatoes or tomato puree instead of crushed tomatoes. For fresh, dice ripe vine tomatoes and cook with spices for 5 minutes before adding chickpeas.
- Vegetable broth: Substitute with water if needed.
- Coconut milk: Swap with light coconut milk, heavy cream, or half-and-half.
- Sugar: Optional, use white, brown, palm, or coconut sugar.
- Sauté your aromatics well – Take your time with the onion, garlic, and ginger. Let them soften and caramelize a little; it builds a deep, flavorful base.
- Toast your spices – Add your ground spices to the pan and stir for about a minute. Toasting them in oil brings out their full aroma and richness.
- Use full-fat coconut milk, heavy cream, or half-and-half – For a rich, creamy texture and a luxurious mouthfeel. Light coconut milk works too, but the texture won’t be as creamy.
- Refrigerate: Store in an airtight container for up to 4 days.
- Freeze: Cool completely, then transfer to a freezer-safe container. Freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge overnight or gently in the microwave.
- Reheat: Warm on the stovetop or in the microwave with a splash of water to loosen the sauce.
Nutrition
Hi! We are Nico & Louise
We’re here to share delicious, easy, and healthy plant-based recipes (vegetarian & vegan) 🌿✨.
Welcome to our blog, we are glad you are here.
Could I add sweet potato or regular potato into this?
Hi Emma, sure you can! And we actually have recipe for this (yay): https://theplantbasedschool.com/sweet-potato-curry/
The curry needs a little more broth as potatoes will absord some of the liquid. Happy cooking!
Kindest, Louise
I have made this recipe 3x’s. I’m Indian and I love chickpea in Indian dishes, but it was really nice to have something Indian inspired yet different. I love how this chickpea curry has Indian flavours but milder. I could see myself making this a couple times a month. So quick and easy. Thank you Nico and Louise!
Hi Sandeep,
That’s fantastic – I’m happy that you like our Indian-inspired version 🥰 Thank you for your kind words, and for your review.
All the best, Louise
Could this be served over polenta? I’ve been watching for recipes using polenta because I like it a lot. This was delicious. I made it last night and enjoyed it again tonight. Two servings are in the freezer delicious.
Hi Maureen, it’s a combination that I haven’t thought about before 🙂
But yes, you can do that as the polenta is quite neutral.
I’m so happy that you enjoyed it, thanks so much for leaving your feedback here. Kindest,
Louise
Soooo good! Served it with coconut rice!
Awesome, Brenda, coconut rice is a wonderful serving suggestion 🥳 Thanks so much for your rating and comment!