Quick & Easy Chickpea Curry

 

This recipe is another Tasty Kitchen winner, shared by Amy from Very Culinary in this post. It immediately had appeal to me for many reasons, starting with the ‘quick’ factor, continuing with the onion and garlic, and ending with the spinach. My stomach clamoring for the dish, I quickly made it a priority to cook up a batch. And is it ever good!

It takes only 30 minutes or less to get on the table, but the flavor is wonderful and deep, as if it had been cooking for much longer. And in case you still need convincing, it’s cheap and healthy and vegetarian (if you dig that thang). In fact, if you want to be a hog-wild health-a-tron, you could even leave out the 2 TBS of butter. So grab ye a can of chickpeas, and let’s make this.

Side note: do you think I should change the name of this blog to “The Health-a-Jenna-Tron”? It has a certain ring to it. Then again, with my liberal use of heavy whipping cream and butter, I may be nailed for misleading the innocent. However, I do plan on using the new adjective ‘healthatronic’ or the noun ‘healthatronicon’ from here on out. Webster’s dictionary, take note!

Ingredients

4 TBS olive oil

1 large onion

2 tsp ground ginger (or 1 TBS fresh)

5 cloves garlic

1 TBS sugar

2 tsp curry powder

1 tsp salt

pepper, to taste

2 TBS tomato paste

1-15 oz can chickpeas (garbanzo beans), drained

1-14.5 oz can diced tomatoes

1 TBS lemon juice

2 TBS butter

4 cups spinach (or 1 bag)

1/2 cup water

First, dice the onion.

Do a quick mince on the garlic.

Please don’t be afraid of using 5 cloves. For me 5 cloves = holding waaaaay back. My soul was whispering “Use 12 cloves! Use 12! You know you want to!” I think it’s unhealthy to ignore your soul, so next time I will heed its voice. (My voice? Its voice? My voice?: to be discussed in the very far future, possibly by somebody different on a different blog)

If you’re using fresh ginger (I would have, but my gingeroot had become a dry shriveled beast in the fridge), mince that up too. Oh, and drain the can of chickpeas.

Prep work = done!

Heat the oil in a Dutch oven or pot over medium-high heat. Add the onion, garlic, ginger, sugar, salt, black pepper, and curry powder.

Cook for about 3 minutes, stirring frequently so that the curry powder doesn’t burn.

Add the tomato paste . . .

. . . and cook for another 2 minutes, stirring to incorporate it evenly.

Add the drained can of chickpeas, the can of diced tomatoes (with the liquid),

the lemon juice,

and the butter.

Give it all a lovely stir! My it’s smelling good around these parts.

Simmer it uncovered for 10-12 minutes, until the chickpeas are tender but not mushy.

Now! Stir in the water . . .

. . . and the spinach. I used a whole bag, and I didn’t regret it for one second. It’s healthatronic for you.

Stir the mess about until the spinach is just wilted (about 2 more minutes).

Perfect! Now taste and re-season with more salt and pepper if needed.

Serve the curry over steaming hot rice.

So good.

Let’s move in for the kill.

Besides being incredibly flavorful, it’s also so beautifully colorful! Like a small fiesta is taking place on my plate, mariachi band and everything.

What a perfect weeknight dinner.

And on that note, I am so glad that the week is almost halfway over. I don’t know what it is about my eyelids this week, but they seemed to have gained weight over the weekend and become particularly difficult to prop open.

Click here for printer-friendly version: Quick & Easy Chickpea Curry

31 thoughts on “Quick & Easy Chickpea Curry”

  2. Sherri

    I am WITH you on the heavy eyelids thing…. cannot wake up this week. Have been meaning to tell you that I have been all over almost every recipe you’ve posted lately. I’ve just been…. um too tired, I guess :-).

  4. itsahappyblog

    Can’t wait to try this after getting settled in to our new place next month. BTW – freeze that fresh ginger and just cut off what you need when you need it, lasts for.e.ver!

  7. Amy

    Thanks Jenna! Definitely one of my proud and favorite creations for sure. It’s in regular rotation at my house. Glad you loved it too. Isn’t Tasty Kitchen the best? Such a goldmine of fantastic dishes there – congrats on being this week’s featured member…very well deserved. Your recipe box is awesome.

    1. Jenna

      Thanks Amy! I love your recipe box too, so the feeling is mutual. I’ve found more awesome recipes than I can count on Tasty Kitchen, and with more pouring in each day I think I might start cooking 5 meals per day just to stay caught up. =)

  8. Amy

    For sure. My pile of “must try” is so thick. And I think I need a Jenna folder…so many recipes, not enough meals in the day!

  9. polwig

    So yummy… for me anything with Chickpeas and I am SOLD. I make a similar one but instead of spinach I add cauliflower, and eat it all by myself.

  10. polkand2nd

    Jenna, the curry looks amazing, but I am mostly in love with your big Wusthof knife. They are the best! Also, The Last American man is another favorite of mine. We must be kindred spirits!

    1. Jenna

      Thanks! Yeah, I absolutely loved “The Last American Man.” My knife is really a Henckels, but I’ve been hankering after a Wusthof santoku knife ever since I saw it on the Pioneer Woman’s blog.

  11. Twinky

    …and the verb: to healthatronify

    I just bought the ingredients MK and BJ were lacking to make the roasted red pepper soup from the cooking class. Looking forward to getting it done this week or weekend.

  14. Julie M.

    My eyelids are having the exact same issue! I do love the time to myself during the school year, but I won’t miss the 6am school bus wake up time this summer at all.

    What a beautiful dish you’ve put together here! I love that it’s vegetarian but looks hearty enough that even my meat eating man would enjoy digging into it. The quick factor is winning me over as well.

    1. Jenna

      Oh my gosh–6am!! That seems like a crime. I can’t complain–right now my alarm is set for 7:40. It still feels early to me, but in the greater context of things I know it’s not that bad.

  16. Mrs. Fish

    A few things.
    1. I stumbled to your blog via Tasty Kitchen, and love it.
    2. I have the same adorable yellow dutch oven. Love it!
    3. I made this curry dish for my husband and I last night. We loved it! Since it was meat free, it was perfect for Lent!

  19. erin

    Mmmmm…..we made this on Friday, and it is SO GOOD! Josh just loved it! I didn’t have any fresh spinach on hand, so I just defrosted a box of the chopped frozen stuff and threw it in undrained. This is definitely going on our repeat list. 🙂

    1. Jenna

      Yay! I’m so glad you guys liked it. It makes me feel somewhat connected to your lives in a very small way. =) BTW, are you cupboards all painted?

      1. erin

        Yes! Finally! Thank you guys so so much for your help getting that going. 🙂 We did one final push at the end of the summer/early fall (we had let them kind of sit mid-process for the better part of a year), and then Josh’s dad came up and helped us reinstall all the doors a few weeks before I had Zoe.
        The kitchen is now a greenish-blue color too…we just need to get a new closet door up, new curtains up, and replace the over-sink light! You know, with all our free time. 😉
        Oh yeah, and repaint the ceiling where some sangria exploded…but that is a whole ‘nother story. 🙂

      2. Jenna

        Exploding sangria?? Now that’s a story I have to hear! =)
        Aw, I wish we could pop by for dinner and catch up . . . and meet Zoe! Some time we’re bound to coincide somewhere–and if not, there’s always the Kingdom. =) I’m looking forward to that already.

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