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15-Minute Chickpea Curry (Vegan)

This is the easiest and quickest curry you’ll ever make: 15-Minute Vegan Chickpea Curry. You need chickpeas, tomato purée, coconut milk, and spices. That’s it! If you’re a fan of quick meals, you’re going to love this! 

15-Minute Chickpea Curry (Vegan)

Whenever I don’t have a lot of time to cook or don’t feel like cooking at all, this Chickpea Curry is my go-to recipe.

Why? Because …

  • it can be made in 15 minutes!
  • you’ll only need 3 staple ingredients: canned chickpeas, tomato purée/passata, and coconut milk.
  • it’s vegan & gluten-free.
  • it’s a one-pot meal.
  • curries are my comfort food #1. Makes me feel better no matter how difficult of a day it was.

This curry is a real crowd-pleaser! I prepared a huge batch of this curry for a party lately and people LOVED it and asked me for the recipe. So here it is!

15-Minute Chickpea Curry (Vegan)

The base of the sauce

The sauce for this quick chickpea curry is really easy to make and very versatile. I also like to use this base for a variety of different curries. Add veggies, potatoes or tofu instead of chickpeas and boom… whole different curry!

You’ll only need two main ingredients for the sauce: tomato purée and coconut milk. It makes the creamiest and easiest sauce ever. I just love the combination of these two main flavors. To that, we add salt, garam masala, and ginger powder. Feel free to add cayenne pepper too if you like it spicy. Aaand we’re done. Told ya, easy!

How to make a vegan chickpea curry

As always, you will find the whole recipe in the box below but I want to give you an overview of the ingredients and basic steps first.

The ingredients (and possible substitutions)

You will need:

  • canned chickpeas (of course you can also use dried chickpeas if you soak and cook them first)
  • tomato purée (I use store-bought tomato purée/passata (with salt, no additional herbs) for this recipe – it’s often canned or in cartons, not to confuse with tomato paste, which is thicker in consistency. You can also use crushed canned tomatoes instead.)
  • full-fat coconut milk (alternatively you can use homemade cashew cream)
  • yellow onion (red is fine also, or you can omit it)
  • oil and spices (salt, garam masala, ginger powder)

The basic steps

chickpeas and onion in pot
Step 1: Add chopped onion and chickpeas into a pot with a little bit of oil. Cook until the onion is soft.
spiced chickpeas and onions in pot
Step 2: Add the spices.
chickpeas, tomato passata and coconut milk
Step 3: Add the tomato purée and coconut milk.
vegan chickpea curry in pot
Step 4: Once it’s hot, it’s ready to serve!
15-Minute Chickpea Curry (Vegan)
I like to serve this curry with basmati rice and homemade, fluffy naan.

More vegan curry recipes

Love it? Rate it!

I hope you enjoy this vegan Chickpea Curry as much as I do! Let me know if you give it a try! 

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Cheers, Bianca

15-Minute Chickpea Curry (Vegan)

15-Minute Chickpea Curry (Vegan)

Bianca Haun | Elephantastic Vegan
This is a vegan & gluten-free, creamy and delicious Chickpea Curry. It’s actually super quick and easy to make. Tomato passata and coconut milk make a great basis for curries. Chickpeas provide the dish with a lot of protein. The curry is best served with some homemade naan and basmati rice.
3.95 from 19 votes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 15 minutes
Course Main Course
Cuisine Vegan
Servings 3 people
Calories 267 kcal

Ingredients
 
 

  • 1 tablespoon canola oil
  • 1/2 yellow onion chopped
  • 2 cups canned chickpeas rinsed and drained
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt + more to taste
  • 1 teaspoon garam masala + more to taste
  • 1 teaspoon ginger powder + more to taste
  • 1 1/4 cups tomato purée/passata (see notes)
  • 1/2 cup full-fat coconut milk
  • chopped cilantro for garnish

Instructions
 

  • In a large pot with canola oil over medium to high heat, add the chopped onion and chickpeas. Let it cook until the onion is translucent. Then add salt, garam masala, and ginger powder. Give it a quick mix and let it cook on high heat for 3-4 minutes. Stir to prevent it from burning.
  • Reduce the heat to low and add in the tomato purée and coconut milk.
  • Stir and let it cook for a few minutes until hot. This is the point where you can adjust the curry to your taste by adding more coconut milk, salt, spices, etc. 
  • Once the curry is hot and creamy, transfer it to a bowl, drizzle with a bit more coconut milk, garnish with chopped cilantro and serve with basmati rice and Indian flatbread.

Notes

I used store-bought tomato purée/passata (with salt, no additional herbs) for this recipe – it’s often canned or in cartons, not to confuse with tomato paste, which is thicker in consistency. You can also use crushed canned tomatoes instead.

Nutrition

Calories: 267kcalCarbohydrates: 28gProtein: 8gFat: 15gSaturated Fat: 8gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 1gSodium: 728mgPotassium: 755mgFiber: 8gSugar: 6gVitamin A: 574IUVitamin C: 13mgCalcium: 70mgIron: 5mg
Tried this recipe?Mention @elephantasticvegan or tag #elephantasticvegan!
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Recipe Rating




Edina

Tuesday 23rd of July 2019

Hi Bianca,

I accidentally used tomato paste and not passata, but I have to tell you, it was delicious :) I think it was even better :)

I also added some broccoli to a make it more filling.

Thank you for the recipe!

Debra Daniel

Wednesday 26th of September 2018

Hey,

Thank you for this amazing article I really like your way of defining the recipe and I never made curry like that before surely going to try it in this coming weekend because i have invited some guests in my home so it will be better Idea to serve them,

Can you please tell me that is it possible to use persian saffron ? because i bought it in good amount according to market level's saffron price now I have this

Your article made me think before using it with this recipe, I hope you can reply me quickly

Please also mention quantity of using so i will follow you if possible of using it,

Thanks

Bianca

Friday 28th of September 2018

I mean, of course, you CAN add it in, but it's really not necessary for the curry and I think the flavor won't come through much. Better use it in a paella or something similar!