Irresistibly creamy chickpea peanut butter curry

The first time I made this stunning dish, I was still using canned chickpeas and cooking 2-3 Indian dishes in total. Not that I cook a hundred now; but at the time, this was as complex as I’ve reached, and tasting the result really motivated me a lot!

Fast forward a couple of years, and chickpea peanut butter curry is still at my all-time favorites list. Why is that – you need to cook it and learn for yourself.

The recipe below is a fantastic balance between juicy and versatile veggies, thick creamy sauce, and a real palette of spices. The base is the chickpeas, which makes this curry a very satisfying lunch or dinner.

Do you like memorable flavors of Indian food? Try the perfect, oven-baked samosas.

Get the recipe here

It is important to mention that the preparation process isn’t short, neither is the cooking. Still, the recipe is not demanding. It consists of refreshing and spicy tomato gravy and creamy sauce with veggies and chickpeas. The recipe demands cooked chickpeas, so make sure to have a stash of cooked and frozen chickpeas.

The below-listed veggies are non-binding. Feel free to experiment. In spring and summer, I prepare this chickpea peanut butter curry with summer squash or zucchini, and from September with pumpkin. Sweet potato works great, too. As for other veggies, paprika, carrot, and tomato make a great combo but don’t hesitate to add a handful of sweet peas if you like. A chunk of fresh, chopped coconut meat adds to the lovely, exotic vibe.

Irresistibly creamy chickpea peanut butter curry will be equally mesmerizing both warm and cold. If there happen to be any leftovers – great! Indian dishes taste even better a day or two after cooking and I never reheat them.

Irresistibly creamy chickpea peanut butter curry

Recipe by Tamara DutinaCourse: Main, Dinner, LunchCuisine: IndianDifficulty: Medium

Servings

6

servings

Prep time

30

minutes

Cooking time

40

minutes

Thy this simple yet rich vegan jewel from the Indian cuisine, packed with spices and flavors. Truly memorable.

Ingredients

• For the ginger gravy

• 1 piece of fresh ginger, about 3 cm

• 1 purple onion

• 2 spring onions or 2 cloves or garlic

• 2 small chilies or chili flakes

• A dash of lemon juice

• For the curry

• 2 small zucchini or about 200 g of pumpkin

• 1 carrot

• 1 fresh red pepper

• 400 g cooked chickpeas

• 1 large tomato

• Juice of 1/2 lemon
  

• 1 small piece of fresh turmeric or a 1/2 tsp of dried one

• Mixed spices: curry, coriander seeds, cloves, ground cumin, cinnamon, garam masala, cardamom, ground pepper

• 75 g of peanut butter

• 150 g coconut cream

• 75 g of unsalted peanuts

• Handful of fresh parsley

• Oil for cooking

• Salt

To prepare the gravy:

• Place all ingredients into a chopper and pulse with a bit of water until you get a paste.
• In a big cooking pan, heat all the spices on olive oil and cook for a minute, constantly stirring. Add the sauce and freshly grated turmeric, and cook for about a few minutes.
  Add the chopped tomato and cook for another 5 mins, until the liquid starts to evaporate.
• Stir in the coconut milk, chickpeas, all veggies and a splash of water. Season with salt. Reduce the heat and let it simmer for around 10 mins.
• Add the peanut butter and coarsely chopped peanuts. Stir again and cook for another 5 mins.
• Drizzle with the lemon juice and parsley and serve on top of cooked rice.