Cauliflower and Chickpea Curry

This Cauliflower and Chickpea Curry is an authentic Indian homestyle curry that is one of those rare gems that’s made with spices that are sold at local supermarkets. It is made from scratch, loaded with classic Indian spicy flavours, and it’s super healthy too.

Use this recipe for curry sauce as a base and toss in whatever veggies and proteins you want!

Cauliflower Chickpea Curry

I know most people do Meat Free Monday. It has a nice ring to it, doesn’t it? But in my world, meat free meals are towards the end of the week after I’ve depleted my supply of fresh meat from weekend grocery shopping.

So for RecipeTin Eats, it’s Meat Free Wednesday, not Monday.

Let me try announcing that, see if it has the same ring to it.

Meat Free Wednesday is here!!!

Hmmm. Nope. Doesn’t sound quite the same, does it?

Oh well! Let’s blow right past that to today’s meat-free offering: This Cauliflower and Chickpea Curry. 🙂

I absolutely adore Indian food. I don’t eat Indian out as often as I want because Indian restaurant food in Australia – and I think in many Western countries – is notoriously high in fat. Delicious, but not that good for you. 😞 At least, not the popular curries – Korma, Rogan Josh etc.

As for making it at home, most Indian curries require a trip to an Indian grocery store to track down harder to find spices, like black mustard seeds, fenugreek leaves.

However, this Cauliflower and Chickpea Curry, along with my Butter Chicken, are two rare exceptions. I can make this pretty much anytime I want because I always have the spices in my pantry, a can of some sort of beans plus some kind of veggie suitable for throwing in.

It’s a standby curry!!! I love it!

When I shared my Vegetarian Mexican Lasagna a couple of weeks ago, I undertook to post a meat free meal every fortnight for the rest of 2016. When it comes to meat-free, I think many carnivores such as myself can be skeptical, worried that the meal won’t be satisfying enough, will lack flavour and oomph.

I don’t think anyone could ever think that about this Chickpea Cauliflower Curry. What do you think? 😉 – Nagi x

PS Don’t skip the yoghurt and a good handful of fresh coriander / cilantro. It really “makes” this dish. ❤️

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Cauliflower and Chickpea Curry

Author: Nagi | RecipeTin Eats

Prep: 10 mins

Cook: 20 mins

Total: 30 mins

Curry, Dinner

Indian

4.93 from 26 votes

Servings4

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This homestyle traditional Indian curry has all the familiar complex, spicy flavours of curries you know and love, but is much healthier and lighter than the usual suspects you get from restaurants. No hunting down hard to find ingredients! I really recommend serving this with yoghurt - adds a touch of creaminess to this healthy tomato based curry. Adding the garam masala towards the end is a great tip - adds a fresh burst of curry flavour

Ingredients

• ▢ 4 tbsp vegetable oil
• ▢ 1 tbsp ginger finely grated
• ▢ 3 large garlic cloves minced.
• ▢ 1 large onion chopped (brown, white, yellow)
• ▢ 3 tsp coriander powder
• ▢ 1/4 tsp tumeric powder
• ▢ 1 tsp cumin powder
• ▢ 2 tsp paprika
• ▢ 1 1/2 cups chicken stock
• ▢ 800 g / 28 oz can crushed tomato
• ▢ 300 g / 4 cups packed cauliflower small florets (1 small / 1/2 large cauliflower)
• ▢ 400 g / 14 oz can chickpeas drained
• ▢ Salt
• ▢ 1 tsp sugar - optional Note 1
• ▢ 3/4 cup frozen peas 75g
• ▢ 3 tsp garam masala powder Note 2
• ▢ 1/4 cup coriander / cilantro leaves chopped
• ▢ Yoghurt to serve (highly recommended)

Instructions

• Heat oil in a large deep skillet or pot over medium high heat. Add garlic and ginger, cook for 1 minute. Add onion and cook for 6 - 8 minutes or until golden and caramelised.
• Add coriander, turmeric, cumin and paprika. Cook for 1 minute.
• Add chicken stock and tomato. Stir to combine, bring to simmer and cook for 5 minutes.
• Add cauliflower and chickpeas. Cook for 15 minutes or until cauliflower is soft and sauce has thickened. If sauce is thickening too quickly (Note 3), put the lid on. Adjust salt to taste, and add sugar if using.
• Add peas and garam masala. Cook for 2 minutes, then remove from stove. Stir through most of the coriander.
• Serve curry with basmati rice or plain white rice, garnished with reserved coriander and yoghurt on the side.

Recipe Notes:

1. Traditionally, Indian curries are made with fresh tomatoes that are cooked down. I use canned for convenience and also because it makes a nice sauce. But some canned tomato can be a bit sour - the better quality, the sweeter they are (naturally sweet). If you think your curry is a bit sour, it's probably from the tomato so just add a touch of sugar.

2. Garam Masala is an Indian spice mix that is widely available nowadays. In Sydney, it is sold in supermarkets (Woolies, Coles, Harris Farms) in the spice section and costs the same as other herbs and spices.

2. The curry might look watery on the surface even after simmering for 10 minutes, but just give it a good stir because the thick part of the sauce will have settled on the bottom of the skillet.

3. The thickness of crushed canned tomato really varies from brand to brand. If you are using a brand where the tomato is almost pureed so it is more like tomato passata, then your sauce may thicken really quickly. If this happens, just cook with the lid on.

4. This is adapted from a recipe I got from a cookbook I borrowed from the local library! I am not 100% sure which one it was, but I think it was "50 Great Curries of India" by Camellia Panjabi.

5. Nutrition per serving, curry only (excludes rice and yoghurt).

Nutrition Information:

Serving: 552gCalories: 344cal (17%)Carbohydrates: 44.1g (15%)Protein: 10.7g (21%)Fat: 15.8g (24%)Saturated Fat: 2.9g (18%)Polyunsaturated Fat: 12.9gSodium: 933mg (41%)Fiber: 11.6g (48%)Sugar: 11.5g (13%)

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