Chickpea Coconut Curry ~ Vegan

Chickpea Coconut Curry 

(Instant Pot or Saucepan)

Prep Time

10 mins

Cook Time

45 mins

Soak time

1 hr

Total Time

55 mins

Vegan Chickpea Coconut Curry - Instant Pot or Saucepan. This one  Pot Coconut Chickpea Curry uses dried chickpeas and coconut milk. Add other veggies like sweet potato, squash. Vegan Glutenfree Nutfree Soyfree Recipe

Course: Main Course 

Cuisine: Gluten-free, Indian Fusion, Vegan 

Keyword: chickpea curry coconut milk, coconut chickpea curry, instant pot chickpea coconut curry, vegan coconut curry 

Servings: 4

Calories: 286 kcal

Author: Vegan Richa

Ingredients

1/4 cup water or broth or use 1 tsp oil
1/2 onion chopped
4 garlic cloves finely chopped
1 hot green chili ,chopped (such as serrano, jalapeno) or use mild chili or omit
1 tsp each ground cumin 
1 tsp. ground coriander
1 tsp turmeric
1/4 tsp each cinnamon  
1/4 tsp ground cardamom
1/3 tsp cayenne or to taste
1/4 tsp grouond sage or dried oregano
1 red bell pepper ,chopped or sliced 
1 tbsp minced ginger
3/4 tsp salt
1 cup dry uncooked chickpeas ,soaked for atleast 30 mins in boiling hot water (4 hours to overnight soaking works best)
13.5 oz can coconut milk , reserve 2 tbsp for garnishing
1 to 1.5 cups water ,depends on curry consistency preference.
lemon/lime juice , cilantro, pepper flakes for garnish

US Customary - Metric

Instructions
Press saute on the Instant Pot. Add onion, garlic, chili and a good pinch of salt. Cook for 3 to 4 mins until translucent. Deglaze with more broth if needed.

Add the spices and mix in. (You can add spice blends of choice here such as curry powder, garam masala, berbere or jamaican curry powder, or curry pastes instead of listed spices).

Add the bell pepper and ginger and mix in. Drain the chickpeas and add to the pot. Add salt, coconut milk and water and give it a good mix to pick up any stuck bits

Cancel saute, Close the lid to sealing. Pressure cook at high pressure for 40 to 45 mins (30 mins for overnight soak)**. Let the pressure release naturally then open the lid.

Taste and adjust salt and flavor, add more spices if needed. If the mixture is thin, Mash some of the chickpeas to thicken or blend half cup of the curry and mix in, saute for a few mins if needed. (Fold in some baby spinach at this point while the chickpeas are still hot). Garnish with lemon, pepper flakes, remaining coconut milk and cilantro and serve over rice or grains.

Recipe Notes

Saucepan (dried chickpeas): Soak the chickpeas overnight. Follow steps 1,2,3 in a saucepan over medium heat. Add only half the salt, add 2 cups water. Cook partially covered for 50 minutes.Then check the chickpeas for doneness. Add more salt, more water if needed and continue to cook for another 10-15 mins. 

Saucepan(canned/pre-cooked) chickpeas: Follow steps 1,2,3 in a saucepan over medium heat. Add only 1/4 cup water and 2.5 cups cooked chickpeas. Partially cover and cook for 20 mins. Taste and adjust flavor, mash some chickpeas to thicken and serve. 

Instant Pot (Canned Chickpeas): Follow steps 1,2.3. Use just 1/4 cup water, 2.5 to 3 cups cooked chickpeas and pressure cook for 5 mins. 

Variations: Use other beans such as brown chickpeas (pressure cook 50 mins), black eyed peas(pressure cook 30 mins), kidney beans or white beans(pressure cook for 45 mins). 

Add a cup of chopped tomatoes with the chickpeas.

** times are for creamy curry with soft chickpeas. Chickpeas that are just done have a bite and clash with the creamy profile i am going for. Adjust the times based on preference if needed.

Chicken Korma

CHICKEN KORMA

Chicken korma is a muglai speciality. Chicken korma curry has pieces of boneless chicken cooked with almond sauce and spices and garnished with roasted almonds.

Serves : 2

Cooking time : 30 mins

Ingredients:

400 gms chicken breasts, chopped in big pieces
1 tblsp ground almonds
1 tblsp lemon juice 

1/2 tsp black pepper powder
1 tsp garlic paste
2-3 oil or clarified butter(ghee)
1 medium size onion, chopped finely
1/4 tsp turmeric (haldi) powder
150 ml curd (dahi)
2 green chillies
4 pods cardammom
3 cloves
2 medium size cinnamon sticks
1 bay leaf
1/2 tsp garam masala
1 tblsp chopped green coriander
1/2 tblsp roasted chopped almonds
Salt to taste

Directions:
Marinate the chicken pieces with lemon juice, pinch of salt, black pepper and garlic paste. Rub the mixture thoroughly to the pieces and keep it aside for 1/2 an hour.

In a heavy bottom pan, heat the oil/ghee and when it is medium hot add the chopped onions and turmeric.

Fry till the onions are light golden and then take them out and keep aside. Leave the oil behind for further use.

In a mixer make a fine paste of fried onions, curd, almonds, green chillies. Pour this mixture on the marinated chicken pieces.

Now reheat the oil in the pan on medium flame and then add cardammom, cloves, cinnamon and bay leaf. Stir them for 30 secs and then add the marinated chicken along with leftover paste.  Let the chicken cook on low flame while stirring occasionally till it boils. Then cover the pan with a lid and let it simmer till the chicken is cooked properly. 

Finally add garam masala and chopped green coriander.

Add the salt according to taste and garnish with roasted almonds and some cream

Butternut Squash Soup

Coconut Butternut Squash Soup

Ingredients:1 large butternut squash (about 1 1/2 pounds)
2 tablespoons olive oil or other vegetable oil
1 large yellow or sweet white onion, chopped
1 medium apple, any variety, peeled and diced
2 cups prepared vegetable broth, or 2 cups water with 1 vegetable bouillon cube
2 teaspoons good-quality curry powder
2 teaspoons grated fresh or jarred ginger, or more, to taste
Pinch of ground nutmeg or allspice
1 14-ounce can light coconut milk
Salt and freshly ground pepper to tasteGarnish

2 medium red onions, quartered and thinly sliced
1 good-size bunch kale(about 10 to 12 ounces)
Directions:
To bake the squash, preheat oven to 375 degrees. Cut in half and place halves, cut side up, in a foil-lined, shallow baking dish and cover tightly with more foil. Bake for 30 to 50 minutes, until you can easily pierce the flesh with a knife. Scoop out and set aside.

Heat about half the oil in a soup pot. Add the onion and sauté over medium-low heat until golden, about 8 to 10 minutes.

Add the apple, squash, broth and spices. Bring to a steady simmer, then cover and simmer gently until the apples are tender, about 10 minutes. 

Transfer the solids to a food processor with a slotted spoon, in batches if need be, and process until smoothly pureed, then transfer back to the soup pot. Or better yet, simply insert an immersion blender into the pot and process until smoothly pureed. 

Stir in the coconut milk and return the soup to a gentle simmer. Cook over low heat for 5 to 10 minutes, until well heated through. Season with salt and pepper. If time allows, let the soup stand off the heat for an hour or two, then heat through as needed before serving.

Just before serving, heat the remaining oil in a large skillet. Add the red onions and sauté over low heat until golden and soft. 

Meanwhile, strip the kale leaves off the stems and cut into thin shreds. Stir together with the onions in the skillet, adding just enough water to moisten the surface. Cover and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the kale is bright green and just tender, about 5 minutes. 

To serve, ladle soup into each bowl, then place a small mound of kale and onion mixture in the center.

Mildly Curried Split Pea Soup

This recipe comes from a favorite Canadian site LCBO. The soup has a mild taste of the flavor of India. I have yet to experience a failure with any recipe from this site that I have tried. If split pea soup is a favorite of yours, I encourage you to give this recipe a try.

Mildly Curried Split Pea Soup

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 1/2 cups chopped onions

2 teaspoons freshly grated ginger

2 teaspoons chopped garlic

1 tablespoon mild Indian curry paste

1/2 teaspoon cracked fennel seeds

1 cup yellow split peas, rinsed

6 cups chicken stock or water

1 teaspoon tumeric

***

Garnish

1/2 cup diced carrot

1/2 cup diced parsnips

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

1/2 teaspoon garam masala

Salt and freshly ground pepper

*

Directions:
Heat vegetable oil in pot over medium heat. Add onions and saute for 4 minutes or until softened. Add ginger, garlic, curry paste and fennel seeds and saute one minute or until fragrant. Add split peas and saute another minute, then add stock and tumeric and bring to a boil. Simmer gently over low heat for 1 hour or until split peas are soft. Transfer soup to a blender (or use a stick blender) and process until smooth. Reheat when needed.

*

Preheat oven to 400F.

*

Toss carrots and parsnips with vegetable oil and garam masala and season with salt and pepper to taste. Place on a baking sheet and roast for 10 minutes or until vegetables are tender and slightly caramelized. Set aside.

*

Divide soup between 4 bowls and garnish with caramelized vegetables.