Chickpea Curry

Happy New Year! Hopefully, the first week of 2020 has been a nourishing start to the year. Although I’m not one to make new year’s resolutions, I can appreciate how the thought of a fresh start or a blank page can be a source of motivation to set goals or find renewed energy for existing ones. One of my ongoing goals is to eat less meat and dairy.

I was really inspired by Melissa Clark’s video on the New York Times Cooking Youtube page where she gives suggestions on how to eat less meat and dairy in 2020, without becoming vegan. If making your diet more environmentally sustainable is a goal of yours, I recommend you check out her tips!

Although my goal is not to become vegan, I do try to eat as plant-based as possible to reduce the impact of my diet on the environment. I don’t have any hard and fast rules like meat only once a week, or 80% plant-based, but I’ve developed a regular rotation of easy and delicious meatless meals that make reducing my meat consumption frictionless.

Since I’m feeling inspired by Melissa Clark’s suggestions, I’ve also started thinking not only about meatless meals but also less-meat-meals. I’ll be sharing more of those recipes this year as well.

The first recipe I thought I would share for 2020 is a chickpea curry. There are so many variations of this recipe out there, but I think mine is a bit different. Like almost all curry recipes, the inspiration comes from India, but it’s a dish that invites everyone to experiment and make it their own. This version is spicy, rich, and creamy — the way you expect a curry to be— and it’s the perfect comfort food for cold winter weather, especially when served with rice or naan. Let me know if you try it and what modifications you make to the recipe to make it your own!

The dish layers spices, including garam masala (which is a mix of coriander, mustard, caraway, cumin, cinnamon, bay leaves, cloves, white pepper and cardamom), chilli powder, and smoked paprika

Keep the curry at a medium heat to avoid burning the butter. Once all of the ingredients are in the pot, bring to a simmer. This will allow the flavours to combine.

Serve the curry over basmati rice or eat it with naan. Add cilantro and a squeeze of lemon to complete the dish. The perfect comfort food for a cold winter evening :)

Recipe

Prep Time: 15 mins

Cook Time: 30 mins

Total Time: 45 mins

Ingredients

• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter

• 1 medium yellow onion, diced

• 1 medium-sized sweet potato cut into 1-inch cubes

• 1 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste

• 3 garlic cloves, minced

• 2 teaspoons fresh ginger, grated

• 2 tablespoons garam masala

• 1 tablespoon ground cumin

• 1 tablespoon chilli powder

• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika

• 2 teaspoons black pepper

• 1 (15-ounce) can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed

• 1 teaspoon ground coriander seeds

• 1 (14-ounce) can of coconut milk

• 2 tablespoons tomato paste

• Cooked basmati rice or naan, for serving

• lemon juice, for serving

• 1/2 cup cilantro leaves and tender stems, for serving

Instructions

1. Melt butter in a large pot over medium heat. Stir in onion and salt. Cook until tender, about 5 mins.

2. In the meantime, place another pot of water on high heat for the sweet potatoes. Salt the water. Once the water is boiling, add the sweet potatoes and cook until they are parboiled (your fork should just be able to go through with a bit of resistance), about 10 minutes.

3. Add garlic and ginger to the onions. Stir in garam masala, cumin, chilli powder, smoked paprika and black pepper, and cook for another 5 minutes.

4. Add in the chickpeas, allowing them to cook in the spices for around 2 minutes before pouring in the coconut milk. Stir in tomato paste.

5. Drain the parboiled sweet potatoes and add them to the curry. Bring the mixture to a simmer and allow it to cook for 20 minutes. Taste and adjust the salt or spices, if necessary.

6. Serve the curry over basmati rice or with naan to soak up all of the sauce. Top with cilantro and a squeeze of lemon juice.