Chickpea and Butternut Squash Curry

This wholesome chickpea curry with loads of vegetables like hearty butternut squash, spinach and green peas simmered in creamy coconut milk will become your favourite if you give it a try. It’s suitable for vegetarians and vegans but is also loved by a meat eating family like ours. 

If you are looking to add to this vegetarian curry,  give my Perfectly Spiced Roasted Baby Potatoes a try for an Indian feast at home. Flavour through the roof! 

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For many years now I’ve considered Indian food to be my comfort food. Although I’m of European descent, somehow the taste of warm and slightly spicy curries make me feel at home.

It’s no wonder we eat them regularly in my house, especially since we moved to Britain where where curries of all sorts are considered to be staples. There are not too many things that are better than a good curry, coupled with crispy poppadoms dipped in mango chutney and lime chilli pickle! 

Chickpea Curry 

I get so many requests to post a curry recipe, which tells me you guys love Indian food too! I am not claiming to be an expert, so what I am sharing today is something I cook often.

This dish is loved by everyone in my family. It’s a vegetarian curry but so delicious you won’t miss meat!

There are many types of Indian curries. This particular one is based on a Korma, which is a blend of aromatic spices like ginger and coriander and ground nuts like cashews or almonds. It’s has a mild taste, so is you are a fan of heat, I would recommend moving onto something else like Madras Curry or Vindaloo.

Korma is an excellent curry to start with for beginners because of its creamy consistency and mild taste. Even kids will love it.

Traditionally, Korma is cooked with chicken but this version is meat free. Instead I am using canned chickpeas as the star of this recipe.

The brilliant thing about chickpeas is that they are chameleons. They soak up all flavours around them and end up tasting delicious no matter where they are used!

How to make it

As I mentioned earlier, this recipe is a cheat version since we are using a pre-made curry paste, that is responsible for the flavour. However, there are certain ingredients you need to add to make this curry your own and very delicious!

I always start by frying onion and garlic in vegetable oil until tender. Sometimes I add grated ginger to develop an aromatic base. I also add chopped cilantro stalks. Most people discard them and use leaves only but there is so much concentrated flavour in the stalks!

Then I add a store bought curry paste and fry it briefly. This step releases the flavours by heating the paste. 

Once you’ve done the groundwork to build the curry flavour, add your chosen ingredients as per recipe and simmer until desired consistency. Easy! 

Serving suggestions

Serve chickpea curry with steaming hot basmati rice. Or try coconut rice for a delicate and flavourful twist.

We  also love having naan bread or chapatis as well as various Indian pickles and chutney with our curries. My personal favourite and a must have is chilli lime pickle and mango chutney. My children go crazy for crunchy poppadoms!

You can also add a traditional lentil curry called Dahl to round off this delicious dinner.

Storage and leftovers

Any leftovers are going to keep well when refrigerated in an This is an affiliate link.airtight container. It will last for at least 3-4 days and may actually improve slightly with time as flavours have more of a chance to combine.

Butternut squash and chickpea curry can also be frozen for up to three months, so this is a good one for making a bit extra to enjoy down the road. When it is time to serve it, let it thaw out completely before reheating and use it up within two days.

Reheating can happen in a microwave or in a This is an affiliate link.saucepan over medium-low heat with a splash of water to keep it loose.

More curry recipes

What is your favourite Indian curry? It’s hard to choose but I think for me personally Butter Chicken is definitely in the top 3! Here are a few more I know you’ll love:

• Coconut Lentil Curry with Butternut Squash
• Indian Kofta Curry
• Chicken Curry with Potatoes
• Chicken Tikka Masala
• Sweet Potato and Lentil Curry

4.79 from 46 votes

Chickpea and Butternut Squash Curry

By Julia Frey of Vikalinka

Prep: 15 minutes mins

Cook: 40 minutes mins

Total: 55 minutes mins

Servings: 6 -8

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This wholesome chickpea curry with loads of vegetables like hearty butternut squash, spinach and green peas simmered in creamy coconut milk will become your favourite if you give it a try.

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Ingredients 

1x2x3x

• ▢ 1 tbsp vegetable oil
• ▢ 2 onions, medium, chopped
• ▢ 3-4 cloves garlic, minced
• ▢ 25g / 1/2 cup cilantro/fresh coriander, chopped (stalks and leaves separated, stalks reserved)
• ▢ 600g / 4 cups butternut squash, peeled and cubed, (1 medium)
• ▢ 240g / 1½ cups canned chickpeas
• ▢ 2 tbsp This is an affiliate link.Patak's Korma Paste, or any other curry paste; not cooking sauce
• ▢ 400g / 1½ cups This is an affiliate link.coconut milk
• ▢ 250ml / 1 cup water
• ▢ 100g / 3 cups spinach
• ▢ 75g / 1/2 cup frozen peas
• ▢ 2 tbsp desiccated unsweetened coconut, optional
• ▢ salt to taste

Instructions 

• Heat a tablespoon of oil in a large and deep pan and cook chopped onions, garlic and cilantro stalks over low heat for 10 minutes until soft and slightly coloured.
• Meanwhile dice the peeled butternut squash to match the size of chickpeas. Once the onions are tender, add the curry paste and cook for a minute or so stirring the whole time, then add the squash, chickpeas, coconut milk, desiccated coconut, water and a pinch of salt, bring it to a boil by turning the heat up. Then turn the heat down to a low-medium and simmer it covered for 35-40 minutes. Stir it occasionally to prevent from burning and add a few splashes of water if it gets too dry.
• Test the butternut squash, it should be fork tender by this point but not falling apart. Your curry should be thick, so if it's too runny, uncover and let the liquid cook down for a few more minutes. When you are satisfied with the consistency of the curry stir in peas, spinach and cilantro leaves, cover with a lid and take off the heat.
• Serve with steaming hot basmati rice. We love having naan bread or chapattis and various Indian pickles and chutney with our curries. My children go crazy for crunchy poppadums!

Notes

• Sweet potatoes can be used instead of butternut squash. They cook faster so you will need to add them to the curry a couple of minutes later than you would for squash.
• Using a good quality curry paste means you don’t need to have a long list of spices on hand. A brand such as Patak’s has great taste and wide variety, and makes curries far less complicated to make.
• If you do reach for a curry paste, make sure it’s not a sauce! Paste and sauce are not interchangeable in this recipe. If you do buy a sauce, you will need to reduce the amount of liquid that is added. Also, Korma paste is vegan but the sauce is not. 
• Let’s lean into finding shortcuts! Using a garlic paste and frozen spinach are fantastic shortcuts that don’t compromise on taste. I always have these – and ginger paste – ready to go in my kitchen.
• I’ve tried to use light coconut milk in order to reduce the amount of calories in curries, but find that I miss too much of the texture and flavour that full-fat coconut milk gives. It is up to you, of course, but I don’t find that the trade off is worth it!

Nutrition

Calories: 210kcal | Carbohydrates: 20g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 14g | Saturated Fat: 12g | Sodium: 108mg | Potassium: 578mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 10018IU | Vitamin C: 27mg | Calcium: 86mg | Iron: 3mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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