Coconut Chickpea Curry with Spinach is a quick and easy meal that's perfect for dinner busy weeknights. It'll keep you warm and cozy on chilly evenings. Serve it for lunch or dinner. This easy recipe is vegan and gluten-free.
Coconut Chickpea Curry with Spinach
Curries are constantly on repeat in my kitchen during the cold weather months. Unless I'm cooking for my blog, I don't follow a recipe, I just see what's in the fridge and throw things together. It's a great way to use up the little bits of veggies that might be leftover after making meals for the week.
We're in that weird period now where the weather can't decide if it wants to be spring or winter. Sometimes it's warm during he day, but it's still chilly in the evening. And I'm still trying to cling to my curry.
I love this coconut chickpea curry because it's made with just a few ingredients – onion, coconut milk, chickpeas, spinach, curry paste, and warming spices. It comes together in just about half an hour, making it ideal for busy weeknights. I love serving it over baked sweet potatoes.
How to Make Coconut Chickpea Curry with Spinach
This recipe is easy to make!
- First you heat the oil in a large pot over medium-high heat and cook the onion and cook for about 5 minutes.
- Next you add the garlic, ginger, curry paste, red pepper flakes, cumin, black pepper, and sea salt, and cook for another 2 or 3 minutes.
- Then you add the tomatoes, coconut milk, chickpeas, to the pot and bring everything to a boil.
- You now reduce the heat and let the curry simmer for about 10 minutes.
- Next you add the spinach to the pot and stir until it’s wilted, which will only take a minute or two.
- Finally you add the lemon juice and give it one last stir.
Red Curry Paste
Red curry paste is made with red chili pepper, garlic, lemongrass, shallots, cilantro, and kaffir lime. Sometimes fish or shrimp is added, so make sure you check the label, even when buying a brand you’ve purchased before. (Formulas change and manufacturers don’t always make it clear on the front label.) I like Thai Kitchen Red Curry Paste.
Serving Your Coconut Chickpea Curry
This curry can be served as is, over cooked brown rice or rice noodles. Or you can zhuzh things up and serve it over baked potatoes or baked sweet potatoes.
How to Customize Your Coconut Chickpea Curry
You can easily make this recipe your own.
- Just about any leafy green can be used in the place of spinach. Try kale or chard.
- You can add more veggies, if you want to make your curry heartier. Try broccoli florets and chopped carrots.
- Green or yellow curry paste can be used the place of red.
Coconut Curry Chickpeas and Spinach
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil
- 1 medium
onion
diced (about 1 cup) - 4 cloves garlic minced
- 2 tablespoons minced ginger
- 1 ½ tablespoons thai red curry paste
- ½ teaspoon cumin powder
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes more to taste
- 1 14-ounce can diced tomatoes or two chopped fresh tomatoes
- 1 15-ounce can chickpeas drained and rinsed
- 1 14-ounce can coconut milk NOT coconut milk beverage
- 8 ounces baby spinach
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add the onion and cook for about 5 minutes, until it begins to brown.
- Add the garlic, ginger, curry paste, red pepper flakes, cumin, black pepper, and sea salt, and cook for another 2 or 3 minutes, until the mixture becomes fragrant.
- Add the tomatoes, coconut milk, chickpeas, to the pot and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and let simmer for about 10 minutes.
- Add the spinach to the pot and stir until it’s wilted.
- Add the lemon juice and give it one last stir.
- Serve hot over baked sweet potatoes, baked russet potatoes, cooked brown rice, or cooked rice noodles.
Originally published October 4, 2013. Updated March 9, 2022.
More curry recipes you may also enjoy include:
- Pumpkin Curry
- Coconut Curry Noodles from One-Dish Vegan by Robin Robertson
- Green Curry with Green Beans and Sweet Potatoes
- Mango Curry
Merri
Look forward to making this tomorrow! Since I have them on hand, I’d like to add in some broccoli and carrots. When in the process should I do that?
Dianne
Hi, Merri! I would add them after step one. Cook them for 5 minutes or so, or until they begin to soften. Enjoy!