This yummy Sweet Potato & Chickpea Curry is one of my favourite meals! It's so easy and simple to make too. The sweet potato roasts in the oven while you make the curry in one pan. The chickpea adds lovely texture and plenty of protein into this meal, making it a nutritionally well rounded dish. It's vegetarian and vegan, and you can adjust the spice levels to your preference, so it's great for the whole family to enjoy!
What's great about this recipe
- It's full of nutrients and goodness
- It is easy to make and leftovers can be frozen
- It's a healthy and low calorie option
- It's packed full of flavour
- It is a naturally vegan recipe that everyone will enjoy!
What you will need
- Sweet potato - The sweet potato is pre-roasted for delicious flavour and texture before adding it to the curry. You can use fresh or frozen sweet potato
- Onion - I use white onion in this curry, but I did make it once with red onion when I'd ran out of white onion, and it was just as tasty!
- Garlic - You can use fresh, frozen or pureed garlic, for yummy garlic flavour in this dish
- Ginger - You can use fresh, frozen or pureed ginger, and it adds a lovely flavour dimension to this curry
- Curry powder - I use a mix of mild and medium curry powder when I make this, but if you like it spicy then you can use a hot curry powder instead
- Garam masala - this is a spice blend containing coriander seed, cumin seed, fennel seed, dried ginger, dill seed, cloves, and celery seed. You can use individual spices if you prefer, but this spice blend is such a handy way of adding lots of flavour quickly
- Tumeric - This gives the curry colour and also has some great health benefits
- Chopped tomatoes - this is a tomato based curry so chopped tinned tomatoes are the simplest way to add that tomato base
- Tomato puree - for an extra boost of tomato flavour
- Coconut milk - gives the curry a lovely creaminess and also mellows out the spice level
- Chickpeas - I use tinned chickpeas for this recipe as they are so simple and easy to use. They add a great protein boost to this recipe
- Spinach - This is optional, I like to add it to give the curry some attractive green flecks. Either fresh or frozen spinach will both work. You can omit it or swap it for kale.
How to make Sweet Potato & Chickpea Curry
Start by peeling the sweet potato and chopping it into chunks, toss it in a little vegetable oil and spread it out onto a lined baking tray. Roast the sweet potato for 20-25 minutes.
Meanwhile, cook the onion, garlic and ginger together until the onion is soft. Add the curry powder, garam masala and tumeric and cook for about 1 minute. Then add the chopped tomatoes, tomato puree and coconut milk. Bring the mixture to a gentle simmer and let simmer for 10-15 minutes.
Stir in the chickpeas and spinach and cook for 5-10 minutes until the chickpeas are warmed through and the spinach has wilted into the mixture. Finally, stir in the roasted sweet potato.
Can the curry be made in advance and can it be frozen?
Yes, I've frozen this curry many times, and it freezes great. It can also be made in advance and once fully cool, you can store it in the fridge for 2-3 days, then reheat either in the microwave or in a pan.
Can this recipe be made vegan?
This recipe is suitable for vegans and is dairy free, so you don't need to do anything differently. If you are serving it with yoghurt and/or naan bread, you will need to use a dairy free yoghurt, and check the naan breads are suitable for vegans (often butter, milk or eggs are in shop bought naan bread). This recipe is also gluten and egg free.
What can you serve with this curry?
- Any rice, from brown rice to basmati, to standard white rice
- Naan breads are great for dipping in the curry sauce
- A swirl of yoghurt on top is delicious and cooling
- Or you could try some raita - a yoghurt based sauce with mint
- Fresh coriander - you either love or hate this fragrant herb!
- Crunchy poppadoms are also a yummy side dish
More tips for making Sweet Potato & Chickpea Curry:
- If you like your curry hot and spicy, feel free to add some fresh chopped chillies to this dish. Add them when the onion, garlic and ginger are cooking together
- Any leftover coconut milk/water can be reserved to use in a smoothie, added to soup, mixed into ice lollies, and used in overnight oats or chia pudding. It can also be frozen for later use
Recommended equipment & ingredients*
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Sweet Potato & Chickpea Curry
Ingredients
- 450 g Sweet potato (2 medium potatoes)
- 1 tbsp Vegetable oil
- 1 White onion diced
- 2 cloves Garlic finely chopped/crushed
- 1 tbsp Fresh ginger finely chopped/grated
- 2 tbsp Curry powder
- 1 tsp Garam masala
- ½ tsp Tumeric
- 800 g Chopped tomatoes
- 1 tbsp Tomato puree
- 400 ml Coconut milk Use only the white fat from the top of the can
- 240 g Chickpeas tinned, drained
- 100 g Spinach fresh or frozen
Instructions
- Pre-heat your oven to 180C Fan/400F/Gas Mark 6
- Peel and dice the sweet potato into cubes (roughly 2cm)
- Toss the sweet potato in ½ tbsp of vegetable oil then spread out onto a lined baking tray. Cook for 20-25 minutes
- While it is cooking, make the curry. Heat another ½ tbsp vegetable oil in a large pan on a low heat
- Add the onion, ginger and garlic and cook for 5-8 minutes or until the onion softens (if you want to add fresh chillies add them now with the onion etc.)
- Add the curry powder, tumeric and garam masala, stir them in and cook for about 1 minute
- Then add the chopped tomatoes, tomato puree and the white fat from the top of the coconut milk can. Stir everything together until the coconut milk melts into the mixture (if you are using frozen spinach add that now)
- Bring the curry to a gentle simmer and let simmer, stirring occasionally, for 10-15 minutes
- Add the chickpeas and fresh spinach (if using) and stir everything together
- Then stir in the sweet potato and cook the curry for another 5 or so minutes until the spinach is wilted
- Serve with rice, yoghurt, naan bread etc.
- Store fully cooled leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 days or the freezer for up to 3 months
Notes
- Any leftover coconut milk/water can be reserved to use in a smoothie, added to soup, mixed into ice lollies, and used in overnight oats or chia pudding. It can also be frozen for later use
Zoe
What an absolutely quick & easy dish!
I already had all the ingredients in the cupboard, which made it such a quick meal.
I hate the thought of not knowing what to cook which is not only easy but also super healthy!
I love trying out Kat meals & cakes!
katsvegkitchen
Thank you so much for the lovely feedback Zoe! I'm so happy you enjoyed this curry!
bev
I made this curry tonight.And i was overwhelmed how easy it was to make and what a fab tasting curry .Im not one for trying new recipes but i have made a few of kats cupcakes , and scones and people say were the best they have tried.So i thought i would try her savoury recipes.Well i wasn't disappointed with this one. It was tasty, and filling and the best part is not having to use every pot and pan and there plenty left as it was only for me .So i have put the rest in containers to freeze so I've got more meals to look forward to.If you are looking for simple but tasty ? look no further. It really is worth you trying . Thank you kat i am looking what to make next from your site
Polly
I love sweet potato and I love chickpeas so this curry is perfect for me. It is so easy to make and so delicious. I will definitely be making it again. I do, however, dislike coconut so I used some evaporated milk instead.