When I finished cooking these Curried Chickpeas with Spinach I took a look at my notepad to make sure I had written down all the ingredients. I looked it over a good three or four times thinking that I had surely forgotten something. The list was just too short. How did I just make so much yum with so few ingredients?!
That’s how food should be. Uncomplicated, fast, and super tasty. I couldn’t stop sneaking spoonfuls of this dish as I photographed it—it was just that flavorful. The simple tomato sauce is kicked up a few notches with curry powder (hot or mild, your choice) and would probably be good poured over just about any vegetables. I like this combo of spinach and chickpeas because it’s filling, very nutritious, and just down right pretty.
Use Fresh or Frozen Spinach
I used fresh spinach because I bought a HUGE 2.5 lb. bag of fresh spinach the other day and now I’m committed to using it all before it goes bad, but you can sub frozen spinach to fit your budget. Just add 8 oz. of frozen spinach to the skillet in place of the fresh and sauté until thawed and warmed through, then proceed with the recipe as usual. I also used a very large can of chickpeas, but if that’s not available in your area, just use two regular 15-oz. sized cans. Not a fan of chickpeas? Lentils would also be great here!
How to Serve Curried Chickpeas with Spinach
I served my curried chickpeas with spinach over rice, but it would also be awesome with some naan to soak up the sauce instead. NOM.
What Kind of Curry Powder Do You Use?
You can use either hot or mild curry powder, depending on how spicy you’d like your curried chickpeas to be. I’ve enjoyed both 365 brand curry powder and Sharwood’s curry powder. You can also try making your own curry powder using this recipe for Easy Homemade Curry Powder from Spiceitupp.com.
Curried Chickpeas with Spinach
Servings 4 1 cup eachIngredients
- 2 Tbsp olive oil ($0.26)
- 1 yellow onion ($0.47)
- 2 cloves garlic ($0.16)
- 1 inch fresh ginger ($0.16)
- 1 1/2 Tbsp curry powder ($0.45)
- 8 oz. spinach (fresh or frozen) ($1.49)
- 1 15oz. can tomato sauce ($0.59)
- 2 15oz. cans chickpeas ($1.10)
Instructions
- Dice the onion, mince the garlic, and grate the ginger on a small holed cheese grater. Sauté the onion, garlic, and ginger in a large skillet with the olive oil over medium heat until the onions have softened (3-5 minutes).
- Add the curry powder and continue to sauté with the onion mixture for one minute more. Add about 1/4 cup of water to the skillet along with the fresh spinach and continue to sauté until the spinach has wilted. The water will help steam and wilt the spinach (no water needed if using frozen spinach).
- Drain and rinse the chickpeas. Add them to the skillet along with the tomato sauce. Stir well to distribute the spices in the sauce and heat through (5 minutes). Serve over rice or with bread.
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Nutrition
Video
Scroll down for the step by step photos!
How to Make Curried Chickpeas with Spinach – Step by Step Photos
Start by dicing one onion and mincing two cloves of garlic. I used a small cheese grater to grate one inch of fresh ginger (or you can mince it). I usually use a vegetable peeler to remove the skin from the ginger before grating it. Sauté the onion, garlic, and ginger in a large skillet with olive oil until they are soft (about 5 minutes).
Add 1.5 Tbsp of curry powder and continue to sauté the mixture. You can use either hot or mild curry powder. Continuing to sauté after adding the spices will toast them just slightly and increase their flavor.
Next, add a little water to the skillet (about 1/4 cup) and 8 oz. of fresh spinach. It will likely fill up the skillet, so stir carefully until it wilts down. Most fresh spinach is sold in either an 8 or 16 oz. bag, so use the label to help you estimate 8 oz. The water will help steam and wilt the spinach. If you’re using frozen spinach, you don’t need to add any water, just warm it through in the skillet.
Drain and rinse a large 29 oz. can (or 2 15oz. cans) of chickpeas then add them to the skillet along with a 15 oz. can of tomato sauce. If you don’t have tomato sauce in your area, strained tomatoes or tomato purée is a good substitute (although you may need to add a little salt at the end).
Then just stir it all together well and let it warm through. How easy is that? I say “Pshhhhftfttfft.” to all boxed skillet meals.
Love many of your recipes, but found this one really bland as written. It was also very acidic with nothing to balance out the tomato sauce (needs some cream or at least baking soda I think). I like how simple and easy it is to make, but sadly not a keeper. I appreciate your site a lot, though, and will look forward to trying more recipes.
Thank you for the recipe. I made it tonight, but with powdered ginger and garlic, and I cooked the chickpeas in the last step longer than 5 minutes and hotter. It came out nice. I gave it 4 stars because I like coconut based curries better, although this is lower fat and quicker, and also because the time is underestimated as in most recipes, and because 2 cans of 15 ounce chickpeas costs much more than $1.10 (especially for the organic chickpeas I get), so the prices should either be updated or removed.
Big fan of this site so far. But I think this one needs some improvement. The tomato sauce was overpowering and a little watery. Flavor definitely lacking for me and I needed to experiment a little.
I cook way more Thai curries so I only had those ingredients on hand. Added some coconut milk and red curry paste for texture and flavor. Helped a ton, but I want to experiment with more authentic ingredients next time.
Also check if your canned chickpeas are soft enough before adding them! I assumed they would be, but mine were firm and needed way more cook time.
Really bland flavor IMHO, but I’m not familiar enough with Indian recipes to know how to improve it. Definitely very cheap though and easy to meal prep.
Excellent per the directions and even better with modifications. Mushrooms, sweet or hot peppers, carrots, green beans, kale, arugula, and my wifes favorite air fried sweet potatoes instead of the rice.
Love love this!! I will make it again. Easy and delicious!
Absolutely delicious!! Must use fresh/frozen fresh ginger! I didn’t have curry powder so I used meat masala powder (is it the same? Maybe?) and it was 100/100 – highly recommend!
I make this with heavy cream and serve it over rice. My daughter requests it almost weekly.
Recipe looks great, although the sodium amount seems extremely high. Could it be an error?
Sodium: 1286.48 mg per 1 cup.
I just ran it through the calculator again and it came out almost exactly the same. You just have to keep in mind that nutrition data that is calculated using a database like this always has a pretty wide margin of error. Since this recipe has two cans of chickpeas, it’s possible that the calculator is accounting for all the sodium that is in the liquid in those cans. Canned beans and canned tomato sauce tend to be high in sodium in general.
We cook a batch of dried garbanzos weekly that get used for multiple dishes. Also this recipie is great in the summer with garden fresh heirloom tomatoes or cherry tomatoes. Reduces the salt dramatically
I have made this so many times and it’s always good. I sometimes add sliced mushrooms at the beginning and last time I added diced par boiled potatoes. Sometimes I’ve used half the amount of chickpeas because I forgot to buy the big can and I have used frozen kale. It’s always good. Filling and cheap and you always want more. So easy! This website has the best recipes. I have so many vegan favourites from here.
I added peas and carrots to this recipe to bulk it up a bit. After reading the reviews I added diced tomatoes instead and was pleased with the end result. Served over cauliflower rice, this meal is AMAZING. I am a college student and this will keep me fed for at least 3 days. THANK YOU.
Has anyone used kale instead of spinach here? How did it turn out? LOVE BB! -Aviva
Only problem is I might eat the whole pot
Yummylicious
Such a quick, easy and healthful recipe that tastes like its been cooking all night
So easy and so tasty! Definitely needed some salt at the end as mentioned but I think it should be included in the recipe because it feels lacking withoutÂ
I had to use powdered ginger because I didn’t have fresh — I used 1 tsp. I also added about a quarter can of coconut milk that I had left in the fridge and added some tumeric because I add it to anything i can. It was sooo good! My husband said “you can make this any time you want”. That’s his highest food compliment!!
That’s such a good idea! I’ll try that next time