This super easy, ultra creamy, and heavily spiced Cauliflower and Chickpea Masala is my new favorite dinner! That spicy-creamy sauce is just so 👌that I have to sop up every last bit with a piece of naan. This dish comes together super fast, requires very little chopping, is insanely inexpensive, and holds up well in the fridge, so it’s great for meal prep! This one is going right into my weekly rotation. :)
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How to Serve the Cauliflower and Chickpea Masala
I’ve been eating my Cauliflower and Chickpea Masala with a piece of naan bread to scoop up that delicious sauce, but this dish would be equally as good over a bed of hot rice. Either way it’s creamy, spicy, and oh so delish!
Make it Spicy or Mild
You can adjust the heat of this sauce by increasing, decreasing, or even eliminating the amount of cayenne pepper in the spice mix. The amount listed below creates what I would call a “medium” spice level, but that’s extremely subjective, so take that with a grain of salt.
Make it Vegan
An easy sub for the heavy cream in this recipe would be full fat coconut milk (the stuff that comes in cans, NOT the dairy milk substitute). You can play around with the quantities, but I’d guess somewhere between 1/2 to 1 cup would work well.
Cauliflower and Chickpea Masala
Servings 4 About 1.25 cups eachIngredients
Masala Spice Mix
- 2 Tbsp garam masala ($0.60)
- 1/2 tsp cumin ($0.05)
- 1/2 tsp turmeric ($0.05)
- 1/2 tsp smoked paprika ($0.05)
- 1/4 tsp cayenne ($0.02)
- 1/2 tsp salt ($0.02)
- Freshly Cracked Pepper ($0.03)
Skillet Ingredients
- 1 yellow onion ($0.21)
- 3 cloves garlic ($0.24)
- 1/2 Tbsp grated fresh ginger ($0.15)
- 2 Tbsp olive oil ($0.32)
- 12 oz. frozen cauliflower florets ($1.00)
- 1 15oz. can chickpeas, drained ($0.49)
- 1 15oz. can tomato sauce* ($0.59)
- 1/4 cup water ($0.00)
- 1/3 cup heavy cream ($0.26)
- salt to taste ($0.02)
Instructions
- In a small bowl, combine the spices for the masala spice mix (garam masala, cumin, turmeric, smoked paprika, cayenne, salt, and pepper).
- Finely dice the onion, mince the garlic, and grate the ginger. Add all three to a large skillet along with the olive oil and sauté over medium heat until the onions are soft and translucent (about 3 minutes). Add the spice mix and continue to sauté for one more minute.
- Add the frozen cauliflower florets to the skillet with the aromatics and spices, and continue to sauté for about 5 minutes more, or until the cauliflower have thawed through and are completely coated in spices.
- Add the drained chickpeas, tomato sauce, and 1/4 cup water to the skillet. Stir to combine, then allow them to simmer over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, for about 15 minutes. This will help mellow the acidity of the tomato sauce and allow the spices to blend. If the mixture becomes too dry as it simmers, add a couple more tablespoons of water.
- After the sauce has simmered for 15 minutes, turn off the heat and stir in the heavy cream. Give the masala a taste and add salt as needed. Serve in a bowl either over rice or with a piece of bread for dipping.
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Notes
Nutrition
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How to Make Cauliflower Chickpea Masala – Step by Step Photos
Begin by combining 2 Tbsp garam masala, 1/2 tsp cumin, 1/2 tsp turmeric, 1/2 tsp smoked paprika, 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper, 1/2 tsp salt, and some freshly cracked pepper in a small bowl.
Finely dice one yellow onion, mince three cloves of garlic and grate about 1/2 Tbsp fresh ginger (ginger is hard to measure, so this is flexible).
Add the onion, garlic, and ginger to a large skillet with 2 Tbsp olive oil and sauté over medium heat until the onions are soft and translucent (about 3 minutes). Add the spice mix and continue to sauté for one more minute.
Add 12oz. frozen cauliflower florets to the skillet and continue to sauté until the cauliflower is thawed through and coated in spices.
Next, add one 15oz. can chickpeas (drained), one 15oz. can tomato sauce, and about 1/4 cup water to the skillet. Stir to combine and then let the sauce simmer over medium-low heat for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. If the sauce starts to dry out as it simmers, add a couple more tablespoons of water.
After the sauce has simmered and the tomato sauce has mellowed a bit, turn off the heat and stir in 1/3 cup heavy cream.
After stirring the cream into the sauce, give it a taste and add more salt to taste (I added about 1/4 tsp).
I garnished here with fresh cilantro, but didn’t find that it added a lot to the flavor, so that’s entirely optional!
Dig in!
This was unbelievably easy and twice as yummy!!
I made it exactly as above, except for using fresh cauliflower.
My wife thinks I am a culinary hero, and who am I to disagree!!
To skip on the dairy, could I use canned coconut milk as an alternative to heavy cream?
Yep. :)
I made this last night and it was delicious! Per your suggestion, I made it vegan by subbing canned coconut milk. I was in the mood for an Indian inspired feast, so I also made Budget Bytes Chana Saag and Budget Bytes Homemade Naan for a truly awesome spread (the recipes came together pretty easily and were all budget-friendly, which helped me pull it all off.) I couldn’t believe how much depth of flavor everything had, despite only taking about half an hour on the stove. This kind of complexity is hard to find outside of authentic Indian restaurants or a mile-long ingredient list, so I was delighted. Everyone at the table cleaned their plates and grabbed seconds, so it was a unanimous hit. Thanks for the phenomenal recipes!
I like it. I gotta do it as soon as possible. I am thankful to you. I’ll surprise my husband.
Can you make this recipe? If you do that, you’ll make me really happy. Pleaseeee
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This is the best meal Ive ever made! So cheap and easy. Amazing with garlic naan or brown rice, I even added in some shredded chicken. Amazing flavor, so filling. I substituted a cup of coconut milk and it wad amazing.ย
Beth is there anyway to possibly add the nutrition to each recipe? Like the calories, protein, etc.? ย Thanks for the delicious recipes!
I’m sorry, I don’t have a reliable source for that information. The recipe calculators out there are rough estimates at best, and wildly inaccurate at their worst. I’d rather leave it to readers to use the calculator they trust than to post information that I can’t verify.
What about using fresh cauliflower?ย
You can just let it simmer a bit longer until the cauliflower is tender. :)
I used fresh and just gave it a good roast in the oven with some salt before putting it in the pan. Gave it a nice flavor.
Can you provide any nutrition info? I just need to know the calorie count for the serving size.
I’m sorry, I don’t have a reliable source for that information.
https://www.myfitnesspal.com/
Sign up for free and use their recipe calculator.
I made this yesterday. Some changes, used parsnip and a can of red lentils as thatโs what I had on hand. I also toasted the spices first, then the onion and ginger and garlic, it takes longer but cuties taste better this way. It was quick, easy and delicious. Thanks for the recipie!
I accidentally made it very spicy, so pay attention if youโre spice sensitive. It was good and I added frozen peas for color and fun!
I just made this today, and it is delicious! I’m looking forward to this week’s lunches since I have a lot of leftovers. My grocery store only sells frozen cauliflower in a one lb bag, and I’m lazy so I threw the whole thing in, but it still turned out great (and with more than enough sauce.) Just the right amount of spice!
This masala looks so good, will definitely be making it soon! I recently cooked two of your other Indian recipes (Dal Nirvana and the curried chickpeas with spinach) and loved them – thanks for the great content and easy to follow steps :)
Best wishes from Germany
Susan
Can we use milk instead of heavy cream?
No, I really wouldn’t suggest it.
Hi – what would be a good substitute for the cream?
Full fat coconut milk (the kind in a can, not the kind made as a dairy milk substitute).
Here is a handy page with options for dairy substitutes for a variety of dairy products https://www.godairyfree.org/dairy-substitutes/how-to-substitute-cream
I love easy dinner recipes, especially when they turn out to be something my whole family loves!. This one also looks tasty.
https://www.puro.pk/