Cauliflower Chickpea Curry

by Dr. Jennifer Yun, ND

Curry is one of my favourite foods but as much as I love ordering in from our local Indian curry spot, I love making it at home with this simple and relatively painless recipe. Once you have the staple Indian spices in your pantry, whipping up a quick weeknight curry is delicious and easy.

Staple curry spice shopping list:

  • curry powder
  • ground cumin
  • ground coriander
  • ground turmeric
  • garam masala
  • cayenne powder

This recipe is a great source of vitamin C and is also high in B6, folate, and manganese. Not to mention it packs a fibrous punch, giving you almost half daily recommendation of fiber (25g women, 30g men).

The ingredient list below can look a bit daunting but there a lot of spices that don’t require any prep. It’s one that’s delicious for dinner and then packable for lunch the next day. Curry, simplified.

Prep time: 10 minutes
Standing in front of stove time: 15 minutes
Sitting back with feet up time: 30 minutes
Servings: 4

Ingredients:

  • 1 cauliflower, large head, chopped into florets
  • 1 450mL canned chickpeas, drained
  • 1 onion, finely chopped
  • 2-3 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 piece of ginger, 1-inch cube, finely minced
  • 1 tbsp grapeseed oil
  • 3 tomatoes, diced
  • 1 piece of ginger, 1-inch cube, finely minced
  • 1/4 tsp cayenne powder (to taste or omit completely for a milder curry
  • 1 tbsp curry powder (or 2 tbsp and omit other spices below to simplify)
  • 1 tsp cumin
  • 1 tsp coriander
  • 1 tsp turmeric
  • 1 tsp garam masala
  • 1/4 cup water
  • salt

Instructions:

  • Heat oil over medium-high heat in a heavy-bottom pot
  • Add onion, garlic, and ginger and saute until onion starts soften (5-8 minutes)
  • Add spices and stir mixture
  • Pour in a 1/4 cup of water and stir until mixture becomes paste-like
  • Combine tomatoes to mixture and cook over medium heat until tomatoes have softened and broken down (10 minutes or so)
  • Add cauliflower florets and stir until coated well with tomato mixture, then add chickpeas and stir once more
  • Season with salt to taste
  • Cover with lid and lower heat to let simmer for 30 minutes (or until cauliflower is tender)
  • Stir occasionally and serve over a moderate amount of rice

Nutritional info per serving:

Calories: 208kcal
Carbohydrates: 33g (sugars 0.5g; fiber 11.5g)
Fat: 6.2g
Protein: 10.4g