This super flavorful vegan eggplant and chickpea curry is loaded with spices and it's incredibly easy to prepare. Forget about take-out and bring the delicious flavors of your favorite Indian restaurant to your home.
We absolutely love Indian cuisine. No surprise there, since we're admittedly spice addicts... Unfortunately, recreating the same amazing flavors authentic Indian dishes have, is quite a challenge. A lot of times, the spices and ingredients that these recipes call for, are pretty hard to find.
Watch The Video on How to Make Eggplant and Chickpea Curry
The Spices in Our Chickpea Curry
I came up with this chickpea curry recipe one night when my husband was craving Indian food. All I had to work with were the ingredients and spices I had in my fridge and pantry, and it turned out delicious! I made my own spice mix using the following spices:
- Coriander
- Cumin
- Turmeric
- Red pepper flakes
- Cinnamon
- Black pepper
- Cardamom
You can also try our Homemade Garam Masala Spice mix
If you like a creamier, richer sauce, you can add coconut milk, just as we did for our Braised Curried Kale recipe. You can use other vegetables as well, such as cauliflower or sweet potatoes. Just make sure to cook them until tender before adding them to the sauce.
Some time-saving tips:
- Use store-bought curry powder or paste if you have it in hand
- Use 2 skillets instead of one. One to cook the eggplant, and the other one to get the sauce started, while the eggplant cooks
Other Indian Recipes You May Like
- Chana Masala Over Celeriac Puree
- Braised Curried Kale with Spiced Chickpeas
- Homemade Garam Masala
- Lentil Curry
- Mashed Butternut Squash with Spiced Chickpeas
- Vegan Spinach Paneer
Check out our other eggplant recipes.
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Chickpea Curry
- Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
- Yield: 6 cups 1x
- Diet: Vegan
Description
Forget take out! Bring the delicious flavors of your favorite Indian restaurant to your home with this super flavorful vegan eggplant and chickpea curry. Loaded with spices and incredibly easy to prepare.
Ingredients
For the spice mix (alternatively, you can use your favorite curry blend or paste):
- 1 tsp salt (or to taste)
- ¾ tsp ground coriander
- ¾ tsp ground cumin
- ½ tsp turmeric
- ½ tsp red pepper flakes (optional)
- ¼ tsp cinnamon
- ⅛ tsp black pepper
- ⅛ tsp ground cardamom
For the chickpea curry:
- 1 large eggplant, peeled and diced (about 5 cups diced)
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 3 cloves of garlic, minced
- 1" piece of ginger, grated
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- ¼ cup tomato paste
- 2 15.5 oz cans of chickpeas, rinsed and drained
- 2 cups water or vegetable broth
- 1 bunch of fresh cilantro, chopped ( about 1 cup chopped)
Instructions
- Combine all the spices of the spice mix and salt in a small bowl and mix well. Set aside
- Heat a 12-inch non-stick deep skillet with a lid over medium heat. Add half of the diced eggplant and cook dry without any oil for about 7 minutes stirring occasionally ( you may need to add a couple of tablespoons of water a time to prevent them from sticking if you are not using a no-stick pan).
- Transfer to a bowl and set aside. Repeat the process with the rest of the eggplant and transfer it to the bowl
- Using the same skillet, heat the olive oil. Add the garlic and ginger and cook over medium-high heat for about 2 minutes. Add the onion and spice mix, and cook for 5-6minutes or until translucent
- Add the tomato paste and cook for 3-4 minutes stirring frequently. Add the drained chickpeas, stir gently and continue cooking for 2 to 3minutes
- Add the cooked eggplant and broth or water, bring to a boil, cover the pan and reduce the heat to simmer for 40 minutes Add the cilantro in the last 10 minutes of cooking, saving some for garnish.
Notes
You can serve this chickpea curry with rice, quinoa, or even zucchini noodles
- Prep Time: 15
- Cook Time: 60
- Category: Entree
- Method: Stove top
- Cuisine: Indian
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cup
- Calories: 233
- Sugar: 8
- Sodium: 576
- Fat: 7
- Saturated Fat: 0.9
- Unsaturated Fat: 4
- Trans Fat: 0
- Carbohydrates: 29
- Fiber: 8.5
- Protein: 7.6
- Cholesterol: 0
Did you make our chickpea curry?
Scroll down to the comments and leave us a rating! Did you love it? Share it or leave us a comment
Lee
I don't anything about cooking and making recipes but fortunately I have an amazing wife who makes all of my food and this dish was one of them. It is delicious, tasty, a little spicy, and full of flavor and most importantly thanks to the eggplant, moist. Thank you for the wonderful recipe and thank you to my wife for making it for me 🙂
Vicky & Ruth
Thank you! We are so happy you enjoyed this dish.
Raquel
I made this for dinner last night and it was a huge success, there were no leftovers (which is always a good sign in my house!) Thank you for sharing the recipe!
Diana
At what step would you add in the optional coconut milk?
Vicky & Ruth
Add it 10 minutes before you are done cooking the dish.
Kita
Absolutely delish! My husband loves eggplant and yesterday, when I made this recipe for dinner, he was so happy! Another addition to my favorites 🙂
B
Hi, is the eggplant cooked ‘dry’ in the pan for 7 minutes? The recipe doesn’t mention using oil or broth at this step.
Vicky & Ruth
Hi, cooking the eggplant dry in the pan, it kind of sears it and keeps its shape. You certainly don't have to do that. You can always add the eggplant to the sauce, but it will fall apart into the sauce, which is not such a bad thing. Especially if you are in a hurry.
Rebeca
So simple and so delicious! I love these kind of recipes.
Vicky & Ruth
Thank you, Enjoy!
Ron
I was looking for a curry eggplant recipe that didn't have coconut milk and this one is a little masterpiece. Add more eggplant if you like the vegetables because there is plenty of chickpeas. The suggestion to add sweet potatoes or cauliflower sounds great.
JANE RITCHUK
I wish it had more protein!
Lynn
Chick peas have protein. Every dish you eat doesn't have to have a lot of protein. Only my take on meals,
Sarah
Could I substitute zucchini for the eggplant? Soon zucchini will be free (in my garden!) whereas eggplants are expensive and I don't grow them... Or any other vege substitute... I might try parsnips... Any suggestions?
Vicky and Ruth
Yes, absolutely. Zucchini and chickpeas go great together.
Suzanne
Wow! I cooked this for dinner and it was a pleasure! First it smells wonderful and next it tastes fantastic! I served this curry over barley. Thank you for yet another delicious and nutritious recipe. This is a keeper!
Vicky and Ruth
Thank you!
Natalie
This was delicious and so easy. I took the extra lazy route and used my instapot. I soaked one heaping cup of dried chickpeas overnight. Then I threw the soaked beans and everything on the ingredients list (plus an extra cup of liquid since the beans weren't cooked yet), sealed the instapot and pressure cooked for 11 minutes. Everything came out perfect. Served over rice with more cilantro. Next time I would probably double eggplant for more veggies, maybe add spinach. But will make again!
Vicky and Ruth
YAY!So glad you like it. Thank you for letting us know how to cook our chickpea curry in the instant pot!