Chickpea Curry With Potato Chana Aloo Curry

This vegetarian curry is one of those foods where carnivores truly don’t miss the meat. (I am, of course, referring to myself 🙂 ) And it’s super healthy – 280 calories per serve!

Chickpea Curry

This curry tastes just like Indian curry you get from restaurants. I really mean that. It has great layers of flavour. Real punchy flavours. And it’s made from scratch – no curry pastes here! The roots of this particular curry is Trinidad in the Caribbean. But it really tastes just like Indian curries (the tomato based ones, not the creamy ones). I don’t know if you’ve ever made Indian curries at home before, but I have. And with a few exceptions – like Butter Chicken, Tikka Masala and Biryani– the list of spices almost always includes spices that I need to hunt down at speciality spice stores or Indian grocery stores. And therein lies the reason why I am obsessed with this. It’s made with spices you can get from your local supermarket. And just as much flavour. Big flavours. BIG. HUGE!

This Chickpea curry is slightly adapted from a recipe by Imma from Immaculate Bites, an African-Caribbean food blog. Until I came across Imma’s site, I actually didn’t know that much about Caribbean cuisine. Did you know that Caribbean food is a fusion of many different cuisines, including African, American Indian, European, Indian, Arabic and Chinese? Traditions brought to the region by the population. And this Chana Aloo Curry (Chana = chickpeas, Aloo = potatoes), is one such example. A Caribbean recipe that tastes very Indian!

Ingredients in Chickpea Potato Curry

A great tasting curry from scratch will always call for a fair few spices. However, the really nice thing about this curry recipe is that all the spices are ones you can find at everyday supermarkets. For me, these are standard pantry spices – and I’m betting I am not the only one! (Bonus: If you’re missing one or two – other than curry powder – it’s not the end of the world.)

The Curry Powder

The main spice used is curry powder. These are the curry powders I typically use – but any brand should be fine, I’ve used plenty over the years.

Other recipes that use curry powder

Don’t feel restricted to just use curry powder in Indian-style curries. It’s used in all sorts of recipes, such as:

Making the Chickpea Potato Curry

Measuring out those spices is definitely the step that takes the most time in this recipe!! So once that’s done, it’s a pretty effortless recipe:

Sauté garlic and onion Sauté spices (brings out the flavour) Coat potato in the spices Add everything else (chickpeas, tomato, broth/stock) Simmer to reduce and thicken, then stir in green onion and parsley at the end

Try this Vegetable Curry! Same sauce, but made with vegetables instead of chickpeas and potato.

What to serve with Chickpea Curry

Rice is essential to soak up all that sauce – preferably basmati rice. If you want to go all out, serve it with Coconut Rice. The combination of the subtle, sweet coconut flavour with the big spicy flavours in this curry is SO GOOD! If you want to cut back on the carbs, try cauliflower rice (please, someone remind me to share this recipe, I mention it so often!). Also, a dollop of yogurt goes nicely – the fresh cool tang tempers the spiciness and adds a touch of creaminess.

You get bonus points if you go to the effort of serving these authentic Naan, the perfect vehicle to scoop up that wickedly delicious curry sauce!!! Otherwise, these yeast-free Easy Soft Flatbreads are simpler and taste just like naan. – Nagi x

Chickpea Potato Curry (Chana Aloo Curry)

Watch how to make it

Fresh salad on the side

Cabbage, Carrot, Mint Salad – great refreshing salad, ideal to pair with curries Indian Tomato Salad Everyday Cabbage Salad

And – more great curries of the world!

Biryani (it’s amazing!) Chicken Tikka Masala and Butter Chicken Dal (Indian lentil curry) Thai Red Curry and Green Curry Massaman Curry Goan Fish Curry Browse the Curry Collection

Originally published January 2016. Updated with new photos, new video and entirely rewritten post in February 2019. No change to recipe.