CHICKPEA AND TOMATO CURRY (INSTANT POT)

LOOKING FOR AN EASY DELICIOUS MEAL READY IN UNDER 30 MINUTES? THIS SIMPLE CURRY IS THE PERFECT WEEKNIGHT DINNER!

Who else loves curries? I have to say meals like this chickpea and tomato curry that are warm, spicy, and fragrant have to be among my all-time favorites foods.

And when I can use up some of my fresh garden tomatoes at the same time, why not right?

Nothing beats a flavorful dish and the fact that you can make a chickpea and tomato curry in under 30 minutes in your Instant Pot, that’s bonus points in my book.

I keep kicking myself for how long I let me Instant Pot sit in the basement gathering dust when I first purchased it. It has really changed the way I view cooking. 

Gone are the days where you have to think ahead about soaking your chickpeas and lentils the night before or simmering your curry on the stovetop for hours. 

Make a spicy, flavorful dish with just a few minutes of effort and no one will ever know the difference. 

Chickpea and Tomato Curry Ingredients

• A can of chickpeas
• Fresh or canned tomatoes
• Fresh spinach
• Cilantro (optional)
• A can of low-fat coconut milk
• Large onion
• Gloves of garlic
• Fresh ginger
• Jalapeno
• Coconut(or oil of choice)
• Spices: Curry powder, Garam Masala, Salt, Sugar

Preparation Work

1. Drain and rinse your chickpeas
2. Wash & cut your tomatoes in half or quarters depending on their size
3. Rinse your spinach and cilantro.
4. Remove the stems from the cilantro and chop up half a cups worth.
5. Dice your onion and press your garlic gloves
6. Finely mince up a one-inch knob of fresh ginger.
7. Deseed and chop up a small-medium jalapeno
8. Gather your spices and coconut milk

Cooking Steps For Chickpea and Tomato Curry

Pour one tablespoon of oil into your Instant Pot on sauté made. Add in your onions, a pinch of salt, and sauté for 4-5 minutes stirring often until they start to soften and gain a golden color.

Add in your ginger and cook for another 2-3 minutes, mixing often. Then add your garlic and sauté for an additional minute, mix your ingredients, you don’t want your garlic to burn.

Add in your spices and jalapeno and let them fry up for a minute while stirring. The bottom of your Instant Pot will begin to look dry and look clumpy, that’s normal.

Toss in those delicious fresh tomatoes (or canned) and deglaze the bottom of your pan. We basically want to loosen all those yummy pieces stuck to the bottom of the pan (they contain so much flavor).

Note: if you are using fresh tomatoes, their juices tend to release themselves later on while cooking. So once you add them in if you find there is not enough juice to deglaze the pan, you can simply add in a couple of tablespoons of vegetable broth or water. 

It’s finally time for your chickpeas, coconut milk, and salt. Just add them into the Instant Pot, mix to combine everything together, and get that lid on your pot.

Set to seal and also set your Instant Pot to 5 minutes on the manual setting (yes, that’s all the time needed since your chickpeas are already cooked).

Once your curry is done, you can do a manual release. Put your pot back on Sauté mode and toss in your spinach and chopped cilantro.

Cook for 1-2 minutes until wilted to your desired consistency. Give your curry a taste and salt to your family preference.

Add a touch of sugar if your tomatoes turn out to be a little too acidic. I used simple white sugar but anything type will do. 

How To Serve

Well, I can’t eat a curry without a side of rice or naan bread (preferably both ). In our family, we find white basmati is our preferred rice for any type of curry style meal but any type of rice will do whether it be jasmine, brown, or even instant rice.

You can also try adding some vegan yogurt to the top for some cooling contrast.

Storing Your Chickpea and Tomato Curry Leftovers

Curries can easily be stores for a good 3-4 days. Personally, I find curries even tastier the next day so I am always eager to have some for lunch the following day.

If you love this curry, give my Easy Vegan Lentil Sweet Potato Curry (Instant Pot) a try!

Alternatives

1. Curries are very forgiving, you can easily swap out the spinach for kale or omit it altogether.
2. Not a fan of cilantro, leave it out or try parsley instead. 
3. Prefer a creamier curry, try full-fat coconut milk.

Equipment

Looking to invest in an Instant Pot like mine? There are so many versions on the market like the one below. I suggest looking at the different sizes and cooking options on each pot and choosing the one that best meets your needs.

For example, we didn’t need a yogurt setting so we skipped the higher-level more costly version since it was not something we would ever use.