One-Pan Curried Chickpeas and Spinach
When you’re too tired to think, this is dinner in one pan.
Make this on a tired weeknight when you want something warm, filling, and low-effort without ordering in. It’s a true chickpea curry at heart: onions, garlic, curry spices, tomatoes, chickpeas, and spinach simmered together until cozy. You only need one skillet and about 35 minutes, so it fits the kind of evening where chopping a lot sounds impossible. It’s not fussy or restaurant-style, but it is satisfying, pantry-friendly, and flexible enough to serve over rice, with naan, or just as-is. The sauce is lightly creamy and best when you want comfort more than perfection.
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 unit yellow onion — small, diced
- 3 unit garlic cloves — minced
- 1 tbsp fresh ginger — grated
- 2 tsp curry powder
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- 0.25 tsp red pepper flakes — optional
- 1 tbsp tomato paste
- 1 cup canned crushed tomatoes
- 2 unit canned chickpeas — 15 oz cans, drained and rinsed
- 0.5 cup water
- 0.5 cup full-fat coconut milk
- 4 cup baby spinach
- 0.75 tsp salt
- 0.25 tsp black pepper
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 2 tbsp cilantro — chopped, optional
Method
- 1 Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and cook for 4 to 5 minutes, stirring now and then, until softened.
- 2 Stir in the garlic, ginger, curry powder, cumin, coriander, and red pepper flakes, then cook for 30 seconds until fragrant.
- 3 Add the tomato paste and cook for 1 minute. Stir in the crushed tomatoes, chickpeas, water, coconut milk, salt, and pepper.
- 4 Bring to a simmer and cook for 12 to 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the sauce thickens a little.
- 5 Add the spinach and stir until just wilted, about 1 minute. Finish with lemon juice and cilantro, then serve hot.
- 6 Spoon over rice or with naan if you have them, or eat it straight from the bowl.
Variations
- Faster swap — Use pre-diced onion and ginger paste, then serve with microwave rice to shave off a few more minutes.
- Vegetarian swap — This recipe is already vegetarian and vegan; for a heartier version, add a second can of chickpeas or a handful of frozen peas.
- Substitutions — Use kale instead of spinach, light coconut milk instead of full-fat, or a mild curry paste in place of curry powder if that’s what you have.
Notes
For a thicker curry, simmer a few extra minutes before adding the spinach. If the sauce gets too thick, splash in a little more water. Leftovers keep well in the fridge and reheat gently on the stove or in the microwave.
Equipment that helps
- large skillet — A wide pan lets the sauce reduce quickly and gives the spinach room to wilt evenly.
- wooden spoon — It makes it easy to stir the spices and scrape up any tomato paste before it sticks.
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