Can we just talk about how incredibly delicious this Sweet Potato and Chickpea Curry is. Everybody loves it – really. I promise. There is simply no down side. As stated it’s insanely delicious, it also practically cooks itself, can be made ahead of time and will sit patiently in the fridge for a day or two and it’s really inexpensive to make. I have to be honest and tell you that the inspiration came from Ina Garten’s book Cook Like a Pro. I love Ina, before I became a vegan I cooked from her books continuously and still believe she is the Queen of Flavor! Initially this was her Lamb and Chickpea Curry, clearly that wouldn’t work for a committed vegan so I swapped out all animal products for more veggies but kept her perfect flavoring. I hope she won’t mind. Please don’t be put off by the long list of ingredients – you’ll more than likely have many of them in your cabinets:)
As I mentioned the flavorings really make all the difference to this curry. I was amazed when I read Ina’s recipe was calling for 1/4 cup curry powder, I thought it would be way too much but I added it anyway and it was PERFECT. Homemade vegetable stock is great if you have the time, if you don’t, get a really good quality store bought stock. A dash of maple syrup is surprisingly delicious too. I do love Harissa Paste, I find I use it in a lot of dishes, if you can’t find it in your supermarket you can find it here. If you don’t like sweet potatoes (I can’t really imagine anyone not liking sweet potatoes) or if you happen to have butternut squash (or any squash for that matter) that needs using up, please use it instead or in addition to the sweet potato.
Sweet Potato and Chickpea Curry
Ingredients
3–4 tablespoon vegetable stock
1 large yellow onion, peeled and diced
3 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
4 carrots, peeled and diced
3 stalks celery, diced
3 sweet potatoes, peeled and large diced
2, 15 oz cans chickpeas, drained and thoroughly rinsed
1/4 cup curry powder
1 tablespoon finely chopped (peeled) fresh ginger
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon ground paprika
1 teaspoon gound cumin
1 teaspoon minced fresh rosemary leaves
1 teaspoon roughly minced fresh thyme leaves
1/2 teaspoon ground fennel seeds
1/2 cup white wine
2 cups best quality vegetable stock
1, 13.5 oz can “lite” coconut milk
1/2 cup tomato paste
3 tablespoons maple syrup
2 tablespoons Harissa paste
1/2 cup golden raisins
1 cup frozen peas
Handful of fresh herbs – parsley, Thai basil, mint are all good!
Instructions
Heat the 3- 4 tablespoons vegetables stock in a large Dutch oven or large pot, add the onions and cook on medium low heat for about 15 – 20 minutes until the onions are beautifully caramelized.
Add the garlic, celery and carrots, stir well and cook for further 5-7 minutes. Add the sweet potatoes and chickpeas, stir well.
Add the curry powder, fresh ginger, black pepper, paprika, cumin, rosemary, thyme, fennel seeds and stir well. Smell the loveliness of the spices!
Add the white wine, let it bubble up and cook off for a minute or two.
Add the vegetable stock, lite coconut milk, tomato paste, maple syrup and Harissa paste and raisins. Bring to the boil, turn down to a simmer, partially cover and allow to simmer away for about 30 minutes or until the veggies are tender. Add the peas, stir well and they will be cooked!
Serve with your favorite rice (mine is brown, my husband’s is white!) and sprinkle with fresh herbs, I used parsley, mint and Thai basil.
