Friday 29 May 2009

Quick chickpea, spinach and turmeric curry

Having been reading a lot recently about how incredibly good turmeric is for you I’ve been devising ways of upping the quantity I use. It turned out particularly well with this super-easy (and frugal) chickpea curry

Serves 2
2 tbsp light olive or vegetable oil
1 medium to large onion peeled and roughly chopped
2 cloves of garlic, peeled and crushed
1 1/2 tsp ground turmeric
1 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp chilli powder or hot paprika or a shake of hot pepper sauce
1 small can or 1/2 a 400g can of tomatoes or 200ml of passata
1 400g can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed
2 handfuls of sliced fresh spinach leaves (stalks removed if tough and stringy)
1 heaped tbsp chopped fresh coriander leaves (optional)
Salt
A small carton of unsweetened plain or soy yoghurt (optional)
Naan or pitta bread to serve

Heat the oil in a frying pan and fry the onion for about 4-5 minutes until soft. Stir in the garlic and spices and fry for a few seconds then tip in the tomatoes and break them up with a wooden spoon, spatula or fork. Bring to the boil, add the drained, rinsed chickpeas, cover the pan and simmer for 7-8 minutes. Chuck in the spinach and coriander if using and cook for another 3-4 minutes. Add salt to taste (you'll need slightly more than usual). Serve with a dollop of yoghurt and some warm pitta bread or naan

Do you have any favourite ways of using turmeric?

10 comments:

verity said...

Isn't there a v similar recipe to this in BBG? One of my favourites, and the only thing I ever use tumeric for!

Fiona Beckett said...

Well spotted, Verity! I've just substantially upped the turmeric and spinach elements to make it super-healthy! You need to tweak the seasoning a bit when you're using turmeric. It needs more salt than I would usually use + a bit more cumin and chilli. Very good, though!

cmckei said...

Ooh I shall have to try this recipe, looks nice, my chickpea curry is somewhat similar, only it's a tumeric, potatoes, chickpea and spinach curry.

Fiona Beckett said...

Potatoes would be a great addition :)

Helen said...

I've seen fresh turmeric in the Chinese supermarket quite a lot - just wondering if you've ever used it?

Sue McGettigan said...

This sounds delicious, I like the idea of adding potatoes too. I'm a turmeric fan, didn't know it was particularly good for you though, nice to know!

Fiona Beckett said...

I haven't used whole turmeric, no, Helen but as Allegra McEvedy says in the Guardian piece I linked to in the post, the fresher the better. Worth buying from a shop with a good turnover anyway or from a firm like Barts which is careful about the provenance of their spices though theirs is obviously more expensive.

And always good news when something you like is good for you, Sue ;-)

Arwen from Hoglet K said...

mmm, this looks reasonably easy and healthy. I'm glad tumeric is healthy - bring on the curry!

button said...

I made this tonight. It was quick, easy and delicious. I used low-fat cooking spray rather than oil so there's only the chickpeas to consider. Pretty healthy! I'm adding this recipe to my regular set of meals.

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