Aubergine and chickpeas are a match made in heaven. This quick and easy recipe for aubergine and chickpea curry is light yet satisfying. A delicious vegan curry recipe that anyone can enjoy.
I love curries like this - full of fresh vegetables, light enough to enjoy in summer yet packed full of flavour.
Curry leaves are such an easy way to add flavour to a dish - their unique taste always takes me back to my travels in India in my twenties.
One dish that I ate a lot was tomato fry - a very simple curry made of perfectly ripe fresh tomatoes and curry leaves. So simple yet so good.
This aubergine curry follows the same principle - there's nothing complicated about this recipe - just delicious, fresh ingredients. I hope you enjoy it.
What ingredients do you need for this recipe?
You will need the following ingredients to make aubergine and chickpea curry:
- cumin seeds
- mustard seeds
- onion
- garlic
- ginger
- green chilli
- turmeric
- aubergine
- cherry tomatoes
- chickpeas
- curry leaves
Where to find curry leaves
Curry leaves can be tricky to find. However, most major supermarkets in the UK sell them. I usually buy a bag when I see them and keep them in the freezer.
If you live near as Asian supermarket or grocer you will probably be able to buy them there too.
Failing that you can buy dried curry leaves. They're not quite the same and are better if crushed or crumbled rather than put in whole.
Salting aubergines (or eggplant)
Do you need to salt your aubergines (eggplant) before cooking them? You will notice that in this aubergine curry recipe I haven't salted my aubergines.
Aubergines were traditionally salted before cooking in order to draw out some of the bitterness. The aubergines that we get here in the UK these days aren't very bitter. They have been bred over a number of years to remove the bitterness.
For this reason I don't tend to salt my aubergine before cooking. However, you can do so if you prefer - then proceed with the rest of this recipe.
More vegan curry recipes
If you like this you might enjoy:
- Spinach and potato curry
- Green bean curry with coconut
- Summer chickpea and courgette curry
- Indian-spiced root vegetable curry
- Easy one pot carrot curry
- One pot potato and chickpea curry
- Fresh tomato curry
Some of these recipes appear on Sneaky Veg, my kid friendly vegetarian food blog.
Pin aubergine and chickpea curry for later
How to make vegan aubergine and chickpea curry
If you have made this recipe and loved it please consider leaving a comment and rating below.
Aubergine and chickpea curry
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp sunflower oil
- 1 tbsp cumin seeds
- 1 tbsp mustard seeds
- 1 onion peeled and sliced
- 1 clove garlic peeled and chopped
- 1 thumb sized chunk ginger peeled and chopped
- 1 green chilli deseeded and finely chopped
- 1 tsp turmeric
- 1 aubergine diced
- 8 cherry tomatoes halved
- 400 g tin of chickpeas drained and rinsed
- 10 curry leaves
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Heat the sunflower oil in a large frying pan over a medium heat.
- Add the cumin and mustard seeds and fry for a minute or two until the mustard seeds begin to pop and the cumin seeds begin to colour.
- Add the onion, stir well and sauté until golden brown. Add the garlic, ginger and chilli and cook for a further minute. Add the turmeric and stir.
- Next add the aubergine. Stir until coated in the aubergine mixture. Reduce the heat to low, cover and cook for 10 minutes stirring often. The aubergine will soak up most of the oil and begin to become dry, stirring will help prevent it from sticking. If necessary add a little more oil.
- Remove the lid and cook for a further 5 minutes, continuing to stir often, until the aubergine is cooked.
- Finally add the cherry tomatoes, chickpeas and curry leaves and cook for 5-10 minutes until the tomatoes are breaking down. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Serve with other curries, rice or flatbreads as desired.
HAVE YOU TRIED THIS RECIPE?
If you loved this recipe why not let me know by leaving a rating and comment below? Alternatively you can let me know on Instagram, Twitter or Facebook.
KEEP IN TOUCH
Subscribe to get recipes and news straight to your inbox.
Leave a Reply