This Easy Chickpea Spinach Curry with Coconut Milk is a creamy, one-pot vegan curry ready in just 30 minutes.
Made with chickpeas, spinach, warming Indian spices, and coconut milk, this comforting midweek dinner is perfect with steamed white basmati rice or homemade naan bread.
This chickpea spinach curry (Chana Palak) is one of my go-to chickpea dinner recipes when I want something quick, comforting, and full of flavour. It’s creamy, savoury, mildly spiced, and coconut-ty—coming together in no time.
This recipe, as such, is a cross between my Chana Saag and Chickpea Tikka Masala. And with all the delicious gravy, it’s perfect scooped up with cottage cheese flatbread or any type of steamed rice like brown rice, too.
If you’d like to make a chickpea spinach curry without coconut milk, try my Saag Chana recipe instead.
Jump to:
💛Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- You will make 6-8 servings in just 30 minutes. Plus, the curry will keep you full for hours, thanks to the protein-rich chickpeas.
- Budget-friendly – This creamy vegan chickpea spinach curry uses mostly pantry staples and easy supermarket ingredients
- One-pot meal – Everything comes together in a single pot for a rich, saucy curry
- Easy to customise – Add cauliflower, sweet potato, or aubergine to bulk it out
- Better the next day – Like Mumbai Pav Bhaji, the flavours deepen and intensify overnight
- Great for batch cooking – Ideal for meal prep and make-ahead lunches
- It's freezer-friendly, so I always make a large portion.
👩🏻🍳Sandhya's Top Tips
- Use a food chopper to blitz the onion, ginger, and garlic. It saves time and creates a great curry base.
- Don’t skip simmering the onion–tomato masala. This step builds depth and makes the curry taste richer.
- Add ingredients in stages rather than all at once. Rushing dulls the flavours.
- Adjust the heat to suit your taste. For extra spice, add a finely chopped green chilli or jalapeño while sautéing.
- For a smooth curry, blend the onion–tomato base with a hand blender. Skip this step if you prefer it chunky.
- Short on time? Use my Bhuna Masala (fresh or frozen) - it's the ultimate Indian master curry paste.
📋Ingredients
- Chickpeas (Garbanzo beans) – I use about 3 cups freshly cooked chickpeas.(Make it at home with my ultimate chickpea cooking guide) You can also use 2 cans of chickpeas for convenience.
- Spinach – Fresh baby spinach leaves work perfectly and don’t need chopping. Frozen spinach works just as well.
- Onion – Use red, white, or brown onion. I usually prefer red onion for flavour.
- Ginger & Garlic – I use 1 tablespoon ginger-garlic paste. Alternatively, mince 4 garlic cloves and about 2 teaspoons fresh ginger.
- Tomatoes – I use 1 can (400g) diced tomatoes with juices. You can swap this for 2 medium fresh tomatoes, finely chopped.
- Cumin Seeds – Easily available in the spice aisle or Asian section. Store in an airtight jar to keep them fresh. I love making Indian cumin rice with them.
- Spices – I use garam masala, ground cumin, ground coriander, chilli powder, and turmeric. If you don’t have garam masala, curry powder or chana masala works well.
- Oil – I’ve used sunflower oil, but any neutral oil like vegetable, olive, or coconut oil works.
- Full-fat Coconut Milk – This gives the curry its creamy texture and richness.
- Lemon Juice – Added at the end to brighten and balance the flavours.
🔪 How to Make Chickpea Spinach Curry with Coconut Milk (Vegan)?
Step 1: Heat oil in a pan and add the cumin seeds. Next, add the onion, ginger, and garlic and saute them until translucent - about 2-3 minutes.
Step 2: Add the tomatoes and spices, and stir together to combine. Simmer the onion-tomato mixture, covered, for at least 10 minutes. Stir occasionally. This step is necessary to make sure the masala is cooked really well.
Step 3: Add the chickpeas and coconut milk. Mix and cook covered for 5 minutes.
Step 4: Finally, add the spinach, and lemon juice and stir together. Cook covered for just 3 minutes.
Just before serving, drizzle vegan cream/ yogurt, and coriander leaves, and serve with onion slices.
Different Flavours of Chickpea Curry
- Chana Masala - I call it the OG chickpea curry, thats classic ands ready in just 30 minutes.
- Chickpea Cauliflower Curry - This curry has rogan josh flavors, but still creamy, coconuty flavors and makes a tasty comforting meal.
- Chickpea Potato Curry - Add 2 cups of chopped potatoes along with chickpeas, coconut milk and spices.
🍽How to Serve?
For a full fakeaway Indian meal, pair it with easy Indian curries, tarka red lentil dal and crispy onion bhaji.
I love serving this vegan chickpea spinach curry with white basmati rice, cauliflower rice, quinoa, or yoghurt flatbreads like Homemade Naan bread or phulka roti.
❄️Storing Leftovers
This vegan chickpea spinach curry will keep for up to 3 days in an airtight container in the fridge.
You can also freeze it for up to 1 month—just thaw and reheat gently before serving.
❓Recipe FAQ's
Yes, this Chickpea Spinach curry freezes really well for up to 3 months. Transfer the cooled curry into freezer-safe containers or in zip lock bags, labeled, and freeze.
Absolutely. Reheat gently on the stovetop or microwave, stirring occasionally until piping hot. Garnish again and enjoy.
Can I make chickpea spinach curry without coconut milk?
Yes. You can substitute coconut milk with cashew cream or make my Saag Chana recipe instead.
Yes! This chickpea spinach curry with coconut milk is rich in plant-based protein, iron from spinach, and healthy fats from coconut milk.
More Easy Vegan Curry Recipes
Ingredients
- 2 teaspoon sunflower oil or coconut oil
- 1 teaspoon Cumin seeds
- 1 medium red onion diced
- 4 garlic cloves minced
- 2 teaspoon ginger minced
- 1 can tomato chopped (400g)
- 2 can chickpeas, drained (500g) or 3 cup fresh cooked chickpeas
- 3 cup spinach 90g
- 1 can coconut milk 400g
- 1 teaspoon turmeric
- 1 teaspoon chilli powder
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 2 teaspoon garam masala or curry powder
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- salt to taste
- 2 tablespoon lemon juice or to taste
To serve
- 4 tablespoon Vegan Cream or Yogurt
- 2 tablespoon Coriander leaves
- Red Chilli flakes
- white basmati rice
Instructions
- Heat oil in a sauce pan. Add the cumin seeds and allow it to splutter.
- Add the diced onions, ginger, garlic and sauce for 2-3 minutes, until translucent.
- Add the tomatoes, spice powders and salt, stir to mix together. Cook covered for 9-10 minutes, until the mixture has reduced.
- Add the chickpeas, coconut milk to the onion tomato mixture and simmer for another 5-8 minutes.
- Now add the baby spinach, lemon juice to taste and mix. Cover and cook for another 3 minutes and turn off the flame.
- Taste and adjust the seasoning.
- Garnish the chickpeas spinach curry with cream, coriander leaves, red chilli flakes and sliced onions. Serve over with rice and/or with homemade naan bread.
Notes
Top Tips
This chickpeas and spinach curry comes together in about 30 minutes, with most of the cooking time being hands-free while the curry gently simmers. The only prep needed is chopping the onion and mincing the ginger and garlic.- Shortcut tip: To speed things up, I add the onion, ginger, garlic and green chilli (if using) to a food chopper and pulse until finely chopped. This works brilliantly — trust me on this.
- Don’t rush the onion-tomato masala. Let it simmer well until thick and fragrant. This step makes all the difference between a good curry and a truly fantastic one. Short on time, use my frozen bhuna masala cubes.
- This curry is all about the flavourful sauce and aromatic spices, so take your time letting them bloom.
- The curry stores well in the fridge for up to 3 days and can be frozen for a few months, making it perfect for meal prep.
GUNJAN says
I am always looking for new ideas for chickpeas. I found your recipe and loved the idea of adding spinach. My family loved it and demanded to make it again. Its a super hit curry recipe in my house.
Sue says
Love that everything is easy for me to find at my grocery store, can't wait to make it 🙂
Beth says
You can't beat a recipe that is this flavorful and also this healthy. I can't wait to try it!
Natalie says
I used a blender to smooth it out for my kids, you know how they are, right?! It was very tasteful, thanks!
Vidya Narayan says
This is absolutely delicious. We love curries with chickpeas. Hearty, filling and comfort food with some rice.