Vegan Chickpea Coconut Curry – Instant Pot or Saucepan. This 1 Pot Coconut Chickpea Curry uses dried chickpeas and coconut milk. Add other veggies like sweet potato, squash. No Tomato Curry! Vegan Glutenfree Nutfree Soyfree Oilfree Recipe. Jump to Recipe
Nothing beats the flavor and texture of chickpeas cooked from dried chickpeas. Canned chickpeas are good as a speedy option but they cant compare to freshly cooked chickpeas. This is where pressure cooking makes things faster. I cook the chickpeas directly with the creamy sauce in the Instant Pot. You can cook this in a saucepan over stovetop as well, with dried chickpeas or with precooked-canned chickpeas. See Notes under the recipe for instructions.
This Creamy Vegan Chickpea Coconut Curry, needs 1 Pot, is super creamy, freezer friendly (although you will want to eat all of it), and flexible to flavor preference. Coconut milk makes this a luscious coconut curry. Saute the onion, garlic, chile. Add in the spices such as turmeric, cumin, curry powder, garam masala or add thai curry pastes, or berbere. Add the soaked chickpeas and coconut milk and pressure cook! Finish the dish with pepper flakes and lime. Serve with rice/grains or flatbread. Lets get cooking!
More Instant Pot Recipes to try
- IP Lentil Chili. GF
- IP Mushroom Wild Rice Soup. GF
- Japanese Veggie Curry. GF
- Instant Pot Lasagna Soup with Red lentils. – So Easy
- IP Potato Chickpea Soup. GF
- Tomato Soup with Tofu Croutons.
- Cauliflower soup. GF
- Tortilla soup with red lentils. GF
Step by Step Photos:
Soak your chickpeas for atleast an hour in hot water. Prep the ingredients.
Saute the onion, garlic, chili until golden. Then add in the spices and herbs and mix, and then the drained chickpeas.
Add coconut milk and water, close the lid and pressure cook.
Let the pressure release naturally. If the mixture is thin, mash some of the chickpeas and saute for a few mins to thicken.
When to add vegetables:
- If using dried chickpeas, the pressure cooking time of 40 mins will over cook the vegetables. Add vegetables such as sweet potato, cauliflower, squashes, root vegetables after pressure cooking for 35 mins. Quick release, add veggies, close the lid and pressure cook for another 6 to 8 mins, depending on whether the chickpeas were done at 35 mins.
- Or you can roast the veggies and add them when you open the lid and simmer on saute for 2 mins.
- If using canned, chickpeas, then add the veggies with the chickpeas.
Serve with rice, garnished with cilantro, lemon juice and coconut milk.
How to make your favorite Chickpea Coconut Curry
- This Recipe is flexible to your flavor preference. Use spices and herbs of choice. You can also add in some tomatoes with the chickpeas.
- Add veggies of choice such as carrots, sweet potatoes, celery etc.
- Serve it with quinoa or whole grain bread for a hearty higher protein meal.
- Chickpeas can have variable cooking time based of age of the dried beans. I like the chickpeas to be melt in your mouth in this creamy curry, so I cook for 45 minutes (if soaked for an hour). Adjust the times based you your preference of texture anywhere from 35 mins to 50 mins.
- To double, Use 2 cans of coconut milk and 1.5 cups of water.
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Chickpea Coconut Curry (Instant Pot or Saucepan)
Ingredients
- ¼ cup (62.5 ml) water or broth or use 1 tsp oil
- ½ (0.5) onion chopped
- 4 garlic cloves finely chopped
- 1 hot green chili ,chopped (such as serrano, jalapeno) or use mild chili or omit
- 1 tsp each ground cumin, , ground coriander
- 1 tsp turmeric
- ¼ tsp (0.25 tsp) each cinnamon , ground cardamom
- ⅓ tsp (0.33 tsp) cayenne or to taste
- ¼ tsp (0.25 tsp) grouond sage or dried oregano
- 1 red bell pepper ,chopped or sliced
- 1 tbsp minced ginger
- ¾ tsp (0.75 tsp) salt
- 1 cup (164 g) dry uncooked chickpeas ,soaked for atleast 30 mins in boiling hot water (4 hours to overnight soaking works best)
- 13.5 oz can coconut milk , reserve 2 tbsp for garnishing
- 1 cups (250 ml) water ,depends on curry consistency preference., use ½ cup for thicker, 1.5 cups for soupier
- lemon/lime juice , cilantro, pepper flakes for garnish
Instructions
- Press saute on the Instant Pot. Add onion, garlic, chili and a good pinch of salt. Cook for 3 to 4 mins until translucent. Deglaze with more broth if needed. (See notes for saucepan)
- Add the spices and mix in. (You can add spice blends of choice here such as curry powder, garam masala, berbere or jamaican curry powder, or curry pastes instead of listed spices).
- Add the bell pepper and ginger and mix in. Drain the chickpeas and add to the pot. Add salt, coconut milk and water and give it a good mix to pick up any stuck bits
- Cancel saute, Close the lid to sealing. Pressure cook at high pressure for 40 to 45 mins (30 mins for overnight soak)**. Let the pressure release naturally then open the lid.
- Taste and adjust salt and flavor, add more spices if needed. If the mixture is thin, Mash some of the chickpeas to thicken or blend half cup of the curry and mix in, saute for a few mins if needed. (Fold in some baby spinach at this point while the chickpeas are still hot). Garnish with lemon, pepper flakes, remaining coconut milk and cilantro and serve over rice or grains.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Asia
OMG,
Made this today and it is absolutely delicious!!!
Vegan Richa Support
Good to hear!
Sal
Hi if I’m making a huge batch in the instant pot for a party can I triple the recipe?
Vegan Richa Support
What size is your Instant Pot?
suzi
Gosh this was so good and so much tastier the next day after sitting in the fridge overnight. Had a Fresno pepper so subbed that and only had roasted red peppers so used them. Doubled this one and so glad I did!! Beautiful recipe, Richa!! Added chopped kale at reheating and served over rice noodles. Thanks for all the goodness you share!!
Vegan Richa Support
Yay! Thanks for taking the time to comment.
Emma
This came out really good. I tripled the seasoning plus tripled the onion, ginger and garlic. I included curry powder, garam masala, 2 birdseye chilli’s and dried red chillies along with the cayenne. Nice and spicy with loads of flavour. Certainly a great base to use. I like loads of flavour and heat and I know coconut milk reduces the punch from seasoning so I went all in. Thanks for the recipe.
Vegan Richa Support
yay!
Sim
I loveee this recipe!! I’ve made it a few times now and it is always a hit at home 🙂 It’s entered my regular meal rotation. Thank you so much!
Vegan Richa Support
🙂 so glad you enjoy
Judy
Do the black eyed peas soak and cook the same as the chickpeas? Your recipes are wonderful.
Richa
Reduce cook Time by 15 mins
Rani
Made this last night and loved it!
Vegan Richa Support
yay!
Kat
This was wonderful. Smelled and tasted amazing. Nice presentation with the chickpeas, red peppers and spinach colors. Added the cup of diced tomatoes instead of water. I went easy on the spice cause I’m a baby but the IP cooks it down quite a bit. I’ll step up the heat next time. Thoroughly enjoyed- thanks 🙂
Vegan Richa Support
Thank you so much, Kat! So glad you enjoyed the dish! Let me know what you think about the extra spice next time!
Kat
This time I added the whole jalapeno plus seeds. Still not spicy after cooking for 30 minutes in IP. If I had done it stovetop this would have been “fire” for me. Some red pepper chili flakes doctored it up nicely, however. Maybe my tolerance for heat is increasing. Still the best recipe for chickpea curry out there, imo.
Vegan Richa Support
that could be it! try a spicier pepper next time?
Matt
Good stuff. I decided to play around w the flavours a bit and added curry powder, curry paste, garam masala and a wee bit of mango chutney to sweeten it up a little. Also had some tamarind paste that needed using, so it gave it a little bit of a zing. Delish.
Vegan Richa Support
Sounds delicious!
Amy Zuckerman
Excellent recipe! I added garam masala and 1/2 tsp curry powder to the full list of spices. Omitted jalapeno as I had none and the final amount of water (glad I did or it would have been too thin). 40 min was perfect in my IP. This is an instant favorite and I will make it again and again!
Vegan Richa Support
I’m so glad you enjoy!
Izzy
I love my IP!
Please can you tell how you do this with sweet potato without turning into mush since it’s on pressure for 45 mins?
I have dried chickpeas to use up but would love to add with veggies.
Thank you 😊
Izzy
Richa
You add them later. Once you open the instant pot after 45 mins, add the seeet potatoes or veggies and either cook on sauté for 10-12 mins or close lid and pressure cook for 2 mins
Holly
I make this recipe regularly. I tend to add curry as well as the spices listed, though last time I couldn’t find any sage or oregano and it was still scrumptious. I often at a few torn up handfuls of baby spinach.
I love this recipe and the room it gives me to experiment with a good base I know I like!
Vegan Richa Support
Nice additions.
Ron
My cooking skills are not great, but this was easy for me and it came out delicious. Will be making this one a lot! Excited to try it with some of the different spice blends you mentioned.
Vegan Richa Support
so good to hear Ron
Brenda L.
In contrast to the previous commenter, my cooking skills are quite good and I still appreciated the simplicity and minimal fuss! (Just because I can fuss, doesn’t mean I want to!) I made it in a pot on the stove and it was easy. Served it over Forbidden rice (black rice) and added sliced carrots and diced simmer squash in the last stage of cooking. Winner of a recipe. I could see making this often and with a variety of spices, beans, and additional veggies. Thank you!
Ida
Spot on phenomenal!! Easy to prepare and so incredibly flavorful; I added sweet potato and carrots because I had on hand. Thank you for yet another winner!!
Vegan Richa Support
thank you for the compliment – curry phenomenon
Judy
Made this last night for dinner. It was wonderful! We’re trying to eat less meat, and this was perfect to get my husband on board! Another recipe to add to my Instant Pot recipe list!
Vegan Richa Support
Awesome!! IP are the best. Do leave a rating too if you feel inlcined !
Keeley Johnson
Hello,
How would I adjust the spices if I already have your Chana masala spice blend on hand?
Thanks!!
Vegan Richa Support
depends on your preferences but compare to this and you can make the addjustments from there: https://www.veganricha.com/chana-masalachole-chickpea-curry-vegan/
Emily
Love this for a fast weeknight meal! Very flexible recipe so you can use what you have on hand. I make it often and it’s always really good the next day too.
Vegan Richa Support
curries are great for that! thank you. Please do add a rating when you make again!
Donna Burke
Made this tonight for supper, served it with brown basmati rice and some leftover roasted veggies it was delicious.
Vegan Richa Support
satisfying
Brooke
I love this recipe. I made it last year and have been looking for ever since! Super excited to make this again. It was fantastic. Do delicious and creamy with the coconut milk. Thanks!!!
Vegan Richa Support
thanks in ❤️❤️ with coco milk
Selina Posthumus
I was wanting to make this on the stovetop, but wondering if this is a make-ahead by one day type recipe? Also, can this be made into a soup? Recipe sounds yummy.
Vegan Richa Support
you could absolutely make this a day ahead. then reheat and puree into a soup!!