Butternut Squash and Chickpea Curry

This butternut squash and chickpea curry is delicious, so easy to make and is one of my favourite vegan curry recipes. It's perfect for a tasty weeknight dinner and great for making ahead too.

Jump to:

• What You'll Need
• How to Make Butternut Squash and Chickpea Curry
• Expert Tips
• Variations
• FAQs
• Serving Suggestions
• More Great Vegan Curries
• Butternut Squash and Chickpea Curry

This was the very first curry I posted on this blog, we love a good curry so it won't be a surprise to you that I went on to publish quite a few more. Like my Mushroom Curry and my Cauliflower and Chickpea Curry all these curries have become firm family favourites.

This butternut squash and chickpea curry is really easy to make, and not too spicy so the kids can enjoy it too. It's perfect for making ahead and is a great weeknight meal.

Made with just a few simple ingredients and store cupboard staples, you can have this curry on the table in an hour. Just serve it with basmati rice and naan bread and you have a lovely satisfying meal.

What You'll Need

• Butternut Squash - Butternut Squash is the star of this curry, it's such a great vegetable to use in a curry adding sweetness and texture to it. Harvested in late summer butternut squash is a hardy vegetable that can be found in supermarkets throughout the year. When buying butternut squash make sure it feels heavy when you pick it up, the skin should be smooth, and wrinkle-free and there should be no traces of mould anywhere.
• Chickpeas - Canned chickpeas are perfect for this recipe but you can use dried chickpeas if you prefer you will just need to adapt the time to allow for the cooking of the chickpeas.
• Spinach - I use baby spinach for this recipe, baby spinach is milder in flavour so it won't overpower the flavour of your curry. You could also use frozen spinach if you like, I would thaw it first and remove any excess water from it before adding it to the curry sauce.
• Indian Spices - You will need ground turmeric, garam masala, ground coriander and cumin seeds. If you can't find cumin seeds ground cumin will work too.
• Other ingredients needed - you will also need an onion, garlic, fresh ginger, a can of chopped tomatoes, one green bell, vegetable stock and fresh coriander (cilantro), salt and black pepper.

How to Make Butternut Squash and Chickpea Curry

*This is a quick visual guide, please see the recipe card below for full instructions and the ingredient list.

1. Start out by toasting the cumin seeds, I do this by heating a small frying pan over medium heat, adding the cumin seeds and toasting for about 2 minutes, giving a little shake of the pan a couple of times. Next, heat the oil in a large saucepan, add the onion along with a pinch of salt then cook for about 8 minutes until they are golden, add a tablespoon or two of water if they start to stick. Then add the ginger, garlic and red chilli, cook for about two minutes then add the spices, mix well and cook for about 1 minute.

2. Now add the butternut squash and stir until it is coated in the spices.

3. Then add the can of tomatoes and stir well, and add the pepper and stir well.

4. Next, add the chickpeas and stir well.

5. Now pour in the vegetable stock. Stir well and leave it to simmer for about 30 minutes stirring occasionally so it doesn't stick to the bottom of the pan.

6. After 30 minutes the curry should be reduced by a third and the butternut squash should be cooked. Stir in the cilantro/coriander now. Turn off the heat and then stir in the spinach, it will wilt with the heat of the curry. I do this in two batches, drop a large handful of spinach into the curry stir it gently until it is wilted then repeat with the remaining spinach.

Expert Tips

• Spices - Don't burn the spices! They only need a minute but if you cook them any longer you risk burning them. Burnt spices will ruin your curry.
• Prep the squash - this really talked the longest time to prep so you could prep this in advance or use pre-cut squash.
• Roast the squash - you could also try adding my Air Fryer Butternut Squash to do this for some extra flavour.

Variations

• Swap the squash for sweet potatoes - If you're not keen on butternut squash then sweet potatoes would be a great substitute. Follow the recipe the same way but you may need to adjust the cooking time.
• Swap the spinach for kale - if you fancy a more earthy curry then try adding kale instead of spinach. You will need to cook the kale for longer though so do bare that in mind.
• Make it creamy - I've made this curry with coconut milk which results in a rich and creamy version of this curry and is definitely worth a try. I would recommend using full-fat coconut milk.
• Don't like chickpeas? Try using white beans instead, cannellini beans or great northern beans work well or swap with another protein source such as tofu.

FAQs

Serving Suggestions

We usually have this with rice and naan or chapati. Brown rice is particularly good with this curry. Quinoa is also a good option too. Any leftovers are particularly good with baked potatoes, which is a great lunch option.

More Great Vegan Curries

If you're looking for some seriously tasty vegan curries then I have you covered. This Chickpea and Lentil Curry is such a good curry and great for meal prep. It's packed with goodness and ready in under 30 minutes. My Jackfruit Curry is another very popular curry on my blog, it's rich and creamy and so easy to make! Finally, my Lentil and Potato Curry is a really great winter warmer and perfect for a Friday night curry.

*This recipe was first published in Febuary 2016. It has now been updated with new photos, a step-by-step guide and nutritional information.