Creamy Halloumi Curry with Spinach and Chickpeas

This easy Halloumi Curry is the perfect weeknight dinner. With crispy halloumi, chickpeas and spinach in a rich and slightly spicy sauce this vegetarian curry is going to be your new favourite curry!

Jump to:

• 🛒 What You'll Need
• 🔪 How To Make Halloumi Curry
• 👩‍🍳 Top Tips
• 💭 FAQs
• 🔄 Variations
• 🍽 More Tasty Vegetarian Curry Recipes
• More Easy Weeknight Dinners
• Creamy Halloumi Curry Recipe

We love Halloumi and I buy a couple of blocks of it every week! Whether it's air fryer Halloumi Fries or quick and easy Halloumi Fajitas or a tasty Halloumi Sandwich, we have Halloumi every week! So I'm always looking for new ways to use it.

This halloumi curry is such a great way to use Halloumi. The halloumi is fried until golden brown and then added to the curry at the end. Those little crispy cubes of cheese add another dimension to this curry. I can't tell you how many times my family have asked me to make this!

🛒 What You'll Need

• Halloumi cheese - you will find this in the cheese aisle of your supermarket. Halloumi is a Cypriot cheese, it is semi-hard and has a high melting point. For this recipe, we're going to fry it until it's crispy then add it to the curry.
• Curry Paste - we use a tikka masala paste for this dish. You can use your favourite curry paste, but I recommend Tikka Masala paste.
• Vegetables - you will need an onion, a green bell pepper and baby spinach. You will also need fresh ginger, garlic and fresh coriander (cilantro).
• Chickpeas - canned chickpeas are perfect for this curry but if you want to use dried then go ahead, just be aware you will have to adjust the cooking time.
• Plum Tomatoes - I use canned whole plum tomatoes for this curry as they bring more flavour to the curry. You can use chopped tomatoes if that's what you have.
• Coconut Milk - Full-fat coconut milk is best for this dish but you can use light coconut milk if you want, the sauce will be on the thinner side though.

🔪 How To Make Halloumi Curry

Please see the recipe card below for full instructions and the full ingredient list.

1. Add the chopped tablespoon of oil to a large pan. Add the chopped onion along with a pinch of salt and cook onion over medium heat until the onion has softened then add the minced garlic and the grated ginger. Next, add the curry paste, stir well and cook for a minute or two.

2. Now add the chopped bell pepper and the tinned tomatoes. Use a wooden spoon to break down the tomatoes. Once the tomatoes have broken down add the chickpeas.

3. Slowly add the coconut milk, stirring the sauce all the time. Turn the hob to a low heat and simmer for 20 minutes. Make sure and stir the curry often to ensure that the sauce doesn't stick to the bottom of the pan.

4. While the sauce is simmering fry the halloumi. Cut the halloumi cheese into bitesize cubes. Heat a little oil in a nonstick pan, add the cubes of halloumi and cook until golden brown.

5. Once the curry sauce has thickened then add the spinach and the chopped coriander. Cook for a minute or two until the spinach has wilted.

6. Finally, add the fried halloumi to the curry. Cook for a minute until the halloumi has warmed through. Serve with basmati rice or naan bread.

👩‍🍳 Top Tips

• Rinse the halloumi - when you remove the halloumi from its package I recommend rinsing the cheese under the cold tap adn then patting it dry with a paper towel. This will help remove the brine that the halloumi sits in and reduce some of the saltiness.
• Add the coconut milk slowly - I always recommend adding the coconut milk slowly as this helps to prevent it from splitting. Also if your sauce is boiling rather than simmering this can also cause the coconut milk to split.
• Be careful when adding the curry paste - it's really important to not burn the curry paste. it only needs a minute or two to cook and if you overcook it or burn it you can end up with a bitter taste to your curry.
• Heat - If you want more heat in this curry but don't want to swap the tikka masala paste then just add a pinch of red chilli flakes. I add this to mine when I'm serving it as I'm the only one in the house that likes a hot curry!

💭 FAQs

🔄 Variations

• Add more veggies - I have made this with lots of different vegetables. Broccoli, cauliflower florets and red peppers worked really well as did fried aubergines and roasted sweet potatoes. You can easily swap the spinach for kale top if you like.
• Use your favourite curry paste - You can very easily swap the tikka masala paste for your favourite curry paste. Try it with Korma paste for a milder flavour or go for a Madrass paste for more heat. You could even make this with a Thai red curry paste! 
• Swap the halloumi - If you're not a fan of halloumi you could swap it for another firm cheese such as paneer cheese. And if you want to make this vegan go ahead and swap the cheese for firm tofu.

🍽 More Tasty Vegetarian Curry Recipes

If you love a good curry then you've come to the right place! We have curry night every week. Some of our favourites are this Paneer Curry which is such an easy curry to make and great for a tasty weeknight dinner. My Chickpea and Lentil Curry is another favourite that always goes down well and the leftovers are even better! My Aubergine and Chickpea Curry is another firm favourite and is really great for the whole family.

More Easy Weeknight Dinners