Chickpea Tikka Masala
Chicken tikka masala has been called the UK’s national dish, originating when a chef added tomato soup to a curry to make it less spicy! Our version, based on chickpeas, is rich, creamy, and lovely!
Takes
Serves 4
Ingredients
- FOR THE PASTE
- 1 tbsp cumin
- 1 tbsp coriander seeds
- 2 cloves of garlic
- 1 thumb size of fresh ginger
- ½ a fresh red chilli
- 1 bunch of fresh coriander
- 1 heaped teaspoon of garam masala
- ½ tsp smoked paprika
- ½ tsp sea salt
- ½ tsp freshly ground black pepper
- 1 tsp tomato purée
- 1 x 400g tin of chopped tomatoes
- FOR THE CURRY
- 3 scallions
- 300 g mushrooms we love oyster, but any mushrooms will do
- 2 x 400g tins of chickpeas
- 1 400 g tin of coconut milk replace with low fat coconut milk if you prefer
- ½ a lime juiced
- chill flakes optional
Instructions
- In a dry frying pan, fry the cumin and coriander seeds for 3–5 minutes on a high heat until the cumin seeds start to pop, stirring regularly. Peel the garlic and ginger.
- To make your paste, whiz together the garlic, ginger, chilli, the stalks from the fresh coriander (setting the leaves aside for later), the garam masala, smoked paprika, salt, pepper, tomato purée, chopped tomatoes and the toasted cumin and coriander seeds in a blender until smooth.
- Chop the scallions into small slices and cut the mushrooms into small bite-size pieces. Put a large non stick frying pan over a high heat, and once the pan is hot, add the mushrooms and fry for 3–4 minutes. Add the scallions and cook for 2 more minutes, stirring occasionally, If the veg starts to stick, add a few tablespoons of water.
- Drain the chickpeas, rinse thoroughly, leave aside. Add the paste and coconut milk to the pan and bring to the boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for a further 5-10 minutes, add the drained chickpeas to the pan and mix well.
- Squeeze in the lime juice, taste, and season with more salt, pepper and maybe some chilli flakes if you think it needs it. Chop the reserved coriander leaves roughly and sprinkle over each serving as a garnish.
- Lovely served with soya yoghurt and toasted almond flakes on top.
