Vegan Butter Chickpeas (Indian Butter Chicken-Inspired)

Vegan Butter Chickpeas with a rich, earthy, and aromatic spiced tomato-based curry sauce inspired by Indian Butter Chicken. This makes an ultimate comforting meal that’s best enjoyed with naan, paratha, basmati rice, or any other carb of your choice!

📝 Ingredients

• 1 tbsp neutral oil
• 1 tbsp vegan butter
• 1/2 small red onion (, diced)
• 6 cloves garlic (, crushed and roughly chopped)
• 1 small knob ginger (, peeled and roughly chopped or minced (around 1 tbsp minced))
• 1/2 tbsp ground cumin seed powder
• 1 tbsp garam masala
• 1 tsp red chili powder
• 1 tsp turmeric powder
• 1/3 cup roasted cashews ((50g / 1.7 oz), I used unsalted cashews)
• 1 can diced tomatoes ((400g / 14 oz can))
• 1/2 cup water
• 3-4 tsp sugar (adjust to taste)
• 1-2 tsp salt (to taste)
• 1 tbsp neutral oil (or vegan butter)
• 1/2 small red onion (,diced)
• 1-2 can chickpeas ((400g can, 225 g / 8 oz drained weight) see notes)
• 1/2 cup water (or more if desired)
• Chopped fresh coriander
• Naan (paratha, roti, or basmati rice to serve)

👨‍🍳 Instructions

1. 1--- Preparation ---
2. 2If using canned chickpeas, drain and wash the chickpeas through water. Set aside.
3. 3Prepare the aromatics. For the ginger, I like to use a spoon to peel this.
4. 4Crush, roughly peel, and then roughly chop the garlic.
5. 5Dice the onion. Divide into 2 parts. I used 1 part for the base and the other part for stir-frying with the chickpeas.
6. 6--- Base/Puree ---
7. 7Heat a large wok or skillet over medium.
8. 8Once hot, add the oil and melt the vegan butter. Stir-fry the onion, garlic, and ginger until aromatic.
9. 9Add in the spices: cumin seed powder, garam masala, red chili powder, and turmeric powder along with the cashews.
10. 10Pour in the diced tomatoes and water. Season with salt and sugar, to taste. I like to add sugar to counter the acidity from the tomatoes.
11. 11Mix well and then cover the wok/skillet and allow everything to come to a boil. Once it boils, lower heat to a simmer and leave for 5-8 minutes until the cashews have softened.
12. 12Transfer the mixture to a blender and blend until you get a smooth and thick puree.
13. 13--- Butter Chickpeas ---
14. 14In the same wok or skillet over medium heat, melt more vegan butter or add oil.
15. 15Stir-fry the onion and then add the chickpeas. Stir-fry the chickpeas for 2-3 minutes.
16. 16Add in the tomato-cashew puree into the wok. Add water in your blender to rinse off any excess puree (so nothing goes to waste!) and then pour it in the butter chickpeas in the wok.
17. 17Allow to simmer to come to a boil for 2-3 minutes. You can add more water if you prefer a runnier consistency.
18. 18Taste the curry and feel free to season with more salt/sugar to taste.
19. 19Turn off the heat. Garnish with fresh coriander.
20. 20Serve hot and enjoy with with naan, paratha, basmati rice, or any other carb of your choice! I served mine with store bought frozen paratha that I simply pan-fried.