This easy vegetable curry recipe is my go-to weeknight dinner. It's loaded with tender potatoes, sweet potatoes, carrots, green beans and bell peppers, all simmered in a creamy, aromatic coconut milk sauce. You can change up the veggies to use what you have in the fridge. Serve the curry with basmati rice or an Indian flatbread like roti or naan.
Table of Contents
Vegetable curry with coconut milk and chickpeas
This easy vegetable curry is not just easy and beginner-friendly - it is also delicious and will quickly become one of your favorite meals to make in a hurry.
The recipe checks all the boxes for weeknight dinner: it's one-pot, it's pantry-friendly, it's loaded with colorful veggies and protein from chickpeas, and the coconut milk sauce spiced with curry powder wraps you in fuzzy deliciousness.
You don't need too many spices to make this veg curry: if you have turmeric, cayenne, cardamom and curry powder in the pantry you are all set! And you can use any quick-cooking vegetables you have on hand or a bag of frozen veggies. The vegetables I most often use are carrots, bell peppers, sweet potatoes, green beans and potatoes. See recipe FAQs below for more veggie options.
I like to make the sauce thinner if I plan on serving the curry with rice, and thicker and creamier if I want to serve it with an Indian bread like naan or paratha. I'll include instructions in the FAQs below for how to tweak the consistency so it's perfect for you.
What I love most about this curry is that although it comes together so quickly, it tastes like a mix vegetable curry you might order at a high-end Indian restaurant. It has mouthwatering, aromatic flavor from the spices and it's so luxuriously creamy. It is vegan, of course, but it's also gluten-free, nut-free and soy-free.
Here's the recipe. I can't wait for you to try it tonight!
Be sure to also check out similar Indian style curries like vegetable korma, curry with "mince" and veggies, and vegetable jalfrezi.
Five-Star Review
Fantastic recipe, loved by my meat eating boys!
-Chris
Recipe card
Vegetable curry recipe
Video
Ingredients
- 1 teaspoon coconut oil
- ¼ teaspoon ground cardamom (or use seeds of four cardamom pods - crush into a coarse powder before use)
- 1 medium yellow onion (diced)
- ½ teaspoon turmeric
- ½ to 1 teaspoon cayenne (tweak to your taste)
- 1 tablespoon ginger garlic paste (or crush six cloves of garlic and a 1-inch knob of ginger in mortar and pestle)
- 2 medium sweet potatoes (cut in ½-inch dice)
- 2 medium potatoes (yellow or red is fine, diced into ½-inch cubes)
- 1 large carrot (sliced into thin rounds)
- 1 large green bell pepper (diced)
- 2 cups green beans (chopped lengthwise into ½-inch pieces)
- 1½ cups vegetable stock (or mushroom stock)
- 14 oz cooked chickpeas (strained. If using canned chickpeas strain out all liquid)
- 1½ tablespoon curry powder (or garam masala)
- 14 oz coconut milk (approximately one can of full fat coconut milk. You can also use fresh-squeezed thick coconut milk)
- 3 scallions (green and white parts chopped, optional)
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons cilantro (chopped, for garnish)
- Salt to taste
Instructions
- Heat the oil. Add the onions followed by the cardamom pods and sauté over medium heat until the onions start to sweat and turn translucent.
- Add the turmeric and cayenne and stir-fry for 30 seconds. This step is called "blooming" the spices because it helps the spices release their aroma and flavor. Add ginger garlic paste immediately and sauté for a few more seconds.
- Add the sweet potatoes, potatoes, and carrots. Season with some salt and cover the pan. Turn the heat to low and let the vegetables cook about five minutes. If the veggies start to stick, add some water.
- Now add the green beans and green peppers and ½ cup of water or vegetable stock. Cover again and cook five more minutes.
- Check to see if the potatoes and sweet potatoes are cooked and fork-tender. If they are not, continue to cook, covered, for a few more minutes.
- Stir in the chickpeas, curry powder and another cup of vegetable stock. Bring the mixture to a boil.
- Add the coconut milk and scallions, if using. Lower heat to a simmer and turn it off as soon as the curry comes to a boil.
- Stir in the lemon and cilantro and add more salt if needed. Serve the vegetable curry hot.
Notes
Ingredient notes
- Vegetable stock: Use a good quality vegetable stock or mushroom stock for the best flavor. But if you don't have stock or broth on hand use plain water.
- Coconut milk: Use canned, full-fat coconut milk and don't be tempted to substitute with light coconut milk if you want the curry to be creamy and taste amazing.
Nutrition Information
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Watch how to make vegetable curry
Pro tips for the best vegetable curry
- Don't skip the cardamom: A little extra cardamom adds amazing aroma to the curry. Don't skip it, even if your curry powder blend already includes cardamom.
- Use full-fat coconut milk. This will reward you with the most creamy, luxurious mouth feel.
- Layer the veggies: Add vegetables that take a little longer to cook, like the potatoes, sweet potatoes and carrots, first, let them tenderize a bit, then add the remaining veggies. This way you won't overcook the bell peppers and green beans, which don't take as long to cook.
- Finish with a dash of acidity: A squeeze of lemon juice at the very end rounds out all the flavors in the curry and also adds freshness.
Recipe FAQs
No, any spiciness from the cayenne and ginger is balanced by the coconut milk and sweet potatoes. You can always adjust the amount of cayenne up or down based on your tolerance. Some curry powders (including mine) can include red chilies. In that case skip the cayenne.
Serve the vegetable curry with basmati rice or jeera rice.
Absolutely. Add ½ cup vegetable stock or water in step 4 but skip the additional cup of stock in step 6. This thicker curry is perfect for serving with vegan naan, paratha or roti.
Absolutely! This curry is extremely versatile. Here are some suggestions:
Summer veggies: zucchini or yellow squash, green peas, sweet potatoes and green beans.
Winter veggies: butternut squash, potatoes, cauliflower and spinach.
Hearty and comforting: cauliflower, potatoes, sweet potatoes, green peas and corn.
Potatoes will cook very slowly in an acidic environment. If you add tomatoes to the curry, add them in only after the potatoes are fork-tender.
Use a 16-oz bag of your favorite frozen vegetables or mixed veggies. No need to thaw.
I use my homemade curry powder blend, which comes together in 10 minutes and is incredibly aromatic. Store-bought blends can vary greatly by brand but I suggest you look for a Madras curry powder blend. Taste the blend to check how spicy it is and skip or add less cayenne if necessary.
Yes. Swap out an equal quantity of garam masala instead of curry powder.
Store the veg curry in the refrigerator for up to four days, or freeze in a freezer safe container for up to two months. Thaw and reheat in a saucepan until warmed through. The coconut milk might appear grainy after freezing but that won't affect the taste.
Chris says
Fantastic recipe, loved by my meat eating boys!
Vaishali says
Yay! So happy to hear.
Rabbit says
Hi..i want to make this tonight but I don't have chickpeas..would lentils work?
Vaishali says
Absolutely, use whole lentils.
Sophie says
Absolutely loved it! And so easy to make, this will be a staple from now on, thank you !
Vaishali says
Awesome! So happy you loved it.
Kate says
It was delicious. However, I must have done something wrong because the potatoes and carrots at the low setting took over thirty minutes. Other than that, I enjoyed it.
Vaishali says
Hi Kate! Happy you enjoyed the curry. The potatoes and carrots should not take 30 minutes to cook. Perhaps try cutting them a bit smaller next time and be sure not to add anything acidic to the pot, like tomatoes or lemon juice, before the potatoes have cooked.
Natasha C says
Best curry ever!
Vaishali says
Awesome! ❤️
Stephanie Vera says
I loved this vegetable curry recipe. The only changes I made: didn’t add Cayanne cause we were out and couldn’t find the Ginger Garlic paste so just added grated garlic and ginger as a substitute. Served over brown rice and it was simply delicious!
Vaishali says
Sounds like a delicious meal! So happy you loved the curry.
Bess K. says
I make this almost every week and no one tires of it. It's so good.
Vaishali says
That's wonderful to hear. ❤️
Susan E says
This is so delicious! I substituted brocolli for the green beans and used almond milk instead of coconut milk, and it was super filling and satisfying! Especially good atop quinoa. Thank you for the easy, healthy recipe!
Vaishali says
So happy to hear, Susan. Thanks for sharing your variations with us.
Allison Bates says
I've made this a few times now and it's delicious! I want to add tofu to it next time. When would you suggest I add the tofu for the best results? Should I marinate it first?
Vaishali says
So happy you loved the curry!❤️ Marinated and baked tofu would be nice in here. I would add it along with the chickpeas.
Elisabeth M says
Is it possible to thicken the curry? It was very thin.
Vaishali says
Reduce the amount of stock or leave it out altogether.
Roberto says
I am usually sceptical of anything vegan, but this was delicious and straight forward.
Added to my favourites already.
Janet says
My favorite curry!
Lana says
This recipe is so dam good I’m pretty much in tears at the flavor explosion that is happening in my mouth right now 🤝
Vaishali says
Awwww, so great to hear. ❤️
Stephanie says
Wow. I make a lot of curry recipes and this was one of the best vegetarian curries ever. Thank you. I will try more of your recipes. Stephanie Swartz.
Julie says
I made this for dinner yesterday. It was sooooooo good! I ran out of curry powder so had to top up with Garam Masala, I added cauliflower and used "lite" coconut milk to cut back on the fat. Aside from that I followed the recipe exactly as written and it was absolutely delicious. It was a little soupier than I would prefer so I thickened it up with a bit of flour right at the end. Both my kids loved it and even ate veggies that they normally wouldn't because the spices made everything taste so good 🙂 I'll be making this again for sure!
Jason Reese says
Is the nutrition information for a specific portion? I'm trying to figure out where the 13g of fat comes from... the coconut milk perhaps? I'm on a low cholesterol diet so trying to make sure I don't overdo the saturated fats! Thanks 🙂
Vaishali says
Hi Jason, there is no cholesterol in plant-based food. The fat in the recipe comes from the coconut milk.
Zak says
This is an absolutely fantastic dish!! I cannot recommend enough.
I have made this 3 times now and cannot get enough. Supped it up with some extra veggies and lots of chilli.
This has become my favourite curry recipe.
Thank you for sharing!
Vaishali says
Yay! So happy you've loved the veg curry, Zak!
Jacquelyn Grainger says
Can this curry be frozen?
Vaishali says
Yes!
Brenda says
I have made this twice and it is really delicious. We usually serve it with basmati brown rice. Very filling and warming on a cold night.
Brenda says
This was very delicious. I will definitely make this again. I would say, though, that the prep time was definitely not 10 minutes! In order to peel and chop all of the vegetables, it is at least 30 minutes. So, when planning out your time, include more than 10 minutes for prep. That aside, the flavors were delicious and authentic. This is my go-to curry recipe now. Thank you.
Nicole says
I made this recipe almost as instructed for a quick and easy weeknight meal. It was delicious! I completely forgot to add the cardamom pods, but it still turned out great. Next time I will remember because that is the only flavor that was missing. I topped it with crispy peanut tofu, served it over plain white rice, and drizzled it with lots of sriracha. This recipe will definitely be added to our regular meal rotation. It's a tasty, healthy, and quick meal that the whole family enjoyed.
Teresa says
Can I use ground cardomon instead of the pods and if so how much?
Vaishali says
Yes, 1/2 tsp would be more than enough.
Dee says
I’ve made your vegan vegetable curry several times now and it is absolutely delicious. I also send my heartfelt best wishes to you on the loss of your precious son. May he rest in peace.
Yours sincerely
Jacqueline says
This is one of our go-tos! I just started counting macros. Do you have the macros for this recipe by any chance?
Mm says
Made this and could not believe how delicious …had a party of 4 and gave some for them to take as well! great recipe and comments helped too! Love it
Vaishali says
That's awesome to hear! So happy you loved the curry. 🙂
Cynthia R says
Wow. That was so creamy, flavorful, well balanced and easy. My husband said “the best Indian I’ve ever eaten”. Yay for you. Yay for m
Cathy says
Little Backlund. My husband dislikes vegetarian meals and I'm not fond of curries. We both love this! I've made it twice now and its wonderful both times. I do leave out the cilantro as I'm one of the lucky 4ish% of people to whom cilantro tastes like soap. Love this recipe
TL says
So this recipe doesn't need any sugar?
Vaishali says
No sugar!
Anonymous says
I made this! Almost exactly to the recipe, but i used the suggested peas and carrots because i had no sweet potato, and I minced fresh ginger and garlic because i didnt have the garlic ginger paste. Omg- best curry I ever had! So delicious! And thank you so much for the suggested swaps and ways to make it quicker and easier. I cant stop eating it!
Vaishali says
So happy you loved it! Thanks for letting me know.
Anonymous says
Wonderful Taste, easy to make. Proportions very accurate.
Vaishali says
So happy you loved it!
Barbara says
This was truly delicious! I made a few personal adaptations, but it was great. Thank you. This dish is good enough to serve to guests!
Regina says
I just tried this tonight and it was amazing! Even my picky teens who feel like they must have meat at every meal loved it. My son just helped himself to seconds.
Vaishali says
So happy to hear, Regina. Thanks for the nice comment.