Wait, did you say VEGAN butter chicken? You betcha. I teamed up with my friends at Mountain Rose Herbs to whip this creamy, easy, vegan butter chicken up for you.

Butter chicken is often something someone who is vegan would never think of trying to recreate to make vegan-friendly, however, I did it, and you’ll love it. I promise. This recipe is easy, is loaded with those Indian flavours we love and it’s seriously I think one of my best curry dishes I’ve made to date.

Why chickpeas?

Chickpeas are an extremely versatile ingredient that is used a ton in vegan cooking, and especially in Indian cooking. Chickpeas are packed with not just protein, but also nutrients, such as:

• Folate
• Iron
• Phosphorus
• Copper
• Manganese

They also benefit your digestion and help you keep healthy blood sugar levels + more. Combining the chickpeas with the flavours of the garlic, and this creamy coconut sauce really makes a dish that warms you from the inside out.

Garam Masala = a butter chicken necessity

Garam masala is a key spice to get all the flavours into this Indian butter chicken recipe. I used Mountain Rose Herbs garam masala to get all the authentic Indian flavour into this curry. Their garam masala is organic and filled with all the spices you need to make your house smell absolutely to die for. Their combination of spices include:

• Cumin seed powder
• Coriander seed powder
• Cardamom powder
• Black pepper
• Cassia cinnamon powder
• Clove powder
• Nutmeg powder

Image how annoying it be to have to buy ALL these spices individually? That’s why I love this powder that already mixes all of these flavours into one to make my life easier, and also make sure I have the perfect amount of all the Indian spices needed to make this dish as authentic and loaded with flavour as the real thing.

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Super Easy (and Creamy) Vegan Butter Chickpea Curry

• Author: Maria Koutsogiannis
• Prep Time: 10 minutes
• Cook Time: 40 minutes
• Total Time: 50 minutes
• Yield: 4-5
• Category: Main Dishes
• Cuisine: Vegan

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Description

This super easy one pot creamy vegan butter chicken is the Indian vegan curry recipe you’ve been waiting for going into the fall.

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Ingredients

For the Sauce:

2 tbsp. coconut oil or vegan butter

1 large white onion, small dice

2 large cloves of garlic, pressed

1 tbsp. fresh ginger, grated

1 1/2 tbsp. garam masala

1 tsp curry powder

1 tsp coriander powder

1/2 tsp paprika

1/4 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp chili flakes or just a dash

1 tsp vegetable stock paste (optional)

1 400ml no-salt-added canned tomatoes

1 tsp sugar

1 400 ml can coconut milk

season to taste

For serving:

cooked rice

cilantro

naan

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Instructions

In a large skillet or pot heat coconut oil or vegan butter on medium-low heat till melted.  Add your white onion and sweat for around 6 minutes or until translucent.  Stir often to avoid burning, scraping the browned bottom bits for extra flavour.

Add garlic and ginger and sauté for 1 minute until fragrant, then add garam masala, curry powder, coriander, paprika and cinnamon. Let cook for about 20 seconds until fragrant, while stirring occasionally.

To the skillet or pot add the chili flakes, vegetable stock paste and canned tomatoes.  Let the mixture simmer for about 10-15 minutes until sauce thickens and becomes a deep, rich red-brown in colour.

Remove mixture from heat and scoop into a blender and blend until smooth. If the sauce is too thick to blend, then add up to 1/4 cup water to blend.  If you have a smaller blender, blend in batches.

Pour the sauce back into the pan. Stir in the coconut milk, sugar and season to taste.  At this point you would add your cooked lentils, potatoes, chickpeas, vegan chicken etc. and simmer for 10-15 minutes.  Simmer for 15 minutes even if you’re not adding a protein or root of choice. Serve with rice, cilantro and naan.

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Notes

We had a little mishap in our kitchen with the coconut milk, that is why the images are looking more tomato-based.  Had we added coconut milk, the colour would be more orange and creamy like.

The sauce will last up to 1 week in the fridge and 3 months in the freezer.  Be sure to cool completely before placing it in a tightly sealed container in fridge or freezer.

When you go to re-heat, you may need to add more water to loosen sauce slightly.  Then add your protein or root veg of choice.