Sweet Potato and Chickpea curry with Rice
Prep time: 15 minutes/ Cooking time: 45 to 50 minutes
Serves 4
Approximate price: £5.14 for full recipe
This is a vegan recipe.
INGREDIENTS:
2 tbsps. Oil
1 tbsp. cumin seeds
1 white onion, finely diced
3 cloves of garlic, crushed
½ red chilli, finely chopped (optional)
1 large thumb of fresh ginger, peeled & grated
1 tin of chickpeas, drained
1 tin of chopped tomatoes
600g sweet potato, peeled & cut to bite size pieces
Rice to serve
Salt & pepper, to taste
METHOD:
1. Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the cumin seeds and cook for 1 minute stirring constantly, then add the diced onion and cook for 5 minutes (or until starts going soft).
2. Add the crushed garlic, finely chopped chilli & grated ginger and cook for another 2 to 3 minutes.
3. Add the drained chickpeas, chopped tomatoes & enough water to make sure everything is covered (around 600ml), give it a good stir to make sure everything is well mixed.
4. Bring to a simmer and cover with a lid. Cook at medium to low heat, stirring every so often, for around 25 minutes or until the sweet potatoes are cooked. If you think is going too dry just add a drop of water.
5. Meanwhile cook the rice following the manufacturer’s instructions.
6. Serve the curry with some rice.
TIPS:
Super easy recipe to cook ahead and reheat as need it.
Feel free to add some other veg like peas, carrots, broccoli or cauliflower. A handful of spinach towards the end of cooking would work really well too.
If you would like the sauce to be richer you can a second tin of chopped tomatoes and reduce the amount of water you use.
If you do not have cumin seeds available use up whatever curry spices you have in your cupboard.
For a bit of a change you could serve it with some naan bread instead of rice.
You can add some diced chicken too. Add it at step 2 and make sure is lightly browned before adding the rest of the ingredients.
You could also swap the sweet potato for some butternut squash or even just use normal potatoes instead.
NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION:
Sweet potato & chickpea curry: Nutrition per serving, based on 4 servings per recipe with no added salt:
Energy 329.38Kcal
Fat 9.51g
Saturates 1.02g
Carbs 50.31g
Sugar 0.49g
Fibre 8.46g
Protein 10.42g
Salt 0.52
Rice: Nutrition per serving, based on 60g of dried rice (easy cook log grain) per portion with no added salt:
Energy 216Kcal
Fat 1.32g
Saturates 0.36g
Carbs 46.26g
Sugar 0g
Fibre 0.6g
Protein 4.44g
Salt 0.02
Garlic: garlic is such a fantastic and tasty ingredient with so many health benefits! It can help combat sickness, reduce blood pressure and improve cholesterol levels. Recent research has even suggested it could help prevent Alzheimer’s disease!
Tomato – One tomato can contain 40% of our daily recommended intake of vitamin C!
Onions – these are members of the nightshade family which are anti-inflammatory and have been shown to reduce levels of cholesterol in our bodies, helping with high blood pressure and protecting against disease.
Chickpeas are native from Asia and have been cultivated from 9,000 years! They are a great source of protein, fibre, iron, B vitamins & folic acid. They are a great choice of vegetable protein if you are trying cut down on animal protein. Because they are rich in protein & fibre they keep you full for longer. They also have a low GI (glycaemic index) helping you maintain a healthy blood sugar level.
Sweet potatoes even though called potatoes they come from a different family than white potatoes, called ‘morning glory’. They are native to South America but nowadays they are so used worldwide that they are the have become one of the most important crops in the world. They are a great source of fibre and they are also high in the antioxidant beta-carotene, which is converted to vitamin A when consumed. Most varieties of sweet potatoes get sweeter when cooking and the slower the cooking the sweeter they will get, so choosing to bake the sweet potatoes instead of microwaving them or boiling them it will make them sweeter.
Rice is an ancient crop that has been cultivated for over 8,000 years. Originally from Asia now is produced in many parts of the world. Rice is mainly a carbohydrate and a good source of energy. It has some protein and virtually no fat or sugar. Cooked rice is around 70% water. There is white & brown rice and although white rice is the most common, brown rice is better for you. Brown rice contains more fibre and nutrients like vitamins B-3, B-1 as well as minerals like manganese (antioxidant) & magnesium .
