This chickpea Thai green curry is made with everyday ingredients that are probably in your pantry and refrigerator right now: coconut milk, green curry paste, chickpeas, and green vegetables.
Thai green curry is one of those dishes that is universally loved. Regardless of where in the world you are from or your dietary persuasion, I have yet to meet a person whose face doesn’t brighten at the sight of a steaming bowl of green curry. (Am I right, or do I need to get out more? Ha.)
When I lived in Victoria, my go-to dish to order at Be Love was the Green Bowl. It’s still on the menu, and if you ever find yourself there, get yourself over to Be Love and order one, stat.
It’s a Thai green curry done so well, I never had to make my own when Be Love was just a walk away. Alas, I don’t live in Victoria anymore, and there’s nothing in Ottawa that can match Be Love’s quality and deliciousness. Like many of my inspired recipes, this Thai green curry recipe was created out of necessity.
As much as I love authentic Thai curry, to be honest, when I’m craving Thai curry, I don’t always want to seek out ingredients like lemongrass and galangal. So I opted to create a Thai green curry recipe using ingredients that I can bet most of you have in your pantry right now. The most exotic ingredient is Thai green curry paste, which can be found at any well-stocked grocery store. I use Thai Kitchen brand. You can also make your own- this looks like a good recipe!
This recipe is vegan, and I use chickpeas as a protein here. Another good protein option is my crispy baked tofu! You can use pretty much any combination of green vegetables you like, too. I chose broccoli and pan-seared zucchini, which I added at the end. Other green vegetables, like spinach, kale, and collard greens, would also be splendid. It’s supremely rich, which just felt about right when I created it, but if you want to lighten it up somewhat, replace one of the cans of coconut milk with 400 mL of vegetable broth. The curry won’t be as creamy, but it will still be delicious!
To make this vegan Thai green curry, you’ll:
- Saute onions, garlic, and ginger in some coconut oil. Add Thai green curry paste and coconut sugar, followed by the coconut milk. Bring to a simmer and cook for 15 minutes, until the mixture has thickened somewhat.
- Add broccoli and chickpeas and cook until bright green, five minutes. Add cilantro and basil, and keep warm over low heat.
- Optional step: Sear some zucchini in some coconut oil in a skillet and add it to the curry. Alternatively, add a few handfuls of chopped spinach, kale, or collards to the curry!
- Serve over white rice and top with cashews for crunch, fresh cilantro, and a spritz of lime juice.
I hope you love this Thai green curry! If you make it, leave a comment below to let me know how you enjoyed it, and if you share a photo to Instagram, tag it @upbeet.kitchen and #upbeetkitchen.
Enjoy!
PrintEveryday Chickpea Thai Green Curry
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
Description
The best vegan everyday green Thai curry made with ingredients from your pantry. Warming, satisfying, and delicious!
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp coconut oil, divided
- 1 medium yellow onion, diced
- 4 medium garlic cloves, minced
- 2 tbsp grated ginger root
- ¼ cup Thai green curry paste
- 2 tbsp coconut sugar
- Fine sea alt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste (I used two pinches of salt and 20 twists of pepper)
- 2 cans of full fat coconut milk (or 1 can of coconut milk plus 400 mL vegetable broth for a lighter option)
- 1 medium bunch broccoli, chopped into florets
- 1 ½ cups cooked chickpeas
- ¼ cup finely chopped cilantro
- ¼ cup finely chopped basil
- Optional: 1 ½ cups diagonally sliced zucchini (from about 1 medium zucchini) OR a few handfuls of chopped spinach, kale, or collards
- Cooked white rice, for serving
- ⅓ cup toasted cashews (see note)
- Fresh cilantro
- Lime wedges
Instructions
- In a large pot, warm 1 tablespoon of the oil over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic, ginger, and a small pinch of salt and cook, stirring occasionally, until nicely browned, about 5 minutes.
- Stir in the curry paste and coconut sugar. Add the coconut milk and bring to a simmer. Simmer, stirring occasionally, for about 15 minutes.
- Add the broccoli and chickpeas and cook until the broccoli is bright green and tender, about five minutes. Add the cilantro and basil and remove from the heat.
- Optional step: Make pan-seared zucchini by warming the remaining 1 tablespoon of coconut oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the zucchini and cook for 3-4 minutes per side, or until nicely browned. In place of the zucchini, you can add a few handfuls of chopped spinach, kale, or collards to the curry and cook until wilted and bright green.
- Serve the curry over white rice and top with toasted cashews, cilantro, and a few spritzes of lime juice.
Notes
To toast cashews, spread raw cashews on a baking sheet and toast at 325 degrees F for 8 minutes.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Category: Curry
- Cuisine: Thai
Keywords: vegan Thai green curry, Thai green curry
Jackie
The photos drew me in. Made it last night. FABULOUS!!
★★★★★
Patty Eilers
I improvised based on what I had–used cauliflower instead of broccoli and some ground coriander instead of fresh cilantro, and chopped spinach. I used Mae Ploy green curry paste (watch out–it is very spicy), 1 can of full fat coconut milk and 1 can of Lite coconut milk. This was surprisingly easy to make and is very tasty.
Thanks for the great and simple recipe!
★★★★★
Allison
Thank you so much, Patty! Those ingredient substitutions sound delicious. I’m glad you enjoyed the curry! 🙂