A healthy, vegan recipe made with hearty chickpeas, rich and creamy coconut milk, an abundance of earthy and warm spices, sweet tomatoes and fresh lime and cilantro. One of my lunchtime favorites
Measure spices into a bowl including coriander, cumin, turmeric, fennel, cinnamon, mustard, cloves, cardamom, paprika, pepper to taste,* and cayenne pepper to taste.*
Heat olive oil in a 12-inch saute pan or a pot over medium-high heat. Add onion and saute until lightly golden brown, about 5 to 6 minutes.
Add garlic and ginger and saute 1 minute. Reduce heat to medium, add spices and saute 30 seconds.
Pour and stir in tomatoes and coconut milk. Bring just to a simmer then reduce heat to low, cover and let simmer 10 minutes.
Carefully pour mixture into a blender. Cover blender with lid and remove center insert from lid and cover with a kitchen towel or several folded layer of paper towels. Blend on low speed until smooth.
Return mixture to pan, add chick peas, season with salt to taste. Cover while leaving lid partially open for steam to escape.** Cook over low heat stirring occasionally, until sauce has reduced slightly and chick peas have absorbed some flavor, about 10 minutes.
Stir in lime. Serve warm over rice if desired, garnish with cilantro.
Notes
*I suggest using about 1/2 tsp black pepper, and 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper (more or less to desired heat level).
**For a thinner sauce cover fully with lid. You can even thin with some liquid from chickpea can or vegetable broth.