So if you follow me on Instagram, you saw that I had the Rasta Veggie Bowl at Lefty's while I was in Vancouver. It was so good I had to recreate it at home! Lefty's served their curry over creamy polenta, but I had mine with some quinoa and Tristan had his with rice.
This curry doesn't taste exactly the same as Lefty's but it's just as delicious and full of flavor. The list of ingredients seems like a lot but the process is ridiculously easy, which makes it perfect for a weeknight meal. Also, if you leave out the jerk chicken on top, you're left with a great vegan curry!
Start by marinating the chicken. In a bowl, combine the spices and oil. Add the chicken and massage the marinade into the chicken. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and keep in the fridge until the curry is almost done.
In a large pot over medium heat, warm some oil and add the cumin seeds. When they start sizzling, add the onions and cook until translucent. Then add the potatoes, thyme, curry powder, nutmeg, salt, pepper, and cook for a couple of minutes.
Add the chickpeas, tomatoes, and vegetable stock. Let it simmer for 20 minutes. While the curry is simmering, purée the cashews with the almond milk in a blender. Add the cashew mixture and frozen peas to the curry and simmer for another 5 to 10 minutes.
In a nonstick pan over medium heat, cook the marinated chicken.
It should only take a few minutes on each side until the chicken is golden.
Serve the chickpea curry with a side of quinoa, polenta, or rice and top with as much jerk chicken as you like. Tristan couldn't believe how tasty this was, and claims it's one of the best homemade curries he's had. Both the chickpea curry and the jerk chicken are spicy, especially the chicken, so feel free to adjust the amount of cayenne pepper and black pepper (or omit it altogether).
Chickpea Curry with Jerk Chicken
Ingredients
Jerk Chicken
- 1.3 lbs (600g) chicken breast, cut into bite sized chunks
- ½ tablespoon olive oil
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon ground allspice
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- ½ teaspoon brown sugar
Chickpea Curry
- 2 cups diced potatoes
- 1 cup diced onion
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon oil
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- 1½ tablespoons curry powder
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 2 teaspoons fine sea salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 can (14oz/400g) diced tomatoes
- 2 cans (28oz/800g) chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- 2 cups vegetable stock
- ½ cup cashews
- 1 cup sweetened almond milk
- 1 cup frozen peas
Instructions
Jerk Chicken
- In a bowl, combine oil, thyme, salt, pepper, allspice, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cayenne pepper, and brown sugar. Add the chicken and massage the marinade into the chicken. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and keep in the fridge until the curry is almost done.
- When the curry is just about to finish cooking, heat a nonstick pan over medium heat and cook the marinated chicken. Cook for a few minutes on each side until the chicken is golden.
Chickpea Curry
- Heat the oil in a large pot over medium heat and add the cumin seeds. When it starts to sizzle, add the onions and cook until translucent. Then add the potatoes, thyme, curry powder, nutmeg, salt, pepper, and cook for a couple of minutes.
- Add the chickpeas, tomatoes, vegetable stock and let it simmer for 20 minutes.
- While the curry is simmering, purée the cashews with the almond milk in a blender. Add the cashew mixture and frozen peas to the curry and simmer for another 5 to 10 minutes.
karen says
This looks delicious! I love making chick pea curry for a great meatless meal!
Ai says
Thanks Karen! This is our go-to dinner for meatless days 🙂