Peanut butter in a curry - weird, or totally normal, what do you think? I’m in the ‘normal’ camp - it just works so well that it’d be cruel to say that it’s anything short of wonderful.
I actually didn’t like peanut butter as a child, and I’ve only recently come to appreciate it. I know, I was a terrible child - no peanut butter sandwiches for me. In fact, even now, I have some slight issues with it. It can be a bit claggy (you know how it sticks to the roof of your mouth, and gets all in between your teeth? I hate that) - so, turning it into a sauce is the perfect way to combat this! All of the delicious, rich flavour, but none of the stickiness. A squeeze of lemon and plenty of fresh coriander also help to cut through the heaviness.
I find that dishes like this are best made in a large, deep saucepan - it means you’ve got plenty of surface area to cook off your vegetables, but you’ve also got the depth to add your sauce right to the same pan. One pan = less washing up (always a plus!). I used a pan that I recently got from Delimano. It was wonderfully non-stick, and the large size meant it was perfect for this recipe. It was also seriously easy to clean afterwards!! I wasn't hugely familiar with Delimano until I got this pan, but I'll definitely be taking a look at some of their other stuff now that I know how easy it was to use!
By the way, if you’re not into spicy foods, don’t be put off by the fact that I’ve called this a ‘curry’. It’s not particularly hot - it’s just a beautifully creamy mixture that seemed to suit the word. Who knew that peanut butter could complete transform a dish so easily, with just a couple of spoonfuls of the stuff?
Oh, one more plus for adding peanut butter to your curries: it give an extra hit of protein, and it’s packed with healthy monounsaturated fat. So you don’t even need to feel guilty about it - not even when you’re licking the spoon.
Peanut butter chickpea curry
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Print Pin CommentIngredients
- 100 g sugar snap peas trimmed
- 1 tablespoon oil
- 2 mild red chillis finely chopped
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 3 spring onions chopped
- ½ red pepper cut into strips
- ½ green pepper cut into strips
- 100 g white mushrooms diced
- ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- 200 g tinned tomatoes half a tin
- 1 x 400g tin chickpeas 240g when drained, drained
- 150 ml vegetable stock
- 2 tablespoon smooth peanut butter heaped
- 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 3 tablespoon fresh coriander chopped, plus more for garnish
- Brown rice to serve
Instructions
- Parboil the sugar snap peas for a few minutes, until just tender. Drain and set aside.
- Heat the oil in a large, deep frying pan or wok, and add the chilli, garlic and spring onions. Cook over a medium-low heat for a couple of minutes, until fragrant. Add the parboiled sugar snap peas and strips of pepper, and cook for a further 2-3 minutes before adding the mushrooms. Cook for another 5 minutes, until all the vegetables are tender.
- Add the cumin, tomatoes, chickpeas, stock and peanut butter, and mix gently until the peanut butter has completely melted into the liquid. Simmer gently for 5-10 more minutes, until the chickpeas are hot.
- Add the lemon juice and chopped coriander, and mix well. Serve with rice, topped with more fresh coriander.
Nutritional information is approximate, and will depend on your exact ingredients. Please calculate your own nutritional values if you require accuracy for health reasons.
If you prefer a more traditional curry, make sure you try my weeknight tikka masala:
Disclosure: I received a pan from Delimano to create this recipe. All opinions are my own.
Viv ( Daizy-Mae) says
This looks great Becca, can't wait to try it now. Love the new look to your website too :) Viv xx
Emma | Fork and Good says
Normal all the way, no different to satay sauce and I LOVE satay sauce! This looks great, I prefer chickpeas in curries to meat, so this is really helpful!
Ginnie says
This looks really delicous! I bet it would great with some coconut milk added:)
Sarah, Maison Cupcake says
It's quite uncanny, I never think of chick peas and peanut butter in the same breath but this week I made hummus and on discovering there was no tahini in the house I put PB in it instead. Then I see Camilla had posted very similar hummus with peanut butter and tonight I discover this lovely curry. I would eat chickpeas several times a week if it weren't for my pulse phobic child and husband :-( This looks right up my street though!
Becca @ Amuse Your Bouche says
Haha there's obviously something in the air! :)
Kate @ Veggie Desserts says
This sounds great. Your description of sticky peanut butter mouth makes me think of my son eating it. Like a dog. Ha!
Deirdre says
By coincidence Ruth (my Vegetarian daughter) and I were in Ikea today. She had a Chickpea Curry and said it was awful, tasteless and bland. So I am going to cook your Curry for her as I like the vegetables and spices you use.
Again thank you for another great recipie.
Poppy says
Peanut butter in curries makes me think of satay sauces and Asia. Spicy satay sauce is amazing with burgers too. I love peanuts, this is definitely going to be visiting our dinner table at some point during the week!y sauce
Michelle Utterlyscrummy says
What a great idea for a quick family supper, will definitely try this out with my family :)
Jeanne Horak-Druiff says
Peanut butter us actually not so crazy in a curry - it references the spicy groundnut stews of parts of Africa :) This sounds wonderful and packed with good nutrition, apart from sounding delish :)
Camilla @FabFood4All says
I'll bet this is fab as I tried a curry with peanut butter the other night and even my fussy daugher ate it - she'd love this vegetarian version even more I'm sure;-)