Japanese Curry with Chickpeas, Potato and Chili

Hearty chickpeas, tender curried potatoes and crisp flavorful chilis make for a delicious meatless dinner.

Japanese Curry with Chickpeas, Potato and Chili

Serves 6

Growing up, my best friend was Guyanese. As such, I had the occasional pleasure of enjoying traditional dishes cooked by her Guyanese mother. My absolute favorite things her mom would make were curried chickpeas and potatoes with roti and curried pumpkin. I was so grateful when she taught me how to make them for myself. Those recipes are definitely considered part of my prized possessions and one of my favorite foods in the world.

This dish is my take on the Guyanese chickpeas and potatoes with a slight Asian twist. I start by making a flavorful base of browned onions and scallions to lend depth while the addition of spices give the base a much-needed boost to help match the strength of the Japanese curry block. I added the chilis on a whim and their crisp freshness lifted the entire dish.

“Recipe Tips:

1. Alternatively, 2 or 3 15-oz cans of drained chickpeas can be used in place of the dried chickpeas. If so, add the measured water and bay leaves to the curry base, omit the salt from chickpea section.

2. I make this sauteed cabbage regularly, when cooking the cabbage, the doneness I chose depends on what I am serving it with. This particular curry was a little spicy so I chose to cook the cabbage a little longer and with no chili so it was sweeter to counter the heat of the curry.”

Ingredients

Chickpeas

300g (1.25 c) dried chickpeas, soaked overnight

1,000ml (5 c) water

1 T kosher salt

2 bay leaves

Curry Base

3 T vegetable oil

470g (1.5 large) onion, slices thinly with the grain cooked 10-15 mins

80g (7) scallions, greens and whites sliced

12g (2 t) ginger, minced

8 garlic cloves, minced

3 small dried chilis

1 T ground coriander

2.5 t ground cumin

2 t gochugaru

1.25 t dried thyme

0.50 t ground turmeric

0.50 t kosher salt

0.25 t ground cinnamon

0.25 t ground cardamom

0.25 t MSG

1/8 t ground clove

3 T soy sauce

2 T mirin

715g (4 large) potatoes, cut into 0.50 in pieces

Cabbage

2 T vegetable oil

170g (1 medium) carrot, sliced in 0.25 in thick

120g (1 small) green bell pepper, sliced

100g (1 small) onion, sliced

8 garlic cloves, minced

0.75 t kosher salt

0.75 t pepper

1350g (1/2 large) cabbage, sliced 0.50 in thick

1 mushroom broth packet or vegetable bouillon cube

Curry Finishing

227g (8 - 9 large) oi chili or cubanelle chili, sliced 0.25 in thick

1 Japanese curry block

Recipe Know-how

Chickpeas

1.      Place the chickpea ingredients into a medium pot and bring to a boil covered.

• Reduce to a simmer and cook, covered for 45 – 50 minutes or until the chickpeas are tender.

Some scum will likely collect in the beginning of cooking, remove this scum as it rises. The cooking liquid will be used later.

• Allow the chickpeas to sit in the cooking water until needed. 

Curry Base

2.      In a large pot, heat the oil over medium-high.

• Add the onions and scallions and cook for 10 – 15 minutes, stirring occasionally until golden brown.

• Add the ginger, garlic and chilis. Cook for 45 seconds.

• Add all of the spices and cook 45 seconds longer.

• Add the chickpeas, 900ml (4.5 c) of the bean cooking liquid and the soy sauce and mirin.

Reserve the remaining cooking liquid for adjusting the curry thickness as desired.

• Bring to a boil covered.

• Reduce to a simmer and cook for 20 minutes.

• Add the potatoes and cook for 15 minutes longer.

Make the cabbage while the curry base simmers.

Cabbage

3.      In a medium pot heat the vegetable oil on medium-high.

• Add the carrot, pepper, onion, and garlic cook for 3 – 4 minutes or until slightly wilted.

• Reduce the heat to medium

• Add half of the cabbage and sprinkle with half of the salt, pepper and mushroom broth pack.

Optionally, you can sprinkle chili powder or red pepper flakes to taste.

• Repeat with the remaining half of the cabbage and spices.

• Cover and cook for 3 minutes.

• Remove the lid and give the cabbage a stir, bringing the vegetables up from the bottom.

• Cover and cook 3 minutes longer.

• Stir again. Reduce heat and cook 5 – 15 minutes longer depending on your desired doneness.

Shorter cooking times will result in crisper vegetables.

Longer cooking will result in softer vegetables that are slightly sweet.

• Taste for seasoning, adjusting as necessary.

• Keep warm. 

Curry Finishing

4.      Add the curry block and chilis.

• Cook stirring occasionally for 5 – 7 minutes.

You have to stir the curry, or it could potentially stick to the pot.

Add additional bean cooking liquid to adjust the thickness of the curry.

Ensure the curry block is fully dissolved and mixed in before serving.

• Taste for seasoning adjusting as necessary.

5.      Serve with the cabbage and flatbreads or rice and kimchi.