This vegan peanut curry is thick, creamy and crunchy all at once. Ready in 30 minutes with only one pot to clean, this is your perfect midweek meal.
Peanuts in a Curry?
If you’ve never tried peanut butter in a curry before, you’re missing out! And you don’t even have to be a huge fan of peanuts to love this recipe. It’s sweet and salty, creamy with a bit of a crunch, and absolutely delicious.
5 Reasons Why You Should Make This Vegan Peanut Curry
It takes only a bit more effort than picking up curry from your favourite restaurant, but you get to be completely in charge of what you put into that pot (and ultimately your body). This vegan peanut curry is:
- Creamy with a nice crunch
- Ready in 30 minutes
- Vegan friendly
- Naturally gluten free
- Meat eater approved (and described as better than takeaway)
Ingredients You’ll Need to Make Peanut Curry
Coconut oil - for sauteing. If you’re feeling tempted to replace it with olive oil, don’t. Use unrefined coconut oil for a very subtle, sweet, coconutty subtone.
Onion and garlic - because every good recipe starts with these two.
Lemon - lemon juice adds a lighter, fresher note to the curry.
Cherry tomatoes - I personally love adding halved cherry tomatoes, but you can switch things up with chopped zucchini, peppers or closed-cup mushrooms.
Creamy peanut butter - if you’re using natural peanut butter without added sugar, then you may want to add a tablespoon of sugar to the curry.
Dark brown sugar or coconut sugar - only if you’re using natural peanut butter. It just slightly sweetens the curry and really brings out the flavours.
Potatoes - make for a hearty, filling dish.
Chickpeas - my favourite plant-based protein to add to a curry.
Coriander, cumin, turmeric, paprika and ginger - spices are what makes or breaks a curry.
Peanuts - adding some chopped roasted peanuts to the finished curry is optional, but highly recommended.
How to Make Vegan Peanut Curry
- Heat coconut oil, add chopped onion and saute for a few minutes. Add minced garlic and cook for another minute or so.
- Add the spices and cook for about three minutes until fragrant. At this point it’s important you’re constantly stirring the mixture and keep your eyes on it the whole time, as the spices can burn very easily.
- Pour in vegetable stock, lemon juice and coconut milk. Add halved cherry tomatoes, peanut butter and brown sugar. Bring to a boil.
- Add diced potatoes, cover with a lid and cook for 15 minutes. Stir occasionally to make sure it doesn't stick.
- Finally, add chickpeas and cook for another five minutes.
- Remove the curry from heat and stir in chopped roasted peanuts. Garnish with fresh coriander.
Variations of This Vegan Peanut Curry
You can make the following alterations to make the curry:
- Spicier: add a teaspoon of ground red chilli.
- Lower in calories: use low fat coconut milk.
- Sugar free: omit sugar and use natural peanut butter.
- Packed with veggies: add zucchini, peppers or closed-cup mushrooms to the mix when you’re adding the tomatoes.
What to Serve with Vegan Peanut Curry
Basmati rice and flatbread might be the first to spring to mind, but there are so many more exciting options out there. First of all, let’s consider all the amazing versions of flatbread:
- Naan
- Thepla
- Roti
- Chapati
A few other awesome ideas include:
- Potatoes, especially Bombay potatoes, wedges and fries
- Greens, like cabbage, broccoli and spinach
- Samosas
- Mango chutney
Peanut Curry FAQs
How many servings does this make?
The recipe makes about 4 small servings, or 2 very large ones.
How long will this recipe keep?
The curry tastes best when fresh, but you can store leftovers in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Looking for a Different Curry Recipe?
If you’re here for the curry, but aren’t a fan of peanut butter, make sure to check out these vegan curry recipes:
Vegan Peanut Curry
ingredients
Spices
- 2 teaspoons ground coriander
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
For the Curry
- 1 small onion, finely chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 cups vegetable stock
- Juice of 1 lemon
- ½ cup coconut milk
- ¾ cup cherry tomatoes, halved
- 2 tablespoons peanut butter
- 1 tablespoon dark brown or coconut sugar
- 1 pound potatoes, cut into ½-inch cubes
- 1 can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt, or to taste
- ⅓ cup roasted unsalted peanuts, roughly chopped
- Fresh coriander, for garnish
instructions
- Gather all the spices before you start. This will make cooking much easier and more efficient, as you'll need to add them quickly while stirring constantly.
- In a large pot, heat the coconut oil. Add chopped onion and cook for 3 to 4 minutes, until fragrant and lightly browned. Add the garlic and cook for another minute, stirring constantly.
- Add coriander, cumin, turmeric, paprika and ginger, and cook for 3 minutes until fragrant, stirring constantly.
- Pour in the vegetable stock, lemon juice, coconut milk, halved cherry tomatoes, peanut butter and brown sugar. Bring to a boil.
- Add potatoes, cover with a lid and cook for 15 minutes. Stir occasionally to make sure it doesn't stick.
- Add the chickpeas and cook for another 5 minutes to heat them through. The curry should thicken. Taste the curry and salt to taste. This depends on whether the vegetable stock contained salt, as well as your personal preferences.
- Remove from heat. Stir in half of the chopped peanuts.
- When serving, garnish with the remaining peanuts and fresh coriander.
Fiona Manoon says
Thank you so much for sharing recipes.Great blog!!!