Das's chickpea curry

Das's chickpea curry

Ingredients:

Olive oil, to fry

1/2 cinnamon quill

3 cardamom pods, crushed

2 cloves

Pinch fennel seeds

4 garlic cloves, chopped

A thumb-sized piece of ginger, finely chopped

2 green chillies, finely chopped

3 onions, chopped

1/2 tsp ground turmeric

1 level tsp chilli powder

1 heaped tsp ground coriander

1 level tsp garam masala

1 heaped tsp tomato paste

4 ripe tomatoes, chopped

2 x 400g cans chickpeas, rinsed, drained

200ml light coconut milk

100g baby spinach

Bunch coriander, leaves picked, chopped

Step 1:
Put a wide pan over medium heat, and once hot, add a good drizzle of olive oil, the cinnamon quill, cardamom, cloves, fennel seeds, garlic, ginger and green chilli. Stir and cook for a couple of minutes, then add the onion. Cook, stirring occasionally, for a further 15-20 minutes until soft and golden.

Step 2:

Stir in the turmeric, chilli powder, ground coriander, garam masala, tomato paste and a pinch of salt. Add the tomatoes, then 450ml water. Bring to a boil, then add the chickpeas. Cover and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes.

Step 3:

Reduce the heat to low and pour in the coconut milk. Simmer gently for 5 minutes, until well combined, adding the spinach to wilt for the last couple of minutes. Season to taste. Remove the pan from the heat, scatter with the coriander leaves and serve.