Simple Chickpea Curry

It's no secret that one of my favorite cuisines is Indian. I love the marriage of spices in every dish. Warm, sweet, spicy; melding together in a creamy sauce smothering vegetables and tofu. Lapping up that sauce onto rice, naan, or roti. Crispy and saucy coming together like long lost lovers. It's almost sensual. This recipe is my basic chickpea curry. Nothing fancy. Just a creamy, smooth sauce and chickpeas. Extra, extra saucy just how I like it!

3 cans chickpeas, rinsed
1 TB vegetable oil
1/2 onion, diced
2 TB fresh grated turmeric (or 1 TB dried turmeric)
1 TB ginger, grated
1 TB garlic, minced
2 TB cilantro stems, chopped
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp coriander seeds
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
3 cracked cardamom pods
1 can fire diced tomatoes
1 can coconut milk
1 bay leaf
Vegetable stock or water as needed
Salt as needed

Heat vegetable oil in small stock pot on medium high heat. Saute onion with a pinch of salt until browned. Add turmeric, ginger, garlic, cilantro stems, cumin, coriander, red pepper flakes, and cardamom pods until fragrant, about 3-4 minutes. Add in tomatoes, coconut milk, and bay leaf. Thin as needed to allow sauce to come to a simmer. Simmer 20-30 minutes. Using an immersion blender, puree sauce until smooth. Salt as needed. Add chickpeas and mix. Garnish with cilantro, serve with roti, naan, or rice. Or in a bathtub! It's that good ;)