A riff on gobi aloo, this spicy curry features cauliflower, sweet potatoes and chickpeas.

Very Spicy.

This spicy dish is a hearty option for vegetarian lunches.

Just the Recipe | 8 Servings

Ingredients

1 Large Sweet Potato

1 Head of Cauliflower

1 Can Chickpeas -or- 2 Cups if making fresh

1 Onion

1 Bell Pepper (Red, Yellow, or Orange)

14 oz Can Diced Tomatoes -or- 1 1/2 Cups if using fresh

1 1/2 - 2 TBS Ginger Garlic Paste

1 Serrano Chili (see notes)

1 Lemon

Fresh Cilantro for serving

Curry Spice Blend

1 tsp Cumin Seeds

1/2 tsp Ground Turmeric

3/4 tsp Ground Coriander

1 1/4 tsp Kashmiri Chili Powder

From the Pantry:

Salt

Pepper

Olive Oil, Coconut Oil, or Ghee

Stove Top | Large Dutch Oven

Steps

Prepare the vegetables:
- Thinly slice the onions and bell pepper into long strips.
- Cut off the stem and slice the serrano in half; remove the seeds if desired. (see notes)
- Cube the sweet potato into bite-sized pieces.
- Break down the cauliflower into bite-sized pieces.
- Juice the lemon, straining out the pips.
Make the curry:
- Heat the pan on med-high heat with 2 TBS of oil or ghee.
- When hot, add the onion and pepper slices and the serrano chili. Cook down, stirring occasionally, for 3 minutes until the onions are starting to soften.
- Add the ginger garlic paste, stir, cooking for another minute.
- Add the curry spice blend, 1 tsp salt, and 1/2 ground pepper. Stir to coat the onions and pepper. Allow the spices to bloom for about a minute. The cumin seed should smell intoxicating at this point!
- Add in the tomatoes and 1/2 cup of water. (If using canned, I’ll swish the water in the can to get all the tomato sauce residue goodness into the pot.) Use a wooden spoon or meat crumbler tool to break down the tomatoes.
- Stir well, scraping up any bits of vegetables that may have stuck to the pan. Bring to a boil.
Cook the vegetables:
- Add the sweet potatoes. Lower the heat to medium-low and cover. Cook the sweet potatoes for 5-7 minutes.
- Add the cauliflower. Stir, cover, and cook for about 10 minutes. Stir once or twice, being careful to not let all the heat escape but also to not let the sauce stick.
- Add the chickpeas. Stir, cover and cook for another 2-3 minutes.
- Test the largest pieces of sweet potatoes to make sure they are tender and cooked through. You don’t want crunchy potatoes!
Remove from the heat. Add in the lemon juice and stir.

Sprinkle with fresh cilantro and serve with rice, cauliflower rice, or garlic naan to soak up the curry.

Meal Block Plan | 8 Meals

If using for packed lunches, divide into containers with rice and cilantro. This dish keeps well for 5 days. Reheat at work for lunch!

This is a dish I make regularly for lunches on the weekend and pack up for the work week. I’ll often pair it with the Savory Egg Casserole for breakfasts as they use similar ingredients.

Easily Customizable!

Feel free to make this dish to suite your tastes. You’ll notice there are no bell peppers in the photos. That’s because I didn’t have any the day I made the recipe. (Being on lockdown is a bit limiting.) Sure, I would like having them in the dish but not having them didn’t stop me. I’ve also made this with regular potatoes. Without the chickpeas. And with zucchini (add in the last five minutes). Once you have the technique down for making the curry sauce, it’s just a matter of layering in the veggies to cook at the length that make sense for each vegetable. If you put them all in at once the cauliflower and chickpeas will overcook and turn to mush. So start with the potatoes and layer in after that based on how long each vegetable takes to cook. Happy eating!

Kitchen Acumen Tips:

Substitute regular potatoes for sweet potatoes, they are just as delicious and make this more like the traditional Gobi Aloo curry.
Chili peppers, anyone?
- Serrano chilies are hot. If you like heat, use one. I like to buy them in a pack from Wegman’s or Reading Terminal Market but I can’t use them all before they go bad. I clean, stem, and put them in a freezer bag (always label your freezer bags!). They keep for several months in the freezer. The best part is small peppers defrost quite quickly. I pull one out when I am gathering ingredients and either let it defrost on the counter or run some cold water on it to help it defrost enough for me to cut it.
  - I halve the pepper so the heat from the seeds gets into the sauce but then I can find the pepper itself so it doesn’t make it into my husband’s lunch. Once I left a half pepper in my husband’s lunch and he called me to ask what he just ate and why his eyes wouldn’t stop watering. Ha! I mean, oops!
- If you like heat but maybe a little less, cut the seeds out of the serrano. (Be careful the oil of the seeds will get on your fingers and is hot. I try to seed with just the knife and then rinse into the disposal so I don’t have to touch them.)
- If you don’t like much heat, choose a milder chili, like a cayenne, or leave it out altogether.
I use my largest pot for this dish, a 5.25 qt Dutch Oven.
If you like a little bit of sweetness in your curry add a sprinkle (maybe 1 tsp) of sugar with the onions as they cook in the beginning.
Keep ginger garlic paste on hand for easier prep!