A simple mango and chickpea curry that takes minutes to make!
We’re simmering juicy ripe mangoes and hearty little chickpeas in spiced creamy coconut milk!
This Kerala inspired recipe is sweet, savory, and a little spicy. It’s my twist on mambazha pulissery. Traditionally, this south Indian dish is made with ground coconut and yogurt, but I’m keeping things a bit simpler by replacing those two ingredients with a can of full-fat coconut milk, which also makes this dish vegan and dairy-free. I’m also adding chickpeas to turn this mango curry into a main dish. So yeah, this is not exactly a dish you’ll find in Kerala, but it is reminiscent and it is what you’ll find in our half-Keralite (half-Punjabi) household. 🙂
So why the chickpeas? I realize that most Indian meals consist of several dishes, but as a busy parent/person, making multiple dishes a night isn’t always feasible. I like to keep things simple on weeknights, one dish with rice (or roti). By adding chickpeas to ripe mango curry, I can get away with making just one dish instead of two. And my kids love it because they’re getting mango in their meal, a fruit that’s typically reserved for snack time or dessert.
You can make this dish with fresh mango or frozen mango. I make it with frozen mango all the time because it’s easily accessible and frozen mangoes are typically sweet which is good for those of us who still struggle with picking ripe mangoes (I did not inherit my parents’ talent for choosing perfect mangoes). I just chop the frozen mango chunks into smaller pieces (while still frozen – it’s easier to cut).
This recipe is part of my new chickpea series where I share how to cook dried chickpeas and then share recipes that call for chickpeas (like this mango curry and this chickpea sundal).
Serve this dish with plain basmati rice or matta rice or any type of Indian flatbread.
Kerala Ripe Mango Curry with Chickpeas
Kerala Ripe Mango Curry with Chickpeas
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil
- 1 teaspoon brown/black mustard seeds
- ½ onion finely chopped
- ½ serrano pepper or green chili minced
- 15-20 curry leaves
- ½ inch knob ginger minced
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon turmeric
- ÂĽ teaspoon cayenne to taste
- 1 ½ cups ripe mango cut into bite-sized pieces
- 1 ½ cups cooked chickpeas or 1 can
- 1 13.5 ounce can full-fat coconut milk
Instructions
- Melt the coconut oil in a dutch oven or pot over medium heat, then add the mustard seeds. Once the seeds begin to splutter, add the onion, serrano pepper, curry leaves, and ginger. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring frequently until the edges of the onions begin to turn brown.
- Add the salt, turmeric, cayenne, stir, then add the mango and chickpeas, stir again, then pour in the coconut milk.
- Bring the pot to a simmer, then turn off the heat.
- Serve hot or warm or room temperature.
Laura says
Unfortunately, we did not enjoy this. I had high hopes because my kids love mango, but was a little skeptical when I actually perused the recipe ingredients and realized there just wasn’t much in the way of creating a depth of flavor. It wasn’t terrible or inedible- we still ate it. But it was just kind of bland. I even added some veggie stock concentrate and lime at the end to try and boost the flavor, but it wasn’t enough. I won’t be making this again.
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Darn, sorry to hear you didn’t like it.
Amanda Porter says
This is the second recipe of yours I have tried and the second failure. I followed this recipe to the letter and as much as I like curries, chickpeas, coconut milk and mango, this was not good at all. I know you won’t post the less than stellar review just as you didn’t post my other but you should really get people other than friends and family to review your recipes.I only hope I remember your site’s name so that I don’t waste my time and ingredients again.
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Amanda, sorry to hear you didn’t like it. I’m not sure what your other review was – but it takes me time to respond to comments, which is why you don’t see it on the blog yet. I still have several hundred to reply to and am behind as I had a baby. There’s no need to be mean, you have no idea what anyone else is going through. I’m sorry for your unhappiness, as you must have a lot of it to be so rude to a complete stranger.
Hazel says
Hi! Would this work with other types of dairy-free milk like almond/oat milk? Can’t have coconut unfortunately.
Susanna says
Hi Ashley! Fellow Pittsburgher here. I love your blog– been following off and on for about a year now. I recently got an Instant Pot and have been coming here much more often for your incredible recipes and culinary wisdom! Just picked up your book from the library yesterday and also made this curry today. SO GOOD. Added lime at the end and it was sublime. This and your kala chana snack with chai have been extremely memorable in the best ways. Take care!
My Heart Beets says
Hi Susanna! That’s so nice to hear! Also, very cool to learn that my book is in a local library 🙂 I’m really glad you’re liking my recipes – I’ll have to try this with lime the next time I make it!
Alex says
So, so, so good. I’ve recently gone vegetarian and this blog is where I get most of my recipes. I haven’t tried one I didn’t like. This one is sweet and spicy, creamy, and flavorful. I used fresh mango but will try with frozen next time. Can this be made in an instant pot?
My Heart Beets says
Alex, that’s so great to hear! I’m really glad you’re liking my recipes 🙂 I’m sure you can make this in an instant pot – with cooked chickpeas, I’d try a 1 minute cook time.
Mari says
How do you think this would be with peaches instead of mango? They’re in season locally.
My Heart Beets says
Mari, I bet it’d be delicious with peaches! Let me know how it turns out if you try 🙂
Kamila says
This recipe is a keeper! So delicious and very easy to make. I wasn’t able to find fresh curry leaves but kaffir lime leaves made for a great substitute. I’ll be making this one again and again! Thank you for another amazing vegetarian recipe.
My Heart Beets says
Thanks, Kamila! I’m so glad you liked this curry 🙂 Great to know it was good with kaffir lime leaves!
Megan McGuire says
Made this for dinner and literally said “I’m retiring from cooking because I’ve peaked.” Incredible flavor! A new favorite.
My Heart Beets says
LOL! That’s awesome to hear! Thanks for letting me know how much you liked this, Megan 🙂
Stacy says
This looks great! I just have a question – I live overseas and I can only find dried curry leaves. Would you know if those will work too? (They seem like the consistency of bay leaves, though, so I’m not sure if they are edible or if you have to remove them) Thanks!
My Heart Beets says
Hi Stacy, you can use dried curry leaves! They may not be quite as flavorful, but the dish will still be great. Some people eat curry leaves and some people remove them (I’ll eat small ones), it’s up to you.