Easy Chickpea & Squash Crockpot Curry

September 22, 2015

Make this easy curry dish in the crockpot for a simple and comforting weeknight meal.

Are you feeling fall in your part of the country yet? While we’ve still had pretty warm days here in Nashville, I’m embracing the cooler mornings and evenings, and all the pumpkin-flavored things!

I’m also embracing meal prepping on the weekends with goods from my Green Bean Delivery bin so I can easily eat healthy meals during the busy work week. Grocery delivery is still relatively new to me, but it’s been awesome so far! Have you tried a grocery delivery or meal delivery service?

Anyways, back to the point, which is this Easy Chickpea & Squash Crockpot Curry that can be made and then stored in the freezer for a later date. The Recipe Redux theme for September challenged us to show just how convenient healthy freezer meals can be. I can tell you it doesn’t get much easier than this recipe. Here are three factors that make this recipe so simple:

Simple cooking tip #1–> use frozen diced butternut squash. While I believe there’s a time and a place for the fresh variety, frozen butternut squash works perfectly in this curry dish. So go ahead, save yourself some time (and maybe your fingers if you haven’t mastered dicing up fresh butternut squash yet!).

Simple cooking tip #2–> be all about the canned beans. They are comparable in nutrition to dried beans and do not require any prep. Just be sure to thoroughly rinse canned beans before using to help reduce sodium by up to 40%.

Simple cooking tip #3 –> SLOW COOKER. Let’s just say, if it can be made in a slow cooker just as well as any other form of cooking, you better believe I’m going for it.

This is a mild yellow curry and is great served by itself as a soup or over brown rice. You can keep the meal preparation simple by using steam-able, frozen brown rice. I’ve been happy with both Trader Joe’s® and Bird’s Eye® brown rice products.

Easy Chickpea & Squash Crockpot Curry

Print Recipe Rate Recipe

Servings:

Author: Karman Meyer, Dietitian at The Nutrition Adventure

Ingredients

12 ounces frozen diced butternut squash
2 teaspoons coconut oil
1/2 cup chopped yellow onion
1 1/2 tablespoons curry powder
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 clove garlic minced
15 ounces chickpeas drained and rinsed
2 cups roughly chopped lacinato kale
14 fluid ounces light coconut milk
1/2 cup frozen peas
8 ounces vegetable stock
Cilantro as garnish

Instructions

1. Unthaw butternut squash according to package directions.
2. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onions and cook for 3 minutes before adding squash, curry powder, crushed red pepper, turmeric, salt, and garlic. Mix together with a spatula and allow to cook for 3 minutes.
3. Add the squash mixture to crockpot, then add remaining ingredients. Cook on low for 4-5 hours. Serve over brown rice or quinoa, or enjoy as a soup. Top with chopped cilantro if desired.
To freeze: Allow soup to cool before placing into plastic storage containers or gallon-sized heavy-duty freezer bag. If using freezer bags, lay bags flat in freezer to save space.
To reheat: Thaw soup in refrigerator overnight. Reheat in a crockpot or in saucepan to a minimum 165°F.

Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

A freezer-friendly Chickpea & Squash Crockpot Curry http://t.co/RwrglLDRMK #thereciperedux #vegan

— Karman Meyer, RD LDN (@karmanmeyer) September 22, 2015

Once the cooler weather rolls around, you’ll be happy to find this easy weeknight meal sitting in your freezer! Want to see what other easy freezer meals are happening in this month’s Recipe Redux? Click the button below!