Cape Malay Chickpea Curry

Name: Cape Malay Chickpea Curry
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 1 h 30 min
Total time: 1 h 45 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: South Africa
Ingredients: 300 g dried chickpeas, soaked overnight and drained; 3 tbsp sunflower or neutral oil; 2 onions, finely sliced; 4 cloves garlic, finely grated; 1 tbsp fresh ginger, finely grated; 1 tsp turmeric; 1.5 tsp Cape Malay curry powder (or mild curry powder); 1 tsp ground coriander; 0.5 tsp ground cardamom; 1 stick cinnamon; 3 dried red chillies or 0.5 tsp dried chilli flakes; 2 bay leaves; 400 g tin chopped tomatoes; 4 dried apricots, halved (for sweetness); 1 tsp sugar; 1 tsp salt; 400 ml water or light vegetable stock; 2 tbsp fresh coriander, roughly chopped

From the kitchens of the Bo-Kaap, Cape Town: chickpeas slowly simmered in the spice tradition of Java, Malabar and Bengal, scented with turmeric, cardamom, cinnamon and dried chilli, served with yellow rice and apricot atjar in a cuisine that has no exact equivalent anywhere on earth

Origin: Bo-Kaap, Cape Town, South Africa

From the journey of Chickpea.

The Cape Malay culinary tradition is one of the most historically distinctive cuisines in the Southern Hemisphere: the cooking of the enslaved and freed people brought to the Cape Colony from Java, the Malabar Coast, Bengal, and other parts of the Indian Ocean world by the Dutch East India Company from the 17th century onward. The Bo-Kaap quarter of Cape Town (a neighbourhood of pastel-painted houses above the city bowl, the heartland of the Cape Malay Muslim community) preserves a food tradition assembled from the spice languages of multiple Indian Ocean cultures and shaped by two centuries of adaptation to the ingredients of the Western Cape. The defining characteristics of Cape Malay cooking are: a strong spice vocabulary (cardamom, cinnamon, turmeric, cloves, coriander, and dried chilli are all foundational); a tendency toward sweet-sour balancing in sauces (dried apricot, tamarind, or sugar counterpointing the heat of chilli); and an elegance of restraint: Cape Malay food is aromatic and layered but not incendiary, a reflection of the blended and modulated palate of a community that synthesised multiple culinary traditions across generations. Chickpeas appear throughout Cape Malay cooking as a fasting food (the community is Muslim and chickpeas sustain during Ramadan) and as a general household protein. The curry here is mild enough to eat in high summer and rich enough for a Cape winter, finished with the yellow rice (saffraan rys) and fruit atjar that are the canonical Cape Malay accompaniments.

Ingredients

Main

300 g dried chickpeas, soaked overnight and drained

Fat

3 tbsp sunflower or neutral oil

Aromatics

2 onions, finely sliced
4 cloves garlic, finely grated
1 tbsp fresh ginger, finely grated

Spice

1 tsp turmeric
1.5 tsp Cape Malay curry powder (or mild curry powder)
1 tsp ground coriander
0.5 tsp ground cardamom
1 stick cinnamon
3 dried red chillies or 0.5 tsp dried chilli flakes
2 bay leaves

Sauce

400 g tin chopped tomatoes
4 dried apricots, halved (for sweetness)

Seasoning

1 tsp sugar
1 tsp salt

Liquid

400 ml water or light vegetable stock

Garnish

2 tbsp fresh coriander, roughly chopped

Method

Cook the soaked chickpeas in a pot of unsalted water for 45–60 minutes until just tender (they will cook further in the sauce). Drain and set aside.
Heat the oil in a wide, heavy pot over medium heat. Add the sliced onions with a pinch of salt and cook slowly for 15–20 minutes until deeply golden. Do not rush this: the caramelised onion is the flavour foundation of the curry.
Add the garlic and ginger, stir for 1 minute. Add the turmeric, curry powder, coriander, cardamom, cinnamon stick, dried chillies, and bay leaves. Fry the spices in the oil for 2 minutes until very fragrant.
Add the chopped tomatoes, dried apricots, sugar, and salt. Cook for 10 minutes until the tomato breaks down into a thick, fragrant sauce.
Add the par-cooked chickpeas and enough water or stock to almost cover. Stir well to coat. Bring to the boil, reduce to a steady simmer and cook uncovered for 30–40 minutes until the sauce has thickened and the chickpeas are completely tender and have absorbed the spice flavours.
Taste and adjust salt and sugar: the balance of sour (tomato), sweet (apricot and sugar), and heat (chilli) should be in easy equilibrium. Scatter fresh coriander over the top. Serve with yellow rice (saffraan rys), apricot atjar, and sambal (finely chopped onion, chilli, and lemon juice).

Notes

Cape Malay curry powder is a mild, aromatic blend distinct from Indian curry powders (typically including coriander, cumin, turmeric, cinnamon, cardamom, and dried chilli in proportions that favour warmth over heat. It is available at South African grocery stores and specialty shops. A mild Indian curry powder is a close substitute. The dried apricot is non-negotiable) it is what makes this preparation distinctively Cape Malay rather than generically curry-flavoured. Naartjie (tangerine) zest added with the spices is a regional variation that adds a citrus brightness to the sauce.

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Ingredient originTrade or transit route

Became a culinary stapleColonial / trade control