Vegan butter bean curry

A north Indian style creamy tomato based curry sauce with perfectly tender, creamy butter beans. A must try if you're looking to incorporate more beans into your diet.

I am fully obsessed with beans at the moment. They are trending online on the Instagram foodie scene and the constant bombardment of beans has caused me to try many new bean dishes and trust me they will never get old! This dish is a take on the takeaway favourite butter chicken curry but made with butter beans as the protein. The beans actually work really well in this dish, they’re perfectly creamy and when added into the sauce at the right time keep their bite making sure they don’t go mushy and give some chew to the dish alongside giving the dish a plant based protein boost. Serve up with some rice and fluffy naan for a takeaway style dinner but much healthier and cheaper than ordering at a takeaway. Another perfect meal to take for lunch the next day as with all curries the flavours intensify overnight.

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Ingredients and substitutes-

· Butter beans- butter beans have a creamy and velvety texture with a bite works well in this perfectly spiced tomato based curry sauce and provides a great natural source of fibre and protein. Feel free to use chickpeas in place of the butter beans or any other protein will also work fine.

· Cashew nuts- made into a cashew cream give this sauce the creamy luxury feel without all of the added ingredients that come in processed vegan cream. Just simply soak the cashews in boiling water for 10 minutes and then blend in a high speed blender with the water until perfectly smooth.

· Whole spices- really elevate the flavour of the sauce as pre ground can lose their flavour over time. They are worth buying for curries as they keep for a long time. I buy mine in the local Indian supermarket as they are the best value for money and the most authentic. They can also be purchased online, I would look for brands such as East end, TRS & Natco (available in the UK).

· Ginger and garlic paste- I always keep a jar of ginger and garlic paste in my cupboard as both aromatics are always essential for south and east Asian cooking. You can of course mince your own fresh garlic and ginger however I find the pre minced most efficient due to the amount of it that I use.

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Top Tips!

· Blender- High speed blender (700watts+) is essential to ensure your cashew cream is smooth. A food processor will not work for this. I use this one.

· Storing and reheating- Curry is always more flavourful when left overnight to let those flavours develop so it is definitely suitable to serve up the next day. To store just pour it into a container with a lid and refrigerate for up to 3 days. Just microwave until warmed through and enjoy for lunch the next day!

· Bean texture- It is important to add the beans at the right time to make sure they don’t cook into a mush. You want them to still have some bite so be sure to only add them in 10 minutes before serving to ensure they’re heated through and keep their structure.

And now for the recipe!

Butter bean curry

​Serves- 4 Time- 1 hour 30 minutes

Ingredients-

• 2 400g tins butter beans (drained)

• ½ an onion

• 70g cashew nuts

• 1 tbsp garlic ginger paste

• 500g tomato passata

• 2 black cardamom pods

• 1 bay leaf

Powder spice mix-

• ½ tsp cinnamon

• 2 tsp paprika

• 3 tsp garam masala

• 2 tsp coriander

• 2 tsp cumin

• 2 tsp turmeric

• 1 tsp fenugreek

Method-

1. To make the cashew cream pop the cashews into a blender cup and fill with boiling water just enough to cover the cashews. Leave this to soak as you get started on the curry sauce.

2. Dice up half an onion and fry in a little oil or butter until softened.

3. Add the garlic ginger paste, cardamom pods and bay leaf. Followed by the spice mix making sure that the onions are all coated in the spice mix.

4. Next gently add in the tomato passata and give it a good stir.

5. Leave sauce to simmer for up to an hour- the longer you leave it then more flavourful it will be. Check every 15 minutes adding water as needed for consistency as you go.

6. Once the sauce is done simmering you can blend it until smooth or leave it as is if you don’t mind a chunkier texture.

7. Now open and drain both cans of butter beans and add them to the sauce. Leave to simmer for a further 5 minutes.

8. Now to finish back to the soaked cashew nuts- blend them with their water until completely smooth. Now your cashew cream is done.

9. Stir most of the cashew cream into the curry saving a little to drizzle on top.

10. Serve up with some soft fluffy naan and basmati rice if you wish.

11. Enjoy!

FAQ-

· Can I make this nut free?- You can make this dish nut free by using a vegan alternative to single or double cream or even a plain unsweetened vegan yoghurt.

· I don’t have some of the spices what can I do? The spices are a guide and can be tweaked depending on what you have. Feel free to play around with the spices just make sure you are at least using garlic, ginger and some sort of curry powder as a minimum.

Why not try these other curry recipes?

• Tofu saag 'paneer'

• Tofu korma

• Chana masala

• All curry recipes

Did you make this recipe?

Snap a photo and tag me on Instagram @theplantbowls I'd love to see it!

Click here to watch the recipe video

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