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This vegan chickpea curry (or chana masala) is a delicious camp stove recipe. It’s ready in about 20 minutes and will leave you feeling full and satisfied.
Camp Stove Recipe: Chana Masala (Chickpea Curry)[/caption]
A few months back, the husband started gushing about nature.
That’s right, he wanted to go camping.
To be more specific, he wanted to go on an epic, multi-week, national park-hopping, cross-country hiking and camping trip.
While I admitted that this sounded amazing (and exhausting), I had never been camping before.
Ever.
That’s right– he was taking this city-diva into the wilderness.
To be honest, I wasn’t incredibly worried about sleeping in a tent, or showering in a bath-house, or getting a little dirty.
My main worry was, you guessed it– the food!
I assumed (correctly, I might add), that a lot of the national parks are fairly isolated, with limited restaurant access.
We decided, of course, to go anyway and make it work.
What followed was a whirl of food planning, trip planning, and then eighteen days of driving, hiking, and delicious campground cooking.
This camp stove recipe was one of my favorite campground meals, because it is FAST and delicious. It’s ready, start to finish, in about 20 minutes, and will leave you feeling full and satisfied.
None of the ingredients for this chickpea curry need to be refrigerated, so if you’re planning on hiking all day, you don’t need to find a way to keep anything cold while you’re gone.
Camp Stove Recipe: Cooking Curry
To start with, gather all the ingredients and equipment before you leave for your camping adventure.
For this camp stove recipe for chickpea curry, you’ll need the following gear:
- Camping Cook Stove (We use this Coleman Classic Propane Stove)
- Cast iron skillet or stainless steel skillet (I use a Lodge 10″ cast iron skillet)
- a small metal turner or spatula
- a saucepan with a lid (for the rice), a measuring cup (for the rice)
- a cutting board
- a knife
- bowls and spoons (or plates and forks) to eat it all with.
You’ll also need some tandoori masala spice mix, garlic powder, olive oil, canned chickpeas, canned fire roasted tomatoes, and an onion.
Bring along some instant white rice or instant jasmine rice to serve with your meal.
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Camp Stove Recipe: Chana Masala (Chickpea Curry)
To prepare the curry, set up the camp stove, and go ahead and start boiling the water for your rice.
While the water heats up, sauté the onions and spices in the skillet, then add the garlic and tomatoes. Let the tomatoes cook for about five minutes, and then add the chickpeas (liquid and all).
Let the whole thing simmer for a few minutes, and the liquid will cook down.
Finish the rice while your curry is cooking. Make sure to add some more garlic powder and salt to your rice– Instant rice is not incredibly flavorful.
Finally, scoop rice and curry into bowls, and dig in.
Need more help? Check out these Camping Recipes for a Happy Glamper for tips on making campground cooking easier and more recipe ideas!
Chickpea Curry (Camp Stove Recipe)
Equipment
- small metal turner or spatula
- saucepan with lid (for rice)
- measuring cup (for rice)
- cutting board
- knife
- can opener (if cans aren't pop-top)
- bowls or plates
- spoons or forks
Ingredients
- 1 TB olive oil
- 1 onion, diced
- 1 tsp salt, plus more to season rice
- 1 TB tandoori masala spice mix
- 1/2 TB garlic powder, plus more to season rice
- 1 15 oz can fire roasted tomatoes
- 1 15 oz can chickpeas (also labeled garbanzo beans)
- 2 cups instant white rice
Instructions
- Prepare camp stove with propane tank.
- Begin boiling water for rice, and cook according to package directions. Season rice to taste with salt and garlic powder.
- Set flame to medium, and heat olive oil until it begins to ripple. Add diced onion, salt, and spice mix.
- Sauté onions for 2-3 minutes, until they soften and become translucent. Lower flame slightly, add garlic powder and fire roasted tomatoes, and cook 4-5 minutes.
- Add chickpeas (add the entire can- don’t strain the liquid), and cook over a medium flame until the liquid reduces and thickens (2-3 minutes).
- Serve chickpea curry over rice.
Notes
Nutrition
Sarah Trenalone
Sarah is the primary creator at Champagne Tastes.
She's a photographer, food writer, and traveler, and loves traveling with her husband. Together, they hike the National Parks, travel along the Kentucky Bourbon Trail, and of course, eat.
Sarah is certified in Backcountry Kitchen and Backcountry Navigation from the Colorado Outward Bound School and Identifying Wild Plants from Backpacker.
You nailed this recipe! When in hurry I do the same for week night meal. We camp quite often or rent a cabin in woods (my preference) and this is like the best idea! Waiting to see what else you cooked..
Thanks Suchi! All the other campers were jealous of the delicious curry smell lol
Oh, I am ALL ABOUT glamping! Nature and I just have a hard time being bestie and need all the help we can get! This dish looks awesome…and I think I need to make it…off the campsite 🙂
Haha yes- I’m working on my relationship with nature. I’m happier with it when I get good food 😉
This is super easy to make inside too!
Lol thanks 😉
I told my friends that I wanted to go glamping and they laughed at me because they had no idea what I meant!
This looks like it was such a fun trip! 😀
Awww it’s a real thing!!! Lol.. You should go!! And thanks 🙂
Looks great! We’ve not cooked in a campsite but we always take a few spices with us when we go on self-catering holidays so we can throw together a good curried dish like this!
This would be great for anywhere you can turn on a hot plate or stove top!
I’m with you – I can handle roughing it, going without a shower, trekking the wilderness, but if you make me eat a bunch of dehydrated and bland meals in a bag, I’m out. If I’m not enjoying my food, I’m probably not enjoying myself. But recipes like this prove that you can enjoy amazing food while out in the majesty of nature – and that’s a great thing, in my opinion. Plus, this serves as something of a reminder of how many people in the world still cook. After all, not everyone has refrigeration, electricity, and a well-stocked pantry. Cheers!
Thanks Sean! Yup- the fastest way to make me grumpy is to give me lots of gross food hahaha
This recipe is AMAZING! It’s cray how something that seems so simple can be SO delicious and spot on. Love the idea of NOT draining the chickpeas and letting it all cook down. Definitely adds to the flavor! Will make this again and again, even at home! Thanks for sharing it with us, Sarah!
Yay!! I’m so glad you loved it!!!