Vegetarian · Slow cooker adaptation

Slow Cooker Potato Chickpea Spinach Curry (Chetna Makan)

Chetna Makan's mild crowd-pleaser of a curry: potatoes, chickpeas and spinach in a tomato gravy soft with turmeric, garam masala and a late hit of honey and lemon. Original is a 30-minute hob job; the slow cooker stretches it out and brings the spices fully into the potatoes.

R By Richard · Adapted from Food with Chetna · Published 8 June 2026
👁 72.8k source views ❤️ 2.4k source likes
⏱Prep 15 min
🍲Slow cook 4 hr (Low) / 2 hr (High)
🍽Serves 6
The easiest curry - POTATO CHICKPEA SPINACH curry | Healthy and Delicious and ready in 30 minutes

Source video by Food with Chetna on YouTube. This recipe was adapted with strict source-fidelity rules.

Chetna Makan's no-fail crowd-pleaser of a vegetarian curry, adapted from her 30-minute hob recipe into a slow cooker version. Cumin and mustard seeds sizzle in oil, onion softens, ginger and garlic go in, then a tin of chopped tomatoes and a deck of spices (turmeric, garam masala, coriander, salt, mild chilli) build the gravy. Diced Desiree potatoes go into the slow cooker with that base and 200 ml of water for 4 hours on Low. Tinned chickpeas drop in for the last hour; baby spinach wilts through at the very end with a balancing finish of honey, lemon juice and a dash of double cream (vegan if you skip it).

Slow cooker notes: Original is a 30-minute hob simmer. Adapted by tempering the cumin and mustard seeds and frying the onion-ginger-garlic-tomato-spice base on the hob first (the only step the slow cooker cannot do well), then transferring to the slow cooker with the potatoes. Chickpeas added with an hour to go so they don't break down. Spinach, honey, lemon and cream still go in at the very end as in the original to keep them bright.

Ingredients

Base
  • 3 tbspsunflower oil
  • 1 tspcumin seeds
  • 1 tspblack mustard seeds
  • 1onion, roughly chopped
  • 2.5 cmfresh ginger, grated
  • 2garlic cloves, grated
  • 400 gtinned chopped tomatoes
Spices
  • 1 tspsalt
  • 0.5 tspsugar
  • chilli powder
  • 1 tspground turmeric
  • 1 tspgaram masala, heaped
  • 2 tspground coriander
Main
  • 4Desiree (or other waxy red) potatoes, peeled and cut into 2.5 cm pieces
  • 200 mlwater, split across additions
  • 800 gtinned chickpeas, drained, drained (add late)
Finish
  • 220 gbaby spinach, washed and roughly chopped (add late)
  • 1 tsphoney (or brown sugar / jaggery) (add late)
  • 0.5 lemonlemon juice, squeezed (add late)
  • 2 tbspdouble cream (add late)

Method

  1. Heat the oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat. Add the cumin and mustard seeds and let them sizzle for 30 seconds.

    ~1 min

  2. Add the chopped onion and cook for 5 to 6 minutes until softened and turning golden.

    ~6 min

  3. Stir in the grated ginger and garlic and cook for 2 minutes.

    ~2 min

  4. Tip in the chopped tomatoes and cook for 5 minutes until they break down.

    ~5 min

  5. Add the salt, sugar, optional chilli, turmeric, garam masala and ground coriander. Stir to coat.

    ~1 min

  6. Tip the spiced base into the slow cooker. Add the diced potatoes and 100 ml of water. Stir to coat.

    ~2 min

  7. Lid on. Cook on Low for 3 hours (or High 1 hour 30 minutes).

    ~180 min

  8. Stir in the drained chickpeas and another 100 ml of boiling water. Lid back on. Continue on the same setting for another hour (or 30 minutes on High).

    ~60 min

  9. Stir the chopped spinach through and replace the lid for a final 15 minutes until wilted.

    ~15 min

  10. Stir in the honey, lemon juice and (optional) double cream. Taste and adjust salt.

    ~1 min

  11. Serve over basmati or cumin rice, with plain yoghurt on the side if you fancy.

    ~2 min

Frequently asked

Can I make this vegan?
Yes. Skip the double cream and use brown sugar or jaggery instead of honey. The recipe is otherwise plant-based already.
Will it taste different without the seed-tempering step?
Yes. The whole cumin and mustard seeds bloomed in hot oil give the dish its base layer of flavour. Skipping that step (dump-and-go) will give a flatter, raw-tasting curry.
Can I use new potatoes instead of Desiree?
Yes. Any waxy or all-rounder potato that holds its shape in a stew works. Avoid floury potatoes (Maris Piper, King Edward) which will fall apart.
Why add the cream at the end?
It splits and curdles over a long hot cook. Stirring it in at the very end keeps the texture velvety.
Can I use frozen spinach?
Yes, in a pinch. Defrost and squeeze it dry first, then stir through for the final 15 minutes. The flavour is duller than fresh baby spinach but it works.
Extraction notes (transparency): All ingredient quantities explicit in the source. Honey stated as 'a tiniest little bit'; set to 1 teaspoon as a sensible interpretation.