budget curry

This vegetarian low-calorie chickpea curry makes a wonderful, easy after-work meal, and is ready in less than 20 minutes. It's also vegan if you leave out the egg. 

Each serving provides 441 kcal, 26g protein, 92g carbohydrates (of which 8.5g sugars), 20g fat (of which 3.5g saturates), 15g fibre and 0.6g salt. 

With a GI of 45 this meal is <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/food/diets/high_protein_low_GI_diet">high protein, low GI</a>.

Chickpea, spinach and egg curry

eggs

olive oil

tsp cumin seeds

tsp black mustard seeds

tbsp medium curry powder,

garlic

ginger

tin chopped tomatoes

tin chickpeas,

lemon juice

milliliters/3½fl water

baby leaf spinach

salt and black pepper

tbsp chopped fresh coriander, to garnish

Give meatballs the Indian treatment in this easy curry recipe. Serve with plenty of veggies for a healthy dinner.

Each serving provides 220kcal, 29g protein, 8g carbohydrate (of which 6g sugars), 8g fat (of which 3g saturates), 1.9g fibre and 0.3g salt.

Meatball Curry

450 grams/1lb lean beef mince

tsp crushed garlic

onion,

½ tsp black pepper,

tsp garam masala

free-range egg

tsp rapeseed oil

cumin seeds

tsp finely chopped root ginger

tomatoes

tomato purée

½ tsp ground turmeric

60-90 milliliters/2-3fl oz water (optional)

brown basmati rice, to serve

Meatball curry

This quick and easy chicken curry is creamy, full of flavour and takes less than half an hour! 

Each serving provides 232 kcal, 25g protein, 6.5g carbohydrates (of which 4g sugars), 11g fat (of which 3g saturates), 3g fibre and 0.6g salt.

Easy chicken curry

spring onions

vegetable oil

curry powder

400 grams/14 ounces boneless skinless chicken thigh, cut into 2.5cm/1in pieces

milliliters/3½fl oz Greek-style natural yoghurt, plus extra to serve

salt and pepper

rice

A wonderfully quick and tasty chicken curry from MasterChef Shelina Permalloo.

Simple chicken curry

This is one of my favourite curries – it’s deceptively substantial for a vegetarian dish, and delicious hot or cold. I often make it by throwing all of the ingredients into the slow cooker at the start of the day, so I come home to a delicious creamy dinner. Serve with basmati rice.

Each serving provides 555 kcal, 14g protein, 34g carbohydrates (of which 9g sugars), 37.5g fat (of which 25g saturates), 13.5g fibre and 2.1g salt.

Dal makhani 

tin brown lentils,

tin kidney beans,

onion

tbsp garlic and ginger paste,

tbsp medium curry powder

chilli pepper

grams/2½oz butter

tin full-fat coconut milk

fresh coriander, to garnish (optional)

The word ‘bhuna’ means to fry and, in this recipe, it is key to fry the onions and tomatoes really well until the oil begins to leave the sides of the pan. The secret to a really good chicken bhuna is to not add any water as all the flavour comes from the spices and onions. 

Each serving provides 357 kcal, 39.5g protein, 9g carbohydrates (of which 6.5g sugars), 17.5g fat (of which 3g saturates), 3.5g fibre and 1.2g salt.

Chicken bhuna

garlic cloves, finely grated

root

tsp cumin

tbsp coriander

tbsp Greek-style yoghurt

grams/1lb 10 ounces chicken thighs, boneless and skin removed, cut into bite-sized pieces

100 grams/3½oz tomatoes, roughly chopped

300 grams/10½oz brown onions, finely chopped (about 2 medium onions)

tsp fennel seeds,

tsp black pepper

salt

coriander,

Aloo dum is a potato and pea curry which is possibly the most common vegetable curry in India. It’s almost like chips with everything here, aloo dum with everything there. It’s either easy to make or hard, depending on what you want to do with it. If I was describing it to somebody I’d just say boil potatoes, fry them with garam masala, add some tomato, chilli, turmeric and salt and it’s done; then, if you like, throw in frozen peas just before the end.

This meal, if served as 8 portions, provides 223kcal, 4g protein, 28g carbohydrate (of which 4g sugars), 10g fat (of which 1.5g saturates), 4g fibre and 0.4g salt per portion.

Potato and pea curry

tsp turmeric

Indian bay leaves

¼ tsp asafoetida

medium onion, very finely chopped

garlic cloves, finely crushed

5cm/2in fresh root ginger,

tsp Kashmiri chilli powder

tsp coriander

½ tsp amchur (dried mango powder)

tomato passata

green chillies,

150 grams/5½oz frozen peas

coriander

Clear the slightly sorry greens and leftover potatoes out the fridge to make this versatile vegetable curry. It can easily be doubled to serve four.

Fridge-raid saag aloo

tbsp sunflower or coconut oil, plus extra for frying

potatoes,

root ginger

green chilli, roughly chopped or ¼ tsp chilli flakes

garlic clove, finely chopped

tomatoes, tomatoes

sugar

greens,

basmati rice

This high-protein chicken dhansak curry with lentils is the perfect weekday supper to warm you up. 

With a GI of 50, this meal is <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/food/diets/high_protein_low_GI_diet">high protein, low GI</a> and provides 457 kcal per portion.

Chicken dhansak

low-calorie cooking spray

onions, finely chopped

chicken

garlic cloves, crushed

ginger,

½ tsp hot chilli powder

600 milliliters/20floz chicken stock, chicken stock cube

100 grams/3½oz dried red split lentils, rinsed and drained

bay leaves (optional)

200 grams/7 ounces wholegrain long grain rice

150 grams/5½oz fat-free natural yoghurt

coriander leaves

Much as I love a home-cooked curry, I needed a faster way of making them. So this is my speedy curry solution: lamb bhuna with a sauce that gets blitzed in a food processor before being cooked.

Each serving provides 763 kcal, 48g protein, 48g carbohydrate (of which 5g sugars), 41g fat (of which 13g saturates), 6g fibre and 3.3g salt. 


Lamb bhuna

100 milliliters/3½fl oz olive oil

garlic cloves,

onions,

green pepper, seeds removed, roughly chopped

red chillies,

cinnamon

800 grams/1lb 12 ounces boneless diced lamb leg

grams/½oz fresh coriander, chopped

200 grams/7 ounces self-raising flour,

tbsp garlic granules

tsp caster sugar

This simple version of aloo matar (potato and pea curry) can be made in under an hour and uses store cupboard and cheap ingredients.

Potato and pea curry 

tbsp sunflower oil oil

garlic cloves, finely chopped

tsp dried chilli flakes

potatoes

300 grams/10½oz frozen peas

A real store cupboard favourite, these curried chickpeas are easy to throw together. Serve them with plain rice on their own or with another curry to feed the family. This recipe doubles easily and can be frozen (minus the yoghurt) or kept in the fridge for another meal.

Cheap and cheerful chana masala

red onion, thinly sliced

garlic cloves, thinly sliced

2–3 tsp curry powder, depending on taste

dried chilli flakes

100 grams/3½oz plain yoghurt

An easy veggie curry that makes a cheap and healthy meal. It uses basic store cupboard ingredients so is very quick and easy to cook. It's simple to make vegan too, just swap the yoghurt for a dairy-free alternative.

Each serving provides 335 kcal, 9g protein, 41g carbohydrate (of which 14.5g sugars), 12.5g fat (of which 1.5g saturates), 10g fibre and 0.5g salt.

Easy vegetable curry

carrot,

cauliflower (around 300 grams/10½oz),

tbsp sunflower or vegetable oil

tbsp curry powder

300 milliliters/10fl oz vegetable or chicken stock

peas

plain yoghurt

mango chutney, to serve

Use up leftover root vegetables in this spiced, creamy soup. Dr Rupy’s mulligatawny recipe can be served chunky or smooth.

Each serving provides 466 kcal, 14g protein, 43g carbohydrate (of which 22g sugars), 24g fat (of which 16g saturates), 12g fibre and 1.3g salt. 

Veggie mulligatawny soup

olive oil,

onions, chopped

red pepper, deseeded and finely chopped

tbsp curry powder,

grams/1 tomato purée

tin coconut milk

½ swede, peeled and finely chopped

carrots,

parsnips,

grams/3½oz red lentils

vegetable stock cube,

200 milliliters/7fl oz natural yoghurt

Use up leftover root vegetables in this spiced, creamy soup.

A quick and easy vegetable curry suitable for vegetarians and vegans. A great one if you are watching the pennies as it's quick and cheap to make with no fancy equipment required. Eat on its own or with rice. 

Cauliflower, potato and peas sabji 

potato

tbsp vegetable oil oil

cauliflower (about 750 grams/1lb 10 ounces), cut into small florets

This mushroom curry by Dr Rupy is so easy to whip up for a midweek dinner, and it contains 3 of your 5-a-day. Go the extra step and make your own chapatis and the whole meal will cost under £1 per portion.

Each serving provides 646 kcal, 25g protein, 79g carbohydrate (of which 11g sugars), 22g fat (of which 8.5g saturates), 14g fibre and 1.4g salt. 

Mushroom, chickpea and spinach curry

flour

grams/1¾oz butter, melted

mushrooms,

onion, roughly chopped

grams/1 ounces piece root ginger, grated

tbsp garam masala

½ tsp smoked paprika

250 grams/9 ounces frozen spinach, defrosted

grams/3½oz natural yoghurt

This mushroom curry by Dr Rupy contains 3 of your 5-a-day.

Dhansak is a traditional Parsi curry of lentils, vegetables and meat. This vegetarian version removes the meat, but is still bursting with flavour.

Vegetable dhansak

cauliflower,

sweet potatoes,

garlic cloves, grated

grams/¾oz fresh root ginger,

600 milliliters/21fl oz reduced salt vegetable stock

grams/5½oz green beans or peas

300 grams/10½oz cooked basmati rice

natural yoghurt

flatbreads

A cheap, vegetable Thai curry. The root veg have a sweet taste that benefits from a little spice. Make sure you're using vegetarian curry paste if cooking for veggies or vegans. 

You can freeze the curry in portion-sized amounts, then defrost for a quick meal. (But don't freeze the rice - always cook it fresh.)

Root vegetable Thai curry

grams/1¾oz Thai curry paste (green

grams/1lb 10 ounces mixed root vegetables

160 milliliters/5½fl oz coconut cream

milliliters/1¼ pint vegetable stock, stock cube

A super-simple Chinese-style chicken curry that can easily be adapted to whatever protein or veggies you have available.

For this recipe you will need a food processor or a blender.

Dad’s Chinese chicken curry

brown onion, chopped

fresh root ginger, chopped

red chilli, chopped

Top 20 budget curry recipes from across the web

The most viewed budget curry recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 6,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engine

Top Tags

Chickpea, spinach and egg curry

Meatball Curry

Easy chicken curry

Dal makhani

Chicken bhuna

Potato and pea curry

Fridge-raid saag aloo

Chicken dhansak

Lamb bhuna

Potato and pea curry

Cheap and cheerful chana masala

Easy vegetable curry

Veggie mulligatawny soup

Cauliflower, potato and peas sabji

Mushroom, chickpea and spinach curr...

Vegetable dhansak

Root vegetable Thai curry

Dad’s Chinese chicken curry

Saag aloo

Slow cooker chicken korma

Top 20 budget curry recipes from across the web

The most viewed budget curry recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 6,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engineic_arrow_forward_48px

Top Tags

Chickpea, spinach and egg curry

Meatball Curry

Easy chicken curry

Dal makhani

Chicken bhuna

Potato and pea curry

Fridge-raid saag aloo

Chicken dhansak

Lamb bhuna

Potato and pea curry

Cheap and cheerful chana masala

Easy vegetable curry

Veggie mulligatawny soup

Cauliflower, potato and peas sabji

Mushroom, chickpea and spinach curr...

Vegetable dhansak

Root vegetable Thai curry

Dad’s Chinese chicken curry

Saag aloo

Slow cooker chicken korma

The most viewed budget curry recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 6,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engine