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    Home » Casserole

    Baked Chana Saag (Vegan Spinach Chickpea Curry)

    Published: Mar 29, 2022 by Richa 37 Comments

    Jump to Recipe   Print Recipe

    Try this easy Vegan Baked Chana Saag recipe! A fragrant Spinach and Chickpea Curry cooked in one casserole dish along with onion, tomatoes & warming spices. Such a comforting meal served with rice or any bread of your choice.  Gluten-free Soyfree Nutfree.

    vegan chickpea and spinach casserole served with a side of rice

    Today we are cooking a baked version of this Indian classic. Chana Saag – an aromatic and perfectly spiced chickpea spinach/greens curry made in the oven!

    We are taking a classic Indian curry normally made on the stovetop using chickpeas, spinach or greens, onion, tomato, ginger, garlic, and warm spices and turn it into an easy 1-dish casserole recipe. Making this in the oven means no standing around!

    This is a great recipe you can make whenever you need to use up greens! Spinach is a quintessential ingredient, but other than that you can add any leafy greens you have in your fridge. Think chard or mustard greens.

    You will love how easy this is to make and the recipe is totally adaptable to your taste. Served with warm bread or steamed basmati rice this really makes for a perfect weeknight meal.

    overhead shot of a vegan Indian chickpea spinach casserole in a white casserole dish

    This is not only the ideal dish for busy weeknights. Being a real crowd-pleaser recipe, this baked chana saag could also be made ahead, and stored in the fridge and will surely be a hit at gatherings and parties. Meal-prep win!

    For variation, you can use other cooked beans of choice, or add some red lentils, or use tofu or soycurls!

    a plate of vegan chickpea spinach curry served over rice

    More baked curries:

    • Baked Sweet Potato Curry
    • South Indian Eggplant Curry Recipe (Baked Casserole)
    • Baked Tofu Curry (Easy Tofu Makhani)
    • Vegan Baked Chana Pulao- Spiced Chickpea Rice Casserole
    • Veggie curry casserole 
    • Lentil curry casserole
    • Madras tofu curry 

    Print Recipe
    5 from 19 votes

    Vegan Baked Chana Saag

    Try this easy Vegan Baked Chana Saag recipe! A fragrant Spinach and Chickpea Curry cooked in one casserole dish along with onion, tomatoes & warming spices. Such a comforting meal served with rice or any bread of your choice. Glutenfree Soyfree Nutfree
    Prep Time15 mins
    Cook Time50 mins
    Total Time1 hr 5 mins
    Course: Main Course
    Cuisine: Indian
    Keyword: baked chana saag, baked spinach casserole
    Servings: 4
    Calories: 331kcal
    Author: Vegan Richa

    Ingredients

    • 2 teaspoons oil
    • 1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds
    • 1/8 teaspoons fenugreek seeds (or use 1/2 teaspoon dried fenugreek leaves and add with onion)
    • 1 clove optional
    • 1 or 2 bay leaves
    • 1 dried red chili broken or use 1/4 teaspoon pepper flakes
    • 3/4 cup (120 g) finely chopped onion
    • 3 cloves garlic minced
    • 1/2 inch ginger minced
    • 2 teaspoons ground coriander
    • 1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
    • 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
    • 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
    • 4 ounces (113 g) frozen spinach or chopped (defrost if using frozen)
    • 4 ounces (113 g) chopped greens such as fresh chard ,mustard greens or other baby greens, or use more spinach
    • 8 ounce (226 g) tomato puree (or unseasoned tomato sauce )
    • 15 oz (425 g) can coconut milk full fat or light or other non-dairy milk of choice , thicker cashew milk or oat milk work well
    • 15- ounce (425 g) can chickpeas drained or 1.5 cups cooked
    • 1/2 teaspoon salt
    • pepper flakes, lemon juice, and cilantro for garnish

    Instructions

    • In a 9x11 or similar size baking dish, add the oil and spread evenly. Add the cumin seeds, fenugreek seeds, clove, bay leaves, and mix.
    • Put it in the oven at 400 degrees Fahrenheit (205 degrees Celsius) to cook for 6-8 minutes or until the cumin seeds are fragrant. Keep an eye on them so they don’t burn.
    • Remove the dish from the oven then add in the red chilies and mix in. Add in the onion, garlic, ginger, ground coriander, cardamom, cinnamon, black pepper, and a generous pinch of salt and mix well. Add some splashes of water if spices aren’t sticking to the onion and mix
    • Then put the dish back in the oven to bake for 11-15 minutes or until the onion is translucent.
    • Take the dish out of the oven. Add in the spinach, greens, tomato puree, chickpeas, salt, coconut milk and mix really well.
    • If using fresh greens, then they will take a minute to kind of mix in and get coevered in the sauce. You want the greens to be covered with the sauce otherwise they will get crispy. Cover with parchment.
    • Put the dish back in the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes. Mix once in between so that all the greens get cooked evenly.
    • Take the dish out of the oven. Taste and adjust salt and spices and mix in. Garnish and serve over rice or naan, or flatbread.
      For creamier, mix in 2-3 tablespoons non dairy yogurt while still hot. For flavor variation, add in 1 teaspoon garam masala or Kashmiri garam masala or 1 tsp dried fenugreek leaves ( kasoori methi) while still hot.

    Notes

    You can make this dish with other protein such as tofu or vegan chicken.
    To make with tofu, add pressed and cubed 14 ounce tofu along with the onion mixture so that the tofu can crisp up a little bit as well and then add the greens and the rest of the ingredients.
    To make it with the vegan chicken substitute, add the chicken sub with the greens. Use 3 oz rehydrated in stock soycurls or 4 oz seitan. 
    To make with split red lentils (masoor dal): add 1/2 cup red lentils and 1 cup water and continue with the recipe.
    Oilfree: Dry toast the spices in a skillet until they change color slightly, add onion,ginger, garlic  and spices and 1/4 cup broth and sauté over medium heat until golden. Then transfer this to the baking dish and proceed as the recipe.
    Stovetop: toast the whole spices and chilies  in oil over medium heat in a large skillet. Then add onion, ginger, garlic, spices and sauté until golden. Add the rest of the ingredients, partially cover and cook for 15-20 mins. Stir occasionally, reduce heat to medium low towards the end to simmer. 
    Instant Pot : toast the whole spices and red chilies in oil on sauté mode. Then add onion, ginger, garlic, spices and sauté until golden. Add the rest of the ingredients, close the lid, pressure cook for 8 minutes. Natural release. For creamier, fold in 2-3 tbsp non dairy yogurt . 

    Nutrition

    Nutrition Facts
    Vegan Baked Chana Saag
    Amount Per Serving
    Calories 331 Calories from Fat 90
    % Daily Value*
    Fat 10g15%
    Saturated Fat 6g38%
    Sodium 435mg19%
    Potassium 831mg24%
    Carbohydrates 44g15%
    Fiber 11g46%
    Sugar 9g10%
    Protein 12g24%
    Vitamin A 3314IU66%
    Vitamin C 25mg30%
    Calcium 110mg11%
    Iron 5mg28%
    * Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

    a serving of spinach chickpea curry served over rice

    Ingredients:

    • we start by toasting whole spices in some oil: cumin seeds, fenugreek seeds, clove, bay leaves and dried red chili. This step is called tempering
    • chopped onion,  garlic and ginger are added to the tempering
    • ground spices: ground coriander, cardamom, cinnamon, black pepper
    •  greens: a mix of frozen spinach and chopped leafy greens such as fresh chard,  or mustard greens
    • tomato puree adds fruitiness and acidity
    • coconut milk adds creaminess. You can use any other non-dairy milk or cream  of choice
    • chickpeas – I used canned drained chickpeas but you can cook the chickpeas yourself

    Tips:

    • Chana Saag tastes even better the next day when all the flavors had infused well, so go ahead and make a double batch
    • Play around with the amount of tomato and coconut milk. You can easily make it creamier or more tomatoey to preference by adding more coconut cream or tomato puree as it bakes.
    • You can make this dish with other proteins such as tofu or vegan chicken.
    • To make with tofu, add pressed and cubed 14-ounce tofu along with the onion mixture so that the tofu can crisp up a little bit as well and then add the greens and the rest of the ingredients.
    • To make it with the vegan chicken substitute, add the chicken sub with the greens. Use 3 oz rehydrated in stock soy curls or 4 oz seitan
    • To make with split red lentils (masoor dal): add 1/2 cup red lentils and 1 cup water and continue with the recipe

    ingredients used for making baked vegan chana saag

    How to make Baked Vegan Chana Saag:

    dried spices in a white casserole dish

    In a 9×11 or similar size baking dish, add the oil and spread evenly. Add the cumin seeds, fenugreek seeds, clove, bay leaves, and mix.

    whole spices being toasted in a casserole dish

    Put it in the oven at 400 degrees Fahrenheit (205 degrees Celsius) to cook for 6-8 minutes or until the cumin seeds are fragrant.

    onions and ginger being added to casserole dish with toasted spices

    Remove the dish from the oven then add the red chilies and mix in. Add in the onion, garlic, ginger, ground coriander, cardamom, cinnamon, black pepper, and a generous pinch of salt and mix well.

    dried spices being added to onion and ginger in a casserole dish

    Then put the dish back in the oven to bake for 11-15 minutes or until the onion is translucent.


    baked diced ginger and onions and spices in a white casserole dish

    Take the dish out of the oven.

    coconut milk and tomato puree being added to a casserole dish

    Add in the spinach, greens, tomato puree, chickpeas, salt, coconut milk and mix really well.

    spinach and chickpeas being added to a casserole dish

    If using fresh greens, then they will take a minute to kind of mix in and get covered in the sauce. You want the greens to be covered with the sauce otherwise they will get crispy.

    leafy greens being added to casserole dish to make vegan chana saag

    Cover with parchment and Put the dish back in the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes. Mix once in between so that all the greens get cooked evenly.

    baked chana saag in a white casserole dish

    Take the dish out of the oven. Garnish and serve over rice or naan, or flatbread.

    baked vegan chana saag in a white casserole dish

    Storage:

    You can refrigerate the baked casserole for up to 3 days or freeze it for up to a month

     

    What to serve with Chana Saag?

    You can with warm pita bread, roti, or Naan or homemade parathas.For a gluten-free meal, serve with basmati rice or brown rice

     

    vegan Indian spinach chickpea curry served with rice

    I’m

    a serving of baked vegan chana saag served in a white bowl with a side of rice

     

     

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    ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ If you Love the Recipe, Please consider rating it using stars in comments! It helps readers and helps more people find the recipe online! I love hearing from you all! ⭐⭐⭐⭐

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    1. Catherine

      December 28, 2022 at 2:47 pm

      5 stars
      I have made this once a week for the last few months. It’s so easy to make and that is what I like. I don’t have a lot of patience for complicated recipes. My family loves it, too. My daughter is a fanatic about getting lots of vegetables every day in her meals, including breakfast, and she really likes this recipe.Every morning it’s surprising to see how she combines what’s in the frig and makes a bowl or a burrito for her breakfast.

      Reply
      • Vegan Richa Support

        December 29, 2022 at 3:12 pm

        Thank you so much for the kind comment, Catherine! 🙂

        Reply
    2. Sarah

      August 03, 2022 at 1:06 pm

      5 stars
      This looks amazing- I’m just wondering, for a mid week meal to save on back and forth, do you think I could combine steps 1-4, ie stick all ingredients in at the same time for roasting? Thanks for the most delicious vegan recipes on the internet 🙂

      Reply
      • Richa

        August 03, 2022 at 3:55 pm

        Yes you can. Just toast it all together

        Reply
    3. Caroline

      June 15, 2022 at 1:33 pm

      Sorry, this didn’t work for us at all. It tasted really bland. It smelled amazing but was super tasteless – I don’t understand what happened?
      I’ve just bought your IP book so am hoping my forays into that work out better.

      Reply
      • Richa

        June 15, 2022 at 2:09 pm

        Many people have made this without issues( many more tags on social than reviews here) . Maybe yours needed more salt? Maybe you forgot the salt or some spices? Salt brings out the flavors. Maybe the spices were were old so you’d need to double or triple them, as the flavor payoff reduces quite a bit witb age. Just mix in the spices and salt and see if it it helps the flavor. We can fix it! If you look through the blog and 1500 of the recipes,and my earlier books, bland isnt a complaint and when it is, it usually is another issue like mentioned above. It’s not the recipe 🙂 I can always help troubleshoot when needed. Ping me on social if you run into issues with the book recipes!

        Reply
    4. Brooke

      June 05, 2022 at 1:18 am

      5 stars
      So so sooo good as always. I had not made a curry in the oven before and it did not disappoint.

      I only realized I had no coconut milk during the process so used oat milk and coconut oil 👻. I’m sure the OG recipe is better but it was still delish.

      Reply
      • Vegan Richa Support

        June 06, 2022 at 8:42 am

        good to know that it worked with the other 🥛 milk

        Reply
    5. Izzy

      May 20, 2022 at 10:21 am

      5 stars
      I was not sure how this was going to turn out when I added the tomato sauce and coconut milk as it didn’t look anything like yours before baking that is, until it was baked.
      Then wow my goodness tastes like something from the restaurant except healthier.
      I don’t remember when if I used fenugreek before though I had it in the cupboard.
      Thank you for sharing this.
      Let’s see what the family think as I’m about to dish it up soon 😋

      Reply
      • Vegan Richa Support

        May 20, 2022 at 8:47 pm

        that’s great news =)

        Reply
    6. Stephanie

      April 11, 2022 at 12:12 pm

      5 stars
      Just had this for dinner today, delicious and convenient to make while doing other things. Just take out of oven and add bits now and then. Was very rich due to the tomato paste I used. I wd use tinned chopped Tom’s with some extra paste next time just to reduce sweetness a bit. Loved the fenugreek flavour

      Reply
      • Richa

        April 11, 2022 at 3:46 pm

        Awesome! Yea adjust away based on ingredients you have!

        Reply
    7. Kelcie

      March 30, 2022 at 3:50 pm

      5 stars
      I was excited to make this today and it did not disappoint! So delicious, thank you for these amazing casserole recipes. So great for weekday dinners!

      Reply
      • Richa

        March 30, 2022 at 9:41 pm

        Yay!

        Reply
    8. Maneesha

      March 30, 2022 at 3:01 pm

      5 stars
      Another amazing Indian recipe, Richa!! I made it stove top in the interest of time, and I also added some garam masala and kasoori methi once everything was cooked. Delicious curry! Thank you!

      Reply
    9. Hilary

      March 30, 2022 at 1:30 pm

      5 stars
      This was a great after-work dinner option – I made on the stovetop – and it definitely had the comfort factor. Excited to try more of your blog and cookbook recipes!

      Reply
      • Richa

        March 30, 2022 at 1:50 pm

        Awesome!

        Reply
    10. Gail

      March 30, 2022 at 5:04 am

      5 stars
      Made this for dinner last night with extra firm tofu and all fresh spinach (had no frozen). We have enjoyed so many of your recipes and this one may be our favorite. Loved the subtle, rich flavors from the blend of spices, luscious gravy to perk up the brown rice. Look forward to making this again and trying different proteins (beans, tempeh) and veggies (cauliflower, potatoes, peas, green beans…). We are so glad to have your yummy recipes in our lives!

      Reply
      • Vegan Richa Support

        April 01, 2022 at 8:54 am

        let me know how it turns out, so gglad you’re here too Gail

        Reply
    11. Shannon

      March 29, 2022 at 2:05 pm

      This looks so good. I am going to try it tonight. I don’t have any chickpeas, but do have red, green and yellow lentils, so am going to substitute. Thanks always for your tips.

      Often I will use a recipe as inspiration, but use what I have on hand rather than make extra trips to the store.

      Reply
      • Richa

        March 29, 2022 at 6:30 pm

        Great! I have the lentil option in notes as well

        Reply
        • Shannon

          March 29, 2022 at 8:09 pm

          Thank you! I realized after I posted that you had red lentils as an alternate, so I thought maybe you’d add which types of lentils would work – or any of them would work just as well. I don’t know if you ever mix lentils in a dish. Thank you!

          Reply
          • Richa

            March 29, 2022 at 9:21 pm

            Whole lentils like brown or green would need to bake atleast 50 mins.

            Reply
            • Shannon

              March 29, 2022 at 11:16 pm

              5 stars
              I got lucky! I used the tiny red lentils. I used my Instantpot. Sauteed the first items for a few minutes, add the second group and stirred frequently. I didn’t have tomato paste so I used fresh tomatoes and cooked them down. Then the red lentils for a short pressure cook (probably did not need to do them separately) and then added 8 oz fresh “power green” mix from the market (Baby spinach, kale and mizuma) with Trader Joe’s coconut cream (30% fat vs. 26% in coconut milk – acc to an internet article), and with a short pressure cook then, it was done and everything so fresh!! It was delicious! I might try ckick peas next time, but I loved the red lentils. Now I understand why you said red and not the brown or green.Thank you!

            • Richa

              March 29, 2022 at 11:20 pm

              Great! You don’t need separate cooking for the red lentils. Just pressure cook everything together for 3 mins

          • Maneesha

            March 30, 2022 at 12:35 pm

            5 stars
            Another amazing Indian recipe, Richa!! I made it stove top in the interest of time, and I also added some garam masala and kasoori methi once everything was cooked. Delicious curry! Thank you!

            Reply
            • Richa

              March 30, 2022 at 1:50 pm

              Great additions!

          • Charlotte

            April 03, 2022 at 6:29 pm

            5 stars
            So easy and flavorful. I made this to use up fresh spinach. Now I’ll be buying fresh spinach to make this again. So delicious! I served it with Jasmine rice. I did not have fenugreek so did not include it this time.

            Reply
            • Vegan Richa Support

              April 06, 2022 at 10:53 am

              great to hear, I love spinach too

      • Joan

        March 31, 2022 at 2:00 pm

        Are you supposed to completely defrost the frozen spinach before putting it in the casserole? I’m sorry if this is a stupid question but the recipe doesn’t indicate anything about this.

        Reply
        • Richa

          March 31, 2022 at 2:25 pm

          Yea defrost it. Added that info to recipe

          Reply
    12. Barbara

      March 29, 2022 at 12:36 pm

      For the nutritional values above, can you tell me what the actual serving size is?

      Reply
      • Vegan Richa Support

        April 01, 2022 at 8:51 am

        1 1/2 cups

        Reply
    13. Joan

      March 29, 2022 at 11:22 am

      Looks great! Can’t wait to try it! One question. Do you defrost the frozen spinach completely before you put it in the casserole?

      Reply
      • Vegan Richa Support

        April 01, 2022 at 8:45 am

        yes

        Reply
      • Eley

        January 02, 2023 at 9:32 am

        I could only find Cardamon pods. Would you use green or black ones? Thanks!

        Reply
        • Vegan Richa Support

          January 04, 2023 at 2:10 pm

          Black cardamom is best for savory dishes like this recipe. Enjoy!

          Reply

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