GREEK CHICKPEA STEW

GREEK CHICKPEA STEW 

I love chickpeas, I think they are my favourite legume. In the UK we go nuts for them, hummus must be the most bought dip ever. This stew is like a warm hummus stew. Might sound strange but it's actually divine. I love beans and rice. I find it so heart warming and comforting, perfect for autumn. It's also cheap and great for pack lunches. I combined this stew with yellow anti-flam rice using turmeric. I think now it's soup and stew season, it's a good time to purchase a handheld soup blender, they are pretty cheap and really handy. I like to use pre-cooked dried chickpeas and keep the cooking liquor. Keeping the cooking liquor means you can use it for hummus and also stock. I did a video on how to cook dry chickpeas on my instagram, check it out and go grab some dry chickpeas, cheaper and better for you. Full Recipe link in Bio 

Serves 4

Stew

5 handfuls cooked chickpeas

4 spoons of cooking liquor 

1000 ml water 

2 tomatoes 

1 carrot

1 red onion 

½ bulb of fennel (optional)

2 handfuls spinach 

4 garlic cloves

1 lemon (zest & juice)

1 teaspoon cumin

2 teaspoons tatli biber 

1 vegan stock cube

5 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 tablespoon rapeseed oil 

himalayan salt

black cracked pepper

Rice

1 measured cup basmati rice

2 cups boiling water 

½ teaspoon turmeric 

1 teaspoon coconut oil

pinch himalayan salt

black cracked pepper

Garnish 

fresh parsley, lemon juice, tatli biber, extra virgin olive oil, tatli biber 

Method

Soak the chickpeas overnight, in a bowl with plenty of water, preferable filtered water. Enough water so they are covered by an inch. Next day pour them into a colander and give them a good wash in cold water. Add them to a saucepan and fill them with filtered water, about 2 inches of water above the chickpeas. Bring them to a steady boil, add ½ teaspoon of sodium bicarbonate, it will make the water froth. Skim off any white scummy water as you go. Cook for about 1 hour. Keep checking them until they are cooked. Drain them off, keeping the cooking water in case you want to make a hummus. Once you have done this you can keep them in the fridge and add them to a stew, fry them or make a hummus. 

Finely chop all of your veggies. Get a large saucepan on medium heat. Add rapeseed oil,  garlic and onion saute for a few minutes then add carrot and fennel. Saute this for a further 5 minutes. Add cumin, cook this for a further minute allowing the spice to temper. Then add chickpeas, give them a good stir and let them take on the flavours for a few minutes. 

Then add lemon zest, the cooking liquor and water and stock. Bring this up to a steady boil, then simmer for about 10 minutes. 

Meanwhile you can cook your rice, give you rice a good wash in a siv with cold water. Boil some water in the kettle, enough for 2 measured cups worth. Get a saucepan on medium heat, add all of the ingredients, give it a good stir. Bring it up to boil, after 30 seconds pop a lid on. Don't take the lid off, keep it on until you can see holes are forming in the rice, once you see that and the water looks gone, lid back on and take off the heat. 

After the stew has been cooking for 10 minutes, season with salt and pepper, add lemon juice then use a hand held blender and give it a little blitz, just so it goes a little creamy, don't over do this you still want most of the veggies and chickpea whole. Alternatively you can ladle two scoops of the stew into a food processor and give that a blitz. 

Spoon the rice into a small bowl, pat it down, then flip it on the plate. Spoon on your stew and garnish.