The Best Chickpea Stew Recipe
This Easy Chickpea Stew is simple to make and filled with warm spices and satisfying chickpeas. The best part is that it’s perfect for meal prepping! Plus, it can be made in just one pot which makes clean-up a breeze.
Table of Contents
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- You only need simple ingredients to make this recipe and all of them are budget-friendly so you don’t have to worry about spending a lot of money at the grocery store.
- The flavorful spices give this dish an amazing aroma that will fill your kitchen and make it feel like a cozy home.
- This is adaptable for vegetarians by leaving out the chicken. Both Vegetarians and meat-eaters will be fully satisfied.
- It’s a comforting dish that your whole family will love and it’s perfect for a chilly day when you need something filling.
- Chickpeas are a great source of protein and fiber (WebMd).
- This skillet meal comes together quickly!
Ingredients Needed
This recipe requires a few ingredients most of these ingredients you may already have on hand in your pantry which means that you may not need to make a trip to the grocery store. Here is a list of what you will need:
- boneless skinless chicken breasts (optional)- leave out for a complete vegetarian dish or cook and mix in just for meat-eaters.
- olive oil or grape seed oil
- large onion
- carrots
- fresh garlic
- garbanzo beans – chickpeas
- tomato puree
- molasses
- salt
- unsweetened chocolate – this adds a rich delicious flavor. Don’t leave this out.
- garam masala – a mix of warm spices. This can be found in most grocery stores in the spice aisle.
How to Make Chickpea Stew
Making this tasty stew is so easy. Just follow step-by-step instructions here or in the recipe card at the bottom of the post and you will have a new favorite meal that your friends and family will rave about in no time at all.
Step 1: Brown the chicken.
In a large skillet, cook chicken in oil for 4-5 minutes or until no longer pink. Remove the chicken and set aside. Clean skillet if you are also serving vegetarian guests.
Step 2: Sautรฉ the vegetables.
Reheat the pan and add an additional teaspoon of oil. Add onions, carrots, and garlic to the hot skillet. Sautรฉ until vegetables are crisp and tender.
Step 3: Add all the remaining ingredients except the chicken.
Add garbanzo beans, tomato, molasses, and salt to the skillet. Cover and simmer for about 5 minutes. Remove from heat. Stir in garam masala and chocolate until combined.
Step 4: Add the chicken and finish
Remove a portion to serve vegetarian guests. Add chicken to skillet, and let flavors combine until chicken is warmed (approximately 5 minutes). Serve with couscous or quinoa.
What To Serve With This Dish
This hearty chicken stew is delicious when served on its own, but I like to pair it with a simple side dish of crusty bread or this Cheesy Cheddar Pull Apart Bread. And, if you are like and want to end your meal with a sweet treat that is sure to satisfy your sweet tooth give this Easy Pumpkin Layered Dessert recipe.
Substitutions and Additions
Here are a few tried and true that you can use to help you customize this vegetable stew to suit your taste buds. Feel free to great creative and make this recipe your own.
- If you want to turn this into a meatless meal you can leave out the chicken and add in more vegetables like sweet potatoes, butternut squash, collard greens, swiss chard, or even a chopped red bell pepper.
- For a touch of heat, you can add a pinch of red pepper flakes or cayenne pepper to this hearty stew.
- You can reheat this stew on the stovetop or in the microwave, if it is thicker than you would like add a splash of vegetable broth of vegetable broth to thin it.
- If you want a richer, creamier stew add a cup of coconut milk at the end and let it simmer for about 5 minutes.
- For an even more flavorful stew, you can add ground cumin, fennel seeds, or bay leaves to increase the flavor.
How To Store
One great thing about this delicious stew is that it tastes better the next day. So, feel free to make it ahead and store it in the fridge for up to 3 days. Just make sure that store it in an airtight container to keep it fresh.
Sandra’s Pro Tips
Here are a few tried and true tips to help ensure that this hearty recipe turns out perfectly for you every time that you make it.
- I like to use a white onion or yellow onion when making this rich stew recipe.ย
- Also, if you prefer less spice feel free to decrease the amount of garam masala.
- This dish is a complete meal on its own, but you can serve it on top of a bowl of quinoa, rice, or couscous.
- I used a fresh garlic clove, if you don’t have it on hand you can use a tablespoon of the jarred minced garlic instead.
- Fresh parsley or fresh basil make a great garnish for the top of this comfort food meal.
FAQs
Do you have questions about this homemade stew recipe? Here are the answers to the most commonly asked questions for this recipe.
No, these two ingredients are not the same. Tomato puree is a thicker sauce made from tomatoes that have been cooked and strained whereas tomato paste is a thick concentrated paste made from cooking and reducing tomatoes.ย
No, you don’t need to soak canned chickpeas before cooking. The beans are already cooked and ready to be used in recipes.ย
Garam masala is a blend of spices including cumin, coriander, cardamom, cloves, and nutmeg. The flavor is earthy with hints of warm sweetness and a mild spiciness.ย
Other Delicious Soup and Stew Recipes You May Enjoy
I do have a FEW vegetarian recipes on my blog; ย Sweet Potato Soup with Coconut Milk, Sweet Potato Veggie Burgerย (do you see a trend of my love for sweet potatoes?). I also have several egg dishes and a deliciousย Quinoa Granola, but that’s clearly not enough!
Chickpea Stew Recipe with Chicken
Equipment
- Large Skillet
- Knife
- Cutting Board
Ingredients
- 1 pound chicken breasts boneless and skinless, cut into 1-inch pieces
- 1 tablespoon olive or grape seed oil
- 1 large onion diced
- 3 carrots thinly sliced
- 3 teaspoons garlic chopped
- 1 15 ounce can garbanzo beans chickpeas, rinsed and drained
- 1 15 ounce can tomato puree no salt added
- 2 Tablespoons molasses
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 ounce unsweetened chocolate chopped
- 1 teaspoon garam masala
Instructions
- In a large skillet on medium-high heat, cook chicken in oil for 4-5 minutes or until the chicken reaches 165ยฐF and is no longer pink. Remove the chicken and set aside. Clean skillet if you are also serving vegetarian guests.
- Reheat pan and add an additional teaspoon of oil. Add onions, carrots and garlic to hot skillet. Sautรฉ until vegetables are crisp and tender.
- Add garbanzo beans, tomato, molasses, and salt to the skillet. Cover and simmer for about 5 minutes. Remove from heat. Stir in garam masala and chocolate until combined.
- Remove a portion to serve vegetarian guests.
- Add chicken to skillet, and let flavors combine until chicken is warmed (approximately 5 minutes).
- Serve with couscous or quinoa.
Notes
Nutrition
Disclaimer
Please note that the nutritional information provided are guidelines and may vary based on the brand of products used. For your specific nutritional goals use My Fitness Pal or Verywell Fit recipe calculators. All content within this site is not intended as medical diagnosis or treatment and should not be considered a substitute for professional medical expertise.
This Chickpea Stew Recipe adapted from Better Homes and Gardens
This does look like a lovely hearty and very warming dish. Amazing how there’s just that touch of chocolate in there xx
A little piece of heaven goes a long way ๐
oh Sandra! This looks amazing!! Your family is so lucky to have such an awesome cook at home like you!! And I gotta say! I’m really loving your style of food photography! Nice work!! ๐
Sammie ๐ thank you for the sweet compliments! You made my day!
what a fantastic recipe. Yes, I have quick a few vegetarian friends and I bet they would love this when they come over for gatherings next time. I love that you add the chocolate here to add more richness. hm….must be yummy!
Hi Amy! Thanks for stopping by. A touch of chocolate is sooo good in this dish. Well, chocolate is good with everything in my opinion ๐
It’s good to have a couple of good vegetarian options that are a little more interesting than pasta!
Thanks, Joanne! Cheers ๐
This delicious looks delicious with chicken or garbanzo beans. It looks so hearty. I also am always on the look out for alternative vegan recipes as I have many friends who are as well.
Hi Bam! I was nicely surprised by how filling this dish is. I think you will be too ๐
Ah can’t wait to try this veggie style!
It’s delish and makes enough for leftover lunches!