Spicy Chickpea Stew (Printable Version)

A hearty Mediterranean stew with chickpeas, vegetables, and aromatic spices

# What You'll Need:

→ Vegetables

01 - 2 tablespoons olive oil
02 - 1 large onion, diced
03 - 2 garlic cloves, minced
04 - 2 medium carrots, diced
05 - 1 red bell pepper, diced
06 - 1 zucchini, diced

→ Legumes

07 - 2 cans (15 ounces each) chickpeas, drained and rinsed

→ Spices & Seasonings

08 - 1 teaspoon ground cumin
09 - 1 teaspoon ground coriander
10 - 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
11 - 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
12 - 1/2 teaspoon chili flakes
13 - 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
14 - 1 teaspoon sea salt

→ Liquids

15 - 1 can (14 ounces) diced tomatoes
16 - 3 cups vegetable broth

→ Finishing Touches

17 - 2 cups fresh spinach or kale, chopped
18 - Juice of 1 lemon
19 - Fresh cilantro or parsley, chopped for garnish

# How to Make It:

01 - Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the diced onion and sauté for 3 to 4 minutes until translucent.
02 - Add minced garlic, diced carrots, bell pepper, and zucchini. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes until vegetables begin to soften.
03 - Stir in cumin, coriander, smoked paprika, turmeric, chili flakes, black pepper, and salt. Cook for 1 minute until fragrant.
04 - Add drained chickpeas, diced tomatoes with juice, and vegetable broth. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer uncovered for 20 to 25 minutes, stirring occasionally.
05 - Add chopped spinach or kale and cook for 2 to 3 minutes until wilted.
06 - Stir in fresh lemon juice. Taste and adjust seasoning with additional salt or spices as needed.
07 - Ladle stew into bowls and serve hot, garnished with fresh cilantro or parsley.

# Expert Tips:

01 -
  • It comes together in under an hour, making weeknight dinners feel less like a chore and more like self-care.
  • The spices do the heavy lifting, so you're not drowning in salt or relying on processed flavors to make it taste good.
  • This stew gets better as it sits, meaning leftovers actually taste like you planned ahead brilliantly.
02 -
  • Don't skip rinsing the canned chickpeas—that cloudy liquid is excess starch and sodium that will make your stew taste tinny.
  • Adding the lemon juice at the very end, not during cooking, preserves its brightness and prevents it from becoming muddled and lost in the heat.
03 -
  • If your stew tastes a bit flat even after seasoning, it's usually because it needs either more salt, more lemon juice, or both—trust that instinct rather than adding random ingredients.
  • Use vegetable broth that you actually like drinking on its own, because a mediocre broth will undermine everything else you're doing.
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