Enhance your vegetarian recipe repertoire with these Moroccan spices stewed chickpeas. Made with canned chickpeas simmered in a fragrant tomato broth, this meal can be prepared on the stovetop in just 30 minutes. It’s the perfect, cozy main dish to serve in the colder months with a loaf of fresh bread or a bowl of rice.
Why we love this recipe
These stewed chickpeas are full of flavors and ingredients commonly used in Moroccan cuisine.
It’s hearty, easy to make, and completely free of meat and dairy. And even though there are no vegetarians in my family, we sure love any opportunity to not touch raw meat and get dinner on the table in half an hour.
It’s also easy to prepare on the stovetop in a Dutch oven or tagine. If you like the Moroccan flavors in this recipe, be sure to check out this Lentil and Chickpea Soup (Harira) and 30-Minute Spiced Chickpea Salad. If you’re interested, also learn how to cook dried chickpeas from scratch.
ingredients
Here’s everything you need to prepare this chickpea tajine:
- Olive oil
- Yellow onion, chopped
- Garlic cloves, minced
- Ras el hanout (see note for substitute)
- Tomato puree
- Chickpeas, drained
- Water or vegetable broth
- Spinach
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Optional: chopped feta and/or cilantro
See the recipe card for quantities and learn how to cook chickpeas from scratch here.
Step by step instructions
If you use dried chickpeas: soak 1 cup dried chickpeas overnight. Drain them and add them to a pan full of water. Bring to a boil before reducing to a simmer and cooking until fork tender, about an hour and a half.
Head of the house substitute: create your own ras el hanout, buy a jar onlineor replace it with equal parts of cumin, cinnamon, ginger, black pepper and turmeric.
What to serve it with
The rich, hearty broth of this tagine is perfect to serve with Moroccan bread (khobz), rice or toasted pita bread. It’s also really tasty when tossed with fresh herbs and a dollop of plain yogurt.
These stewed chickpeas also go well with these Moroccan dishes:
Easy add-ons
Because this stew has such a simple ingredient list, there are many directions to follow with the add-ins. Here are some of my favorites:
- raisins – If you like the sweet-savory flavor combination, a couple of handfuls of golden or traditional raisins are perfect for that.
- almonds – Almonds are a very popular ingredient in Moroccan cuisine. They add a crunch to this recipe and a hearty flavor.
- Greener – If you don’t have spinach on hand (or don’t like it) you can try kale, kale or chard. Just be sure to remove the stems and tear them into small pieces before adding them to the stew.
- Other vegetables – Add some diced carrots or zucchini with the onions and garlic and add some extra nutrients to your final dish.
- Broth on water – Keep in mind that using vegetable broth instead of water will increase the flavor of this dish!
You can also add some chilli flakes and/or Harissa paste to the stew if you want a spicy touch.
More Moroccan chickpea and bean recipes
Warehousing
This chickpea tagine makes an excellent leftover as the flavor only improves overnight. I recommend storing any leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
You can also freeze it in an airtight container for up to 3 months.
Using dried chickpeas
While I usually make this with canned chickpeas because that’s what I have on hand, you can also make it with dried chickpeas.
You will have to prepare the night before because dried chickpeas take longer to cook.
Soak 1 cup of dried chickpeas in a bowl of water overnight. Drain the water, rinse them and add the soaked chickpeas to a pan full of water. Bring the liquid to a boil before lowering to a simmer and cooking until tender, about an hour and a half. Be sure to drain all the liquid before using it in this recipe.
1 cup of dried chickpeas should result in about 2 ½ cups of cooked chickpeas, which is about two cans or 28 ounces.
Bismillah,
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Description
Enhance your vegetarian recipe repertoire with these Moroccan spices stewed chickpeas. Made with canned chickpeas simmered in a fragrant tomato broth, this meal can be prepared on the stovetop in just 30 minutes. It’s the perfect cozy main course to serve in the colder months with a loaf of fresh bread or a bowl of rice.
- Cook the onions and garlic. Heat the olive oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Add the chopped onion and cook for a few minutes before adding the chopped garlic. Continue to sauté until fragrant.
- Add spices, chickpeas and tomatoes. Add the it’s the meeting place and mix with the onions and garlic until fragrant before pouring in the tomato puree, chickpeas and water.
- Stewed chickpeas. Bring the broth to a boil before adding the spinach. Continue to stew for 20 minutes or until the broth has reduced and thickened.
- Season to taste and serve. Add salt and pepper to taste before serving with a sprinkling of crumbled feta and/or fresh coriander (optional). Enjoy with bread or rice!
Notes
If you use dried chickpeas: soak 1 cup dried chickpeas overnight. Drain and add to a pot full of water. Bring to a boil before reducing to a simmer and cooking until fork tender, about an hour and a half.
Head of the house substitute: create your own ras el hanout, buy a jar onlineor replace it with equal parts cumin, cinnamon, ginger, black pepper and turmeric.
