This Creamy Chickpea and Vegetable Stew is a comforting vegan stew made with simple ingredients. To make this chickpea stew just mix the ingredients and allow them simmer to combine all of the flavors.
One-pot
Easy cleanup
You’ll Learn: How to create a thick, comforting, protein-rich stew
Worth It: It’s a satisfying, protein-forward option that actually keeps you full
Bonus: Crisp up a few chickpeas in the pan and use them as a crunchy topping
Why you’ll Love this recipe
- Easy comfort meal – This Creamy Chickpea and Vegetable Stew is loaded with flavor, but is made with just a few simple ingredients. This stew starts with garlic, onion, and a few warming spices. Then, you add your veggies, chickpeas, broth and coconut milk.
- Plant based favorite – This chickpea stew is perfect for anyone who is plant based! It is a completely vegan recipe but it tastes so creamy and satiating. I like to serve this stew with some brown rice and a dollop of Greek yogurt, plant-based yogurt or my cashew sour cream instead.
- Pantry meal – This recipe is a great go to when you don’t feeling like grocery shopping. Most items in this stew are things you have in your pantry already!
How is it different from Soup?
The difference between a soup and a stew is the amount of liquid in the final dish. A stew will be thick with very little broth. Soups traditionally have more broth that is thinner. For a chickpea curry, you could have a similar consistency to stew but the sauce will be more blended.
Serving Suggestions
This chickpea stew is a delicious and cozy dinner. Garnish it with some fresh mint, red pepper flakes, or lemon juice to serve. I love serving it with some kind of bread. Flatbread, lavash, pita, flaky butter biscuits, cornbread, or no knead tomato focaccia are all delicious depending on what you are in the mood for.
I love serving it over rice, but it would also be so good over creamy mashed potatoes. I also love adding a crisp green salad with apple cider vinaigrette.
Ingredients
- Chickpeas – I love keeping a couple of 15 oz cans of chickpeas in the pantry. These legumes are good sources of protein and fiber, and a cup of chickpeas is a great addition to so many meals.
- Yellow onion and garlic – this is the base of your stew that will add tons of flavor
- Diced tomatoes – tomatoes are another thing I always keep in my pantry to make sauces and stews
- Full-fat coconut milk – I love having this ready to go in my pantry,
- Vegetable broth – The broth adds just enough liquid to make this stew the perfect consistency
- Zucchini – the taste of the zucchini goes so well with the chickpeas, but you can use whatever vegetable you have on hand or prefer
- Tomato paste – this concentrated tomato flavor adds so much to your chickpea stew
- Avocado oil – I used avocado oil but you can also use extra-virgin olive oil
- Salt, turmeric, cumin, chilli powder, cayenne pepper powder – this spice blend is so delicious with the chickpeas and tomatoes. If you don’t like any spice, feel free to do less cayenne.
Ingredient Substitutions
This chickpea stew recipe is entirely plant based, but if you do not need it to be, you can use chicken stock in place or vegetable broth. You can also use heavy cream instead of coconut milk.
If you don’t have or don’t like zucchini, any greens like a bunch of collard greens, swiss chard, kale or spinach would be delicious in this recipe. Just remove the stems and cut them into bite-size pieces. You could also add a bay leaf while simmering for even more flavor.
Feel free to mix up your own spice blend for your taste. Black pepper, ginger, or coriander are all great options to change it up.
If you would like some crunchy chickpeas to top your stew. You could add a few chickpeas with the onions and cook until the chickpeas sizzle. Remove them, then use the remaining chickpeas in the recipe. Top your serving bowls with the crispy chickpeas!
How to make
Step 1: Prep the ingredients
First, chop the zucchini (Image 1), dice the onion, and mince the garlic cloves. Then, drain and rinse the chickpeas.
Step 2: Sauté and combine
Next, heat the avocado oil or extra virgin olive oil, garlic, and onion in a dutch oven or large pot over medium-low heat (Image 2). Then, add the spices to the pan, stir with a wooden spoon or spatula and cook for couple of minutes. Mix in the tomato paste.
Step 3: Simmer, Simmer, Simmer
Next, add in all other ingredients (Images 3, 4, and 5) and increase heat to high. The broth should help release any bits on the bottom of the pot. Once bubbling, reduce to a simmer.
Then, simmer for 50 minutes stirring occasionally (Image 6). The starchy insides of the chickpeas will slowly thicken your stew. Finally, remove from heat and serve with rice and a dollop of yogurt.
Serve your stew with rice or dollop of yogurt and enjoy!
Storage, freezing and reheating
Once prepared, store the leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to one week. You can also store in the freezer for up to 3 months. Allow to cool completely before putting in the fridge or freezer.
Reheat on the stovetop or in the microwave. Add more vegetable broth as you reheat if needed.
Check out these other delicious vegetarian and chickpea recipes!
You can find the full recipe below. If you make this recipe, please rate and review it in the comments, or share it with me on Instagram!
You can find the full recipe below. If you make this recipe, please rate and review it in the comments, or share it with me on Instagram!
Email Recipe for Later
Recipe
Creamy Chickpea and Vegetable Stew
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp avocado oil
- 3 cloves of garlic
- 1 large yellow onion
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp turmeric
- 2 tsp chili powder
- 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper powder
- 1 can diced tomatoes 15oz
- 1 tbsp tomato paste
- 2 medium zucchinis
- 2 cans of chickpeas 15oz each
- 2 cups vegetable broth
- 1 can full fat coconut milk 15oz
Instructions
- Mince garlic, dice onion, and roughly chop zucchini
- Drain and rinse cans of chickpeas
- Heat avocado oil, garlic, and onion to a large pot or dutch oven over medium-low heat
- Cook for 5 minutes tossing occassionally
- Add salt, cumin, turmeric, chili powder, and cayenne pepper to the pan and toss to combine with the garlic and onions
- Cook for an additional 2 minutes until the spices become fragrant
- Add tomato paste to the pot and mix in with the other ingredients
- Add chickpeas, zucchini, diced tomatoes, vegetable broth, and coconut milk to the pot
- Mix the ingredients together and increase the heat to high until the ingredients bubble
- Reduce the mixture to a simmer
- Simmer uncovered for 50 minutes stirring occassionally
- Serve with rice or caulifllower rice and a dollop of yogurt
Nutrition Information
This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.
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