Moroccan-leaning Chickpea and Veg Stew
Version v1-1 older · History (3)
Changelog: After first cook — Erica found the fine couscous too fine, cauliflower pieces too big, dish serviceable but not memorable. Grain default couscous swapped for pearl couscous or basmati rice (chewier bite). Cauliflower florets to about 1.5 cm dice (evens out the texture). Spices cumin 3 g to 5 g, paprika 3 g to 5 g (was underseasoned). Added dried fruit (raisins or apricots), preserved lemon or harissa option, toasted sliced almonds for crunch.
Serves 3
Ingredients
- 14 g sliced almonds
- 45 ml olive oil
- 1 onion (diced)
- 2 carrots (grated)
- 2 garlic cloves (grated)
- 5 g cumin (ground)
- 5 g paprika
- 1 g cinnamon
- 15 g tomato paste
- 1 red bell pepper (diced)
- 400 g cauliflower (cut into about 1.5 cm dice, stems and all)
- 400 g chickpeas (drained and rinsed)
- 400 g canned chopped tomatoes
- 200 ml coconut milk
- 470 ml vegetable broth
- 20 g raisins (or chopped dried apricots)
- 5 ml honey
- 3 g salt
- 180 g pearl couscous
- parsley (chopped)
- 0.5 lemon
- 0.5 preserved lemon
- 5 g harissa
Steps
- Toast sliced almonds (14 g) in a dry pan over medium for ⏲ 3 minutes, shaking — they go from pale to golden fast. Set aside.
- Heat olive oil (30 ml) in a large pan over medium. Add onion (1) and carrots (2), cook ⏲ 3–4 minutes until soft.
- Add garlic cloves (2), cumin (5 g), paprika (5 g), and cinnamon (1 g). Stir for ⏲ 30 seconds until fragrant.
- Add tomato paste (15 g), stir ⏲ 1–2 minutes until it darkens.
- Add red bell pepper (1), cauliflower (400 g), chickpeas (400 g), canned chopped tomatoes (400 g), coconut milk (200 ml), vegetable broth (200 ml), raisins (20 g), honey (5 ml), and salt (3 g). Stir and bring to a simmer.
- Simmer lid off on low heat ⏲ 18–20 minutes, stirring occasionally. The cauliflower should be tender but not mushy. Sauce should thicken — if too loose, simmer a few more minutes.
- In the last 10 to 15 minutes of the stew simmer, prepare the grain. Bring vegetable broth (270 ml) to a boil in a pot with olive oil (15 ml) and a pinch of salt, add pearl couscous (180 g), simmer uncovered ⏲ 8–10 minutes until tender. Drain any excess broth.
- Stir parsley and a squeeze of lemon (0.5) into the stew. If using preserved lemon, stir minced rind of preserved lemon (0.5) into adults' bowls (not the whole pot — it's salty and intense). Or, offer harissa (5 g) at the table for adults to stir in. Taste for salt. Serve the stew over the grain, topped with the toasted almonds.