Crockpot Gingered Chickpea and Spicy Tomato Stew Recipe

By the time that dinnertime rolled around last night, my family had heard enough out of me. That morning, I had sautéd some onions with a mixture of fresh ginger, garlic, and spices, added some tomatoes and combined this mixture with some chickpeas (garbanzo beans) in my crockpot. By lunchtime, my house smelled as good as frying bacon on a Sunday morning (my apologies to any vegetarians who might be reading this – please just try to imagine the smell of simmering gingered chickpeas). Much to my family’s exasperation, I continuously inhaled deeply and exclaimed, “That smells SO good!” throughout the rest of the day. Their torture only got worse at dinnertime.  With each bite, I let out an audible groan of satisfaction.  Their eye-rolling became less subtle as the meal progressed.

This vegetarian stew has a lot going for it.  Besides the ethereal smell and taste of this dish, it is dead simple to make.  Sauté some onions and spices, toss them with some chickpeas, and let the crockpot do the rest of the work. From the Family Crockpot Applesauce to the Crockpot Chicken, Black Bean and Chipotle Soup, my hard-working slow cooker has earned its keep over the past couple of weeks.

The recipe:
Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add 2 finely chopped onions and cook, stirring, until the onions begin to brown.

Add 4 finely chopped garlic cloves, 2 tablespoons minced fresh ginger, 2 teaspoons ground coriander, 1 teaspoon coriander seeds, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper. Cook, stirring, for 1 minute.

Add 2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar and 2 cups coarsely chopped canned or fresh tomatoes. Bring the mixture to a boil. Rinse and drain 2 cans (15 oz each) of chickpeas or cook and drain 2 cups dried chickpeas. Spread the chickpeas in the bottom of a crockpot (slow cooker). Pour the tomato mixture over the chickpeas and stir well.

Cover the crockpot and cook on Low for 6 to 8 hours or on High for 3 to 4 hours. Just before serving, stir in 2 cups (packed) fresh spinach leaves. You could use any leafy green that appeals to you, such as Swiss chard or kale. Serve as a side dish or over rice as an entrée.

Other chickpea recipes:
Kalyn’s Kitchen’s Spicy Sauteed Chickpeas with Beef & Cilantro
Simply Recipes’ Chickpea Potato Curry
Book of Yum’s Thai Coconut Chickpea Recipe

Tagged as: Beans, chickpea, crockpot, garbanzo, ginger, MeatlessMonday, slow cooker, vegetarian