I Finally Made The Chickpea Stew

The Spiced Chickpea Stew with Coconut and Turmeric went viral earlier this year after it was originally published in the New York Times and I can recall at least five different lifestyle bloggers who made and raved about it.

Being the contrarian that I am, I wasn't one to jump on the bandwagon.

However, with autumn fast approaching and my desire to add to my cooking repertoire suddenly at 100% now that I don't have to worry about any rigid dietary preferences, I figured I would actually give this stew a try and see if I want to keep it on rotation this season.

Spoiler alert: It's pretty amazing.

There are a couple different versions of this floating around the internet, but the linked recipe from Epicurious was the one that made the final cut. D-man (referenced in this post - *wink wink nudge nudge*) was kind enough to pick up some ingredients needed for it on his way over my place last weekend.

I attempted to cast myself as a prep cook, but I'll be honest - I've never chopped up garlic or ginger in my life and I had no idea what to do with either of these things. Thankfully, I had help!

D-man and I more or less split the chopping duties in half. (As an aside: Does it get anyone else hot and bothered to have a really hot guy cooking in your kitchen? Just me? Okay, carry on.) I definitely took over once we started adding things to the pot though - sauteeing requires a fair bit of confidence after all and I have years of experiencing in watching things sizzle.

Once everything was in the pot and simmering merrily away, D-man and I cracked open a few beers. In order to pass the 30-35 minutes required for the stew to thicken up, we started looking at photos of different actors to determine which animal they most resembled. Tilda Swinton is totally a cockatoo, right? I can't be the only one to see that.

Regrettably, I do not have photos of the stew the night we enjoyed it, but it made for great leftovers (bonus!) and so you'll have to make do with subpar camera pics from my second time enjoying it.

The Verdict:

Honestly, it was pretty tasty. The flavor is actually quite rich, which was suprising for something with overall healthy ingredients, and while I wouldn't want to eat it too often it's definitely a nice indulgence. The slight heat from the pepper flakes is a good balance for the coconut milk, but you could easily make this spicier if it suits your tastes.

Have you tried this spiced chickpea stew yet? Would you? Let me know your thoughts in the comment section!