I don’t know if I mentioned this, but I pretty much ate my weight in cheese over the holiday. Now that I feel sufficiently icky, I’m trying to focus on some more plant-based recipes to help me get back to feeling normal. I decided to throw together a warm stew today with some things that I had on hand and ended up with this super hearty and delicious Smoky Potato Chickpea Stew. NOM NOM! Perfect for these cool fall days!
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The seasoning for this stew is very simple, just a ton of smoked paprika and curry powder, plus a little pinch of red pepper flakes for kick. I simmered the soup for a good long time which made the potatoes break down and thicken the broth into a wonderfully thick stew. I was really bummed that I didn’t have a really good loaf of bread or homemade croutons to soak up this stew, but I found some saltine crackers in my pantry, which worked in a pinch. Just know that this stew is just begging for a nice piece of crusty bread to go along with it!
What Kind of Curry Powder Do You Use?
I’ve enjoyed both 365 brand curry powder and Sharwood’s curry powder. You can use either hot or mild in this recipe, but I think I actually prefer mild curry powder here so that it doesn’t overpower the other flavors. You can also try making your own curry powder with this recipe for Easy Homemade Curry Powder from Spiceitupp.com.
Can You Freeze Smoky Potato Chickpea Stew?
Yes! This recipe freezes beautifully. Just divide the soup into single portions after cooking, cool the portions completely in the refrigerator first, then transfer to the freezer for long term storage. You can keep the stew frozen for about three months. I like to use the reusable Ziploc containers because they can go straight from the freezer to the microwave for fast reheating when I need a quick meal.
Can I Substitute the Kale?
Yes, spinach makes a great substitute for the kale. But since spinach is much softer and more delicate than kale, add the spinach at the very end and just stir it into the stew until wilted.
Want more vegan stews? Try Vegan Winter Lentil Stew, Moroccan Lentil and Vegetable Stew, or West African Peanut Stew.
Smoky Potato Chickpea Stew
Servings 6 1.3 cups eachIngredients
- 2 Tbsp olive oil ($0.26)
- 2 cloves garlic ($0.16)
- 1 tsp grated fresh ginger
- 1 yellow onion ($0.32)
- 1 Tbsp curry powder ($0.30)
- 1 Tbsp smoked paprika ($0.30)
- pinch crushed red pepper ($0.02)
- 1 15oz. can fire roasted diced tomatoes ($1.00)
- 2 russet potatoes (1.75-2 lbs total) ($1.62)
- 1 15oz. can chickpeas ($0.55)
- 4 cups vegetable broth* ($0.52)
- 1/4 lb. fresh kale, chopped ($1.16)
Instructions
- Finely dice the onion, mince the garlic, and grate the ginger. Add the onion, garlic, and ginger to a large soup pot with the olive oil and sauté over medium heat until the onions are soft and transparent.
- Add the curry powder, smoked paprika, and red pepper flakes to the pot and continue to stir and cook for 1-2 minutes more to toast the spices.
- While the onion, garlic, and ginger are sautéing, peel the potatoes and cut them into 1-inch cubes. Drain the chickpeas.
- Once the spices are toasted, add the potatoes, fire roasted diced tomatoes (with juices), and chickpeas to the pot. Pour the vegetable broth over top, then stir until everything is combined.
- Place a lid on the pot, turn the heat up to medium-high, and allow it to come to a boil. Once boiling, turn the heat down to low and allow the soup to simmer with the lid in place for 45 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- After 45 minutes, stir the stew well and smash the potatoes against the side of the pot to help them break down and thicken the stew. Add the chopped kale and stir it into the stew until it has wilted. Taste the soup and adjust the salt or other spices if desired. Serve hot with crusty bread or crackers.
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Notes
Nutrition
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How to Make Smoky Chickpea Stew – Step by Step Photos
Finely dice one onion, mince two cloves of garlic, and grate about a teaspoon of fresh ginger. Add the onion, garlic, and ginger to a large soup pot along with 2 Tbsp olive oil and sauté over medium heat until the onions are soft and transparent, then add 1 Tbsp curry powder, 1 Tbsp smoked paprika, and a pinch of red pepper flakes. Continue to sauté for 1-2 minutes more to toast the spices.
While the onions garlic and ginger are sautéing, peel and dice two russet potatoes and drain one 15oz. can of chickpeas. Once the spices have toasted, add the potatoes, chickpeas, and a 15oz. can of fire roasted diced tomatoes (with juices) to the pot.
Pour 4 cups vegetable broth over the contents of the pot, stir everything really well, then place a lid on top an turn the heat on to medium-high. Allow the stew to come up to a boil. Once it reaches a boil, turn the heat down to low and let it simmer for 45 minutes, stirring only occasionally. After 45 minutes, stir well and smash the potatoes against the side wall of the pot to help thicken the stew (the photo is after smashing).
Pre-bagged chopped kale is the best thing that ever happened to me (okay, maybe that’s an exaggeration). I used about 1/3 of this 12oz. bag. You can use however much you want. Just add a few handfuls to the stew and stir it in until the kale is wilted.
If you like your kale extra tender, you can simmer it a bit longer to soften it up, but I like mine to have some tooth and to be bright green. It’s important to taste the stew at this point and adjust the salt and seasonings to your liking. Depending on what type of broth you used, you may want to add a touch more salt to really make the flavors pop. Or maybe you want just a little more heat, so you add another pinch of red pepper flakes.
While the saltines were good in the stew, I really wish I had a nice crusty, chewy loaf of ciabatta! :D
Could I use frozen spinach in place of kale? If so, should I thaw it before adding it into the soup? Thank you!
Yes, you can do spinach instead of kale and you don’t really need to thaw it first. It will thaw as it heats in the soup. :)
This was delicious! We only had one potato so cut the recipe in half but still used a whole can of diced tomatoes and a whole can of chickpeas. Used chicken broth instead of veggie broth since that’s what we had on hand. Also had half a chicken breast to use up so grilled and diced it and added it to the stew. Added a little cayenne pepper too. Will definitely make this again. Love that it’s tasty and budget friendly. Served with warm french bread rolls.
This was my very first soup and it was soooooo delicious!!!
Made this last night and it was very good. We used spinach instead of kale and made it in the Instant Pot – 4 minutes on high pressure. With a side of naan, it was a perfect Meatless Monday meal!
A friend made this for us and it is DELICIOUS! We ate the double batch in 2 days and we are now halfway through a triple batch in just 2 days. Thank you!
Wow! First recipe I’ve made from this site and I’m super impressed!! I wanted a hearty soup to go with the colder weather. I thought this might taste meaty without the meat and I was right!
I did use low organic sodium chicken broth instead of vegetable because that’s all I had on hand. Also, I used yukon gold instead of russet potatoes and they held their shape well which I think I prefer. I cooked it for 30 minutes longer and that seemed to make it as thick as the russets probably would have.
Thanks!
Wow, what an amazingly healthy yet flavor-packed dish! It has a lovely spicy smokey flavor. I’m gonna pick up some garlic naan, it’ll be incredible to dip into this hearty stew. A few notes about subs: I realized too late that I didnt have curry powder so used Garam masala, also used garlic salt instead of instead of garlic; I think the recipe is very forgiving of subs and add-ins such as carrots. The smoked paprika is a major part of the flavor profile so I’d definitely use good quality stuff. Thanks for an incredible recipe that I’ll enjoy time and again!
I got the app so it would be easier for me to save recipes for later, but I’m dismayed to discover that most of the recipes I want to save from the website aren’t on the app! This is one of those…
Hi Sarah, the app comes with 500 recipes pre-loaded onto the app, and everything I’ve created since the app launched can be found in the marketplace (the little shopping bag icon at the bottom). You use credits to download the recipes you want from the marketplace into your app. The app comes with tons of free credits to get you started and you earn more as you use the app, so you can continue to get free recipes (or you can buy credits, if you want).
Flavoursome, fresh and filling, this is a really hearty supper. As a deviation from the plant-based ethos to this dish, a good sprinkling of grated cheese on top works a treat.
I just wanted to say thank you for this recipe. I’ve always been an “it’s not a meal without meat” guy, but this is flat-out, absolutely fantastic. Goes great with some buttered sourdough.
I made this recipe last night. Wonderful…the taste was amazing :).
Does anyone know???
I have a 28 oz can of diced tomatoes, 1 can potatoes, 1 can chickpeas, frozen onion, frozen spinach. I don’t have much in the way of spice. Would this work? And since I need a serving for one, how would I store the rest for the next 6 months to a year? Thank you!
You could probably make do with some salt and pepper if you have that. Be generous with the salt and make sure to caramelize your onions. To store it just freeze individual sized portions in recycled glass jars, tupperwares, baggies etc.
This is fantastic! So delicious and easy! We didnt have roasted tomatoes so used cilantro, lime and oregano tomatoes and topped it at the end with fresh cilantro….FANTASTIC! I would do two cans of rinsed chick peas next time but it was SO YUMMY!
This is amazing. Make it now.
My mom just made this for me and I paired it with rice.
Oh. My. God. This tastes like it came from a trendy vegan Cajun food trunk found in the hipster burroughs of Orlando.
I am in love! I can’t wait to make this myself. Thank you!