By Martha Rose Shulman
- Total Time
- About 30 minutes
- Rating
- 5(3,364)
- Notes
- Read community notes
This is mostly a pantry dish, very quick to put together. You can serve it on its own, with couscous or pasta, or over a thick slice of toasted bread rubbed with garlic.
Featured in: Chickpeas With Baby Spinach
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Ingredients
Yield:Serves three
- 1tablespoon olive oil
- 1medium onion, chopped
- 2garlic cloves, minced
- 1teaspoon cumin seeds, lightly toasted and ground
- Salt, preferably kosher salt
- Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 1tablespoon tomato paste
- 1(15-ounce) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- 1cup chicken or vegetable stock, or water
- Cayenne, to taste
- 1(6-ounce) bag baby spinach
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (3 servings)
306 calories; 10 grams fat; 1 gram saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 5 grams monounsaturated fat; 2 grams polyunsaturated fat; 43 grams carbohydrates; 12 grams dietary fiber; 9 grams sugars; 15 grams protein; 764 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
Step
1
Heat the olive oil in a large, heavy saucepan over medium heat and add the onion. Cook, stirring, until tender, about five minutes. Add the garlic, cumin, tomato paste and ½ teaspoon salt. Cook, stirring for one to two minutes, until fragrant and the tomato paste has turned a darker color. Add the chickpeas, the stock or water, and the cayenne, and bring to a simmer. Cover, reduce the heat, and simmer 10 minutes.
Step
2
Stir in the spinach, a handful at a time, stirring until each addition of spinach wilts. Add salt to taste and simmer uncovered, stirring often, for five minutes. Add lots of freshly ground pepper, taste and adjust salt and cayenne, and serve.
Tips
- Another way to make this dish is to blanch the spinach separately in salted boiling water for 10 to 20 seconds. Transfer to a bowl of ice water, drain and squeeze dry. Add to the chickpeas as in step 2, but stir together for only two to three minutes.
- Advance preparation: This can be made up to a day ahead and refrigerated, but when you reheat you’ll want to add a little more liquid. It can sit on top of the stove for a few hours.
Ratings
5
out of 5
3,364
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Private Notes
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Cooking Notes
Susan
Can I use the same amount of ground cumin instead of the "cumin seeds, lightly toasted and ground"?
Julia
I think 5 minutes of cooking time for the spinach is too much. I have preferred this when I stir the spinach in just until it's wilted -- at most one minute. This recipe is delicious and I highly recommend it!
R C
use smoked paprika instead of cayenne. Less hot, more depth.
TJ
If you put your ground cumin in a dry pan and heat it until it darkens and the aroma changes , the recipe will work.
P. Howard
P.S. Feta pairs well with this dish.
Rich
Delish!
I like to chop the spinach roughly
I use smoked paprika instead of cayenne
Jess
Made this for dinner last night - quick, simple, filling, and delicious! I feel compelled to point out that it tastes just as good over blue cheese-cheesy grits.
Sheila
What a fantastic recipe! I had all of the ingredients in the house. Used spinach from the farmers market. Absolutely delicious. Recipe is a keeper! I have yet to meet a Martha Rose Shulman recipe that I did not like!
Leslie
Finely chop a decent sized nob of ginger and add to the saute at the same time as the garlic and you add a whole new dimension to this dish. Also, only half draining the chickpeas gives the sauce a silky volume that really clings to the spinach.
R C
ground cumin is fine, no need to use seeds
Ellen
Just made this with cous cous and it was delicious! A healthy, hearty, quick dinner. I didn't cook the spinach for as long as the recipe stated and I substituted cumin seeds for ground cumin, but it still turned out great. Be generous with the garlic and cayenne. Next time I'll add a squeeze of lemon at the end.
Jennifer
I liked this alot, but it needed alot of help to be flavorful. This is a light, healthy lunch option and it really is a pantry meal. Didn't have chickpeas on hand, so I used butter beans, and this worked with it. I added ground coriander to the dish to give it a more complex flavor. Like other reviewers, I added a squeeze of citrus at the end, plus I mixed in chopped cilantro and green onions for a fresh flavor, and a generous dollop of greek yogurt (around 2 tablespoons).
Mary
Good at room temperature
P. Howard
This recipe is delicious, so glad I doubled it. I used crushed Aleppo pepper for the heat and added ~ 2Tbsp lemon juice at the end which brightened the dish. I added the water gradually and only needed ~1 1/2 cups.
Wes
I substituted the tomato paste for harissa and added a generous portion of curry powder and the juice of half a lime. Ended up tasting delicious with the few modifications. It needs a little dressing up but this is a great base recipe that you can take in a lot of directions
LL
Very good and easy. Used ground cumin. Threw in chopped grape tomatoes. Used frozen kale which worked well. Dollop of Greek yogurt. Will make again and again.
MM
Used smoked paprika instead of cayenne. Served over pasta. So easy, and very good.
Patusie
Substituted chili crisp for the tomato paste (one for one). Had 16 oz homemade garbanzos so used all of them. Always use more cumin than written, but we love it. This all came together well and very quickly. I agree with 5 minutes for the spinach being too long. Depending how you like your spinach, probably just cook to your liking. This is really quite good!
Emmy Price
had to improvise on the seasoning - added some red chili pesto I had to hand, and it tasted incredible! I was eating it out of the pan
Lydia
To get four generous entree-size portions, double this recipe. If the math doesn’t quite work out with prepackaged items, err on the side of extra chickpeas. Be sure to stem the spinach and rough chop or rip before adding (otherwise the mouthfeel is weird). Ground cumin is fine (1 tsp. whole seeds = 1/4 tsp. ground). This is outstanding served over small (not pearled) couscous. My husband who grumbles if there’s not meat in a meal adores this dish. It’s a vegetarian meal he actually requests!
Camusman
Try mixing in 1/2 cup of yoghurt sauce or tahini at the end. Yum!
jencourtjan
First time making this and it was delicious. I added a squeeze of lemon at the end. I also happened to have some goat cheese on hand and boy was that a good choice to sprinkle on top.
maggie
don’t overlook this gem
Michele
Cooked as directed except I used the whole 8pm bag of spinach and it was great. You really do have to use cumin seeds because that is what drives the flavor.
KMF
Yum. I added a few cut up sun dried tomatoes and wished I added more!
Bry
I swapped cabbage for spinach since that’s what I had in my fridge and added a dollop of Greek yogurt on top to serve which leveled out the heat a bit. Really tasty and low effort which we love the combination of!
suzyc
Easy and simple. Seasoning! Don't hesitate on the herbs.
t
Added harissa
Diann
Loved this! Served 2 and my husband is asking for it again! Used smoked paprika. Husband came up with several variations he'd like to try: adding carrots and other vegetables, more beans of different types. This is a winner of a basic recipe that lets you use what's in the pantry!
Brandon H
This is the ultimate pantry-clearing recipe. I’ve substituted crushed tomatoes, powdered cumin, kale for some of the spinach, and even onion flakes when I only had a small onion. It’s never the same, but it’s always good. A bulletproof staple for me now. Plus if you add too much cayenne (or red pepper flakes) you get to mellow it out with some yogurt or sour cream. You can do whatever you want with it!
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