This Easy Moroccan Chickpeas recipe is slightly spicy, slightly sweet and very savory. Simple pantry ingredients come together to create this warm, aromatic and cozy dish. Every bite is so satisfying and best of all it is super quick and easy to make.
Easy Moroccan Chickpeas
This easy Moroccan chickpeas recipe is the type of dish I could eat weekly. It is beyond simple to make and yet so gourmet and full of robust flavor. Sweetness comes from the dried apricots and cinnamon. Heat comes from the incredible ras el hanout Moroccan spice blend. If you are not able to get your hands on this spice blend you can make it yourself. I included the recipe below in the notes of the recipe card. It makes the dish and is highly addictive.
How to Make Easy Moroccan Chickpeas
The entire dish comes together quickly and only requires one skillet leaving minimal mess. The ingredient list is short and uses mostly pantry ingredients:
- canned garbanzo beans (or cooked from dried)
- canned diced tomatoes
- dried apricots
- vegetable broth
- extra virgin olive oil
- spices
- red onion
- garlic
To contrast the deep complex flavors of this dish, I like to serve it will fresh cilantro and/or fresh mint. This is optional and if you do not have on hand the dish will still turn out great. You may also want to make it a bit heartier and garnish with toasted sliced almonds for a light crunchy, nutty contrast. And, if serving as an entree you can serve over rice, quinoa or any grain to help sop up the flavorful juices of this dish.
To make this dish, sauté everything together in stages in a skillet. I like searing the chickpeas a bit against the oily skillet before adding the liquid ingredients. For me, this adds even more flavor. If you are in a rush you can skip this step. Another way to make this dish extra delicious is to mash up some of the chickpeas with a potato masher or the back of a fork. This releases the starches from the garbanzo beans and thickens the stew a bit. I think this step lends a nice texture to the dish so that it isn't all super chunky. Once you make this dish you can tweak the methods and spice quantities to really make it your own.
Health Benefits of Chickpeas
Chickpeas are one of my favorite pantry staples I use to whip up last minute recipes. They are easy to work with, versatile, inexpensive and nutritious. Chickpeas are considered a legume, which means it contains plant-based protein, fiber and complex carbs. They are also an excellent source of folic acid. Plus, they are low in fat and contain no cholesterol. This dish will digest slowly (keeping you fuller longer) and is satisfying without making you feel stuffed.
See my complete guide on the health benefits of chickpeas for more information.
Looking for more delicious chickpea recipes?
Sweet and Spiced Roasted Chickpeas
Vegan Chickpea Bolognese Pasta
Cauliflower and Chickpea Tikka Masala
Easy Vegan Sweet Potato Chickpea Curry
Now, let’s make Easy Moroccan Chickpeas!
This Easy Moroccan Chickpeas recipe is gluten-free, vegan, dairy-free, egg-free, nut-free, grain-free, soy-free and refined sugar-free. It makes a wonderful entree or side dish. I cannot wait for you to give it a try!
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Easy Moroccan Chickpeas
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 4 1x
- Diet: Vegan
Description
This One-Skillet Moroccan Chickpeas recipe is slightly spicy, slightly sweet and very savory. Simple pantry ingredients come together to create this warm, aromatic and cozy dish. Every bite is so satisfying and best of all it is super quick and easy to make.
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- ½ large red onion, diced
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 4 large garlic cloves, peeled and minced
- 1 cup dried apricots, diced
- 1 tablespoon ras el hanout (Moroccan spice blend)
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 (15.5-ounce) can garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained (or 1.5 cups cooked from dried)
- 1 (14.5-ounce) can no salt added diced tomatoes (with the juices)
- ½ cup low sodium vegetable broth
For garnish
- 1 cup cilantro leaves, large stems removed, leaves chopped
- ¼ cup mint leaves, large stems removed, leaves chopped
- ½ cup toasted sliced almonds (optional)
Serve with:
- 4 cups cooked rice or quinoa (optional - serving it by itself is also delicious)
Instructions
- Preheat a 10-inch cast iron skillet over medium heat for 5 minutes. Once warm, add oil, onions, salt and pepper. Saute for 4 minutes until onions are fragrant and translucent. Add the garlic and saute another minute.
- Add apricots, ras el hanout spice blend, cinnamon and garbanzo beans and stir well to evenly coat the beans. Use your spatula to spread the garbanzo beans into one even layer. Leave them untouched for 5 minutes to sear them. Toss and sear again for another 5 minutes.
- Add diced tomatoes and their juices and vegetable broth, stir and bring to a boil. Reduce to low heat and allow to simmer for 10 minutes to infuse the chickpeas with flavor and cook down the liquid. You can mash some of the chickpeas with a potato masher or the back of a fork to release some of their starches and create a thicker broth.
- Serve hot and garnish with cilantro, mint and toasted sliced almonds. You may want to serve over rice or quinoa (it is also delicious served by itself). Store leftovers in an airtight container in your refrigerator for up to five days.
Notes
Ras-El-Hanout Spice Blend:
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon salt
¾ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground coriander seeds
½ teaspoon ground allspice
¼ teaspoon ground cloves
Whisk together all ingredients until combined well. This recipe uses one tablespoon of this spice blend. You can save the rest for another dish (try my Moroccan Spiced Soup). Spice blend keeps in an airtight container at cool room temperature for up to one month.
- Prep Time: 5
- Cook Time: 30
- Category: Entree
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Moroccan
Keywords: Easy Moroccan Chickpeas
Mary Kate says
We made this last weekend and loved it! Served over brown rice. The apricots are not something we usually would add to a recipe but they made for the perfect amount of sweetness. Also made great leftovers.
Elaine Gordon says
Thank you so much, Mary Kate! So happy you and fam loved this dish and were able to enjoy leftovers too! 🙂
Kathryn Holst says
Can I prepare this dish ahead of time and then reheat? If so, how do I reheat?
Kathryn
Elaine Gordon says
Hi Kathryn: I'm so sorry for the major delay. Your comment got stuck in the spam folder for some reason. Anyhow, yes, you can absolutely prepare this dish ahead of time and you can reheat on the stovetop, oven or microwave just to warm it back up to your desired temperature. It shouldn't take more than 10 minutes or so to warm back up in the oven and on the stovetop I would imagine. I hope that helps and I apologize again for the delay!
Kathryn Holst says
Can I make this dish ahead and reheat? If so, how do I reheat?
Elaine Gordon says
Yes! Reheat on the stovetop or microwave or even the oven. You can't go wrong with this one. Pls LMK what you end up doing and how it goes for you. Best, Elaine
Kathryn Holst says
I ended up heated this dish on the stovetop. It kept its wonderful flavour and texture. I had 12 people over for Rosh Hashanah dinner and everyone thought this Moroccan chickpeas dish was delicious.
Elaine Gordon says
Aw yay! So grateful you followed up to share how the reheating went! And SO happy to hear your 12 guests enjoyed this dish for Rosh Hashana! That makes me so happy! Thank you for trusting in this recipe for such a special occasion! Best, Elaine