Have you ever pause to ask yourself why there are multiple options of canned baked beans in the supermarket but there aren’t any flavoured canned chickpea products?
You haven’t?
OK well luckily my crazy brain asks these types of questions on the regular.
Which is where the idea for some of my favourite recipes comes from.
Case in point these home ‘baked’ chickpeas. We’re talking the tomatoey goodness of baked beans with the superior flavour of the humble chickpea. For me they’re better than baked beans but even if you’re a die-hard baked beans fan this will give you options.
And I know it’s a bit weird to use the canning liquid but it does combine with the butter and tomato paste to make the sauce extra tasty. Plus you can give yourself a little virtuous pat on the back from not wasting food.
Oh and the ‘baked’ comes from the fact that we’re not actually putting these in the oven – just warming everything in a saucepan on the stove top – much quicker thank waiting for the oven to heat.
Ingredients
- 1 can chickpeas 400g / 14oz, including juice
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 2 tablespoons butter
PLUS Ingredients
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin optional
- baby spinach or other salad to serve
Instructions
- Place chickpeas and the juice from the can in a medium saucepan on a high heat.
- Add tomato paste, cumin (if using) and butter and simmer for 5 minutes or until the sauce has thickened up a little.
- Season and serve hot chickpeas on a bed of baby spinach (if using)
Prepare Ahead?
Absolutely. Just refrigerate and reheat.
Leftover Potential
Will keep for a week or so. Although best to keep the spinach separate to make the chickpeas easier to reheat.
Variations
carnivore – brown 1-2 sliced chorizo, sausage or bacon in the pan before adding the chickpeas and continuing as above.
vegan / dairy-free – replace the butter with a few generous drizzles of good olive oil.
hot! – add in a few ginely chopped red chillies OR some dried chilli powder 1/2 – 1 teaspoon should do it.
beans – replace chickpeas with canned beans.
budget – soak and cook dried chickpeas from scratch. Then use about 1/2 cup cooking liquid and 1 1/2 cups chickpeas.
carb lovers / more substantial – serve the chickpeas with warm flat bread or tortillas.
paleo (gluten, grain + dairy-free) – replace chickpeas with diced roast veg. Serve with cooked protein like poached or fried eggs.
more veg – soften an onion, carrot and celery before adding chickpeas.
Waste Avoidance Strategy
chickpeas / tomato paste / ground cumin – keep them in the pantry.
butter – will keep in the fridge for months.
baby spinach – either freeze or wilt down in a pan with a little oil and then keep in the fridge for weeks.
Problem Solving Guide
too bland? – add in a little more tomato paste and cumin.
too salty – the canned chickpeas and tomato paste are both providing quite a bit of salt. If it’s too intense, dilute with a little more (unsalted) butter OR a few glugs of olive oil.
watery – the sauce isn’t meant to be overly thick. But if you’re not happy, keep simmering uncovered until you are.
no ground cumin? – just skip it. Or try some ground coriander or smoked paprika for a different vibe.
too sharp – sounds like too much tomato paste and not enough butter.