Chicken and chickpea stew will warm your insides
This nourishing, one-pot meal in a bowl is just the thing to fuel you during these cold days when your to-do list is longer than the number of hours of sunlight.
The stew is composed of a fragrant, spice-infused tomato sauce, tender bites of chicken thigh, meaty chickpeas and ribbons of justwilted spinach. Its spices — earthy cumin, citrusy coriander, sweet-savory cinnamon and a hint of heat from crushed red pepper — will warm you on a chilly day.
And although it tastes like a complex, long-cooked dish, it is quite simple to make and ready in about a half-hour. Bonus: This stew, like many others, tastes even better the next day or two. So whip up a pot, doubling the recipe as needed, for a nourishing, belly-warming meal at your fingertips through much of the week.
Make ahead: The stew tastes even better with a day or two’s refrigeration.
AROMATIC CHICKEN AND CHICKPEA STEW
1-inch pieces (excess fat trimmed)
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground
black pepper 3 tablespoons extra-virgin
olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
(about 1 cup)
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin 1/2 teaspoon ground
coriander
1/4 teaspoon ground
cinnamon
Pinch crushed red pepper flakes, or more as needed
One 14.5- ounce can no-salt-added diced tomatoes, with their juices
One 8-ounce can no-saltadded tomato sauce One 15-ounce can lowsodium chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1/2 cup water
3 packed cups fresh baby spinach, coarsely chopped
Season the chicken all over with 1/4 teaspoon each of the salt and pepper.
Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in a large, wide-bottomed pot over medium-high heat. Once the oil shimmers, add the chicken and cook for about 4 minutes total, stirring once or twice until it has browned, then transfer it to a plate.
Add the remaining tablespoon of oil to the pot and reduce the heat to medium.
Add the onion and cook for 5 minutes, stirring, until it has softened. Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds, then stir in the cumin, coriander, cinnamon, crushed red pepper flakes and the remaining 1/2 teaspoon of salt and 1/4 teaspoon of pepper.
Add the diced tomatoes with their juices, the tomato sauce, chickpeas and water. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium-low, cover and cook for 10 minutes.
Return the chicken with any accumulated juices to the pot; cover and cook for 8 to 10 minutes, until the chicken is tender and cooked through.
Stir in the spinach and cook until it is wilted, 1 minute more. Taste, and add more crushed red pepper flakes, as needed.
Serve hot.
Makes 4 servings (about 4 cups). Per serving: 390 calories, 30 g protein, 29 g carbohydrates, 18 g fat, 3 g saturated fat, 105 mg cholesterol, 530 mg sodium, 9 g dietary fiber, 10 g sugar