Ottolenghi’s Chickpeas and Swiss Chard with Yogurt

Using canned chickpeas makes this an easy recipe — adapted from Ottolenghi Simple — a great choice for a weeknight dinner; it’s terrific when you’re looking for something meatless yet interesting and satisfying. Ottolenghi suggests serving this with steamed rice; I’d serve it with brown rice. He also mentions that you shouldn’t worry if you don’t have cilantro, as it “holds its own perfectly without.” I didn’t have any cilantro, so I subbed parlsey mixed with a few mint leaves, and that worked just fine — the dish was wonderful.

The author also mentions that you can make this up to 6 hours ahead up to the point in the last step where you stir in the lemon juice and yogurt.

Read our review of Ottolenghi Simple.

Serves 4 as a side dish, or 2 to 3 as a main course.

Ingredients

2 carrots, peeled and chopped in to ¾-inch/2 cm pieces

3 tablespoons olive oil, plus extra to serve

Salt and black pepper

1 large onion, finely chopped (1 ¼ cups / 180 g)

1 teaspoon caraway seeds

1 ½ teaspoon ground cumin

7 ounces / 200 g Swiss chard leaves, sliced into ½ inch / 1 cm strips

One 15.5 ounce/440 g can chickpeas, drained and rinsed

5 tablespoons / 75 ml water

1 lemon: juice half to get 1 tablespooon and cut the other half into 2 wedges, to serve

¼ cup / 70 g Greek-style yogurt

¼ cup / 5 g cilantro, roughly chopped (maybe substitute other herbs, such as parsley and mint)

Chickpeas and Swiss Chard.jpg

Instructions

1.  Heat the oven to 425 degrees. Mix the carrots with 1 tablespoon of the oil, ¼ teaspoon salt and a grind of pepper. Spread out on a parchment-lined baking sheet and roast for 20 minutes — they should still be a little crunchy.

2.  Place the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil in a large frying pan, over medium heat, and add the onion, caraway and cumin. Fry for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until golden brown. Add the chard, cooked carrots, chickpeas, water, ½ teaspoon salt and a good grind of pepper and mix through. Cook for 5 minutes, until the chard leaves are soft and hardly any juice is left in the pan.

3.  Remove from the heat, stir in the lemon juice, top with a generous spoonful of yogurt, a sprinkle of cilantro (or parsley and mint), a drizzle of oil, and a wedge of lemon and serve.

 

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Ottolenghi's Chickpeas and Swiss Chard with Yogurt

Ottolenghi's Chickpeas and Swiss Chard with Yogurt

Yield: Serves 4 as a side dish, or 2 to 3 as a main course.
Author: Recipe by Yotam Ottolenghi; headnote and adaptation by Leslie Brenner
Using canned chickpeas makes this an easy recipe — adapted from Ottolenghi Simple — a great choice for a weeknight dinner; it’s terrific when you’re looking for something meatless yet interesting and satisfying. Ottolenghi suggests serving this with steamed rice; I’d serve it with brown rice. He also mentions that you shouldn’t worry if you don’t have cilantro, as it “holds its own perfectly without.” I didn’t have any cilantro, so I subbed parlsey mixed with a few mint leaves, and that worked just fine — the dish was wonderful. The author also mentions that you can make this up to 6 hours ahead up to the point in the last step where you stir in the lemon juice and yogurt.

Ingredients

  • 2 carrots, peeled and chopped in to ¾-inch/2 cm pieces
  • 3 tablespoons olive oil, plus extra to serve
  • Salt and black pepper
  • 1 large onion, finely chopped (1 ¼ cups / 180 g)
  • 1 teaspoon caraway seeds
  • 1 ½ teaspoon ground cumin
  • 7 ounces / 200 g Swiss chard leaves, sliced into ½ inch / 1 cm strips
  • One 15.5 ounce/440 g can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
  • 5 tablespoons / 75 ml water
  • 1 lemon: juice half to get 1 tablespooon and cut the other half into 2 wedges, to serve
  • ¼ cup / 70 g Greek-style yogurt
  • ¼ cup / 5 g cilantro, roughly chopped (maybe substitute other herbs, such as parsley and mint)

Instructions

  1. Heat the oven to 425 degrees. Mix the carrots with 1 tablespoon of the oil, ¼ teaspoon salt and a grind of pepper. Spread out on a parchment-lined baking sheet and roast for 20 minutes — they should still be a little crunchy.
  2. Place the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil in a large frying pan, over medium heat, and add the onion, caraway and cumin. Fry for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until golden brown. Add the chard, cooked carrots, chickpeas, water, ½ teaspoon salt and a good grind of pepper and mix through. Cook for 5 minutes, until the chard leaves are soft and hardly any juice is left in the pan.
  3. Remove from the heat, stir in the lemon juice, top with a generous spoonful of yogurt, a sprinkle of cilantro (or parsley and mint), a drizzle of oil, and a wedge of lemon and serve.
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Main Course, Side Dish, Vegetarian
American, Mediterranean
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