This is an easy, vegan, cheap dish that is packed with nutrition and can feed a large crowd.
Ingredients
1 lb. chickpeas
Water
Bay leaves
Kombu seaweed
Cardamom pods
Cinnamon stick
Ginger root
Whole garlic cloves
2 cups pure tomato sauce or 1/2 cup tomato paste
Celery leaves
Parsley
Cilantro
Ground turmeric
Paprika
Black pepper
1 tsp. sea salt
1 tbsp. olive oil
Process
In advance, soak the chickpeas for 24-48 hours in cool water. Change the soaking water at least once. See additional tips on how to cook beans better.
Prepare a 5-quart pot with 2.5 quarts of cold water with a strip of kombu seaweed, bay leaves, a few cardamom pods, and a cinnamon stick. Let sit for two hours until the seaweed expands. Bring the water to a boil and turn to low heat. Drain the soaked chickpeas and add to the pot. Add the celery leaves, some thin slices of ginger root, and a few whole garlic cloves (you can even save yourself some effort and leave the skin on these since you’ll be fishing out some debris later. Or read more about how to work with garlic to make your life easier).
Cover and cook on low heat for about two hours, or until the chickpeas taste soft and buttery. Add the tomato sauce and season the pot to taste with sea salt, turmeric, black pepper, and olive oil. Fish out the bay leaves, garlic skins, and other spice debris to leave only the chickpeas and the broth.
Take an entire bunch of parsley and an entire bunch of cilantro and separate the leaves from the stalks. This is a menial, thankless task, but I find it meditative. If you’re not into it, go ahead and chop up the herbs using your best knife skills. Works perfectly. Add the herbs to the pot and let them wilt into the broth. Remove from the heat. Add some olive oil to the pot and drizzle a few drops when serving.
Serve atop herbed couscous.