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Simple and easy but delicious, this chickpea rice pilaf, made with healthful chickpeas and brown rice, is exactly what your body wants and craves!
This Indian inspired chickpea rice pilaf comes together quickly and easily with pantry staples. Nutty garbanzo beans, peanuts and veggies like bell peppers and squash fleck garam-masala-spiced brown rice, making each mouthful an adventure in texture and flavor. Serve it with a simple kachumber salad or vegan raita for a delicious weeknight dinner! This is a gluten free, soy free, vegan recipe and it can easily be nut-free.
If you love serving yourself up a healthful bowl of food every now and then — or all the time — I have for you your new favorite meal. This chickpea rice pilaf is as delicious as it is simple and if you have some cooked rice handy it can go from scratch to done in 15 minutes flat.
I love these one-pot rice recipes, and I’ve shared so many of them with you on the blog, including lemon garlic rice, vegan dirty rice, vegan jambalaya, vegan paella, and vegan arroz con “pollo”. This chickpea rice I have for you here is as delicious as all these, and it’s also more healthful. For one, it’s made with brown rice. It also packs lots of veggies and the chickpeas and peanuts add healthy protein.
The combination of ingredients also creates a dish with lots of texture and flavor. The brown rice is slightly chewy, the peanuts have a lovely bite, and the chickpeas and yellow squash are soft and creamy. Yum.
Spotlight on chickpeas
Chickpeas/ garbanzo beans (called kabuli chana or chholay in India) need no introduction but they definitely deserve the spotlight. These healthful little nuggets of nutty legume goodness are one of the most delicious foods you can eat, as well as the most nutritious. They are packed with heart-healthy fiber and protein, with nearly 13 grams of fiber and nearly 15 grams of protein in each cup of cooked chickpeas. The protein and fiber content helps keep you fuller longer, making chickpeas a valuable weight-loss ingredient.
Chickpeas are also a rich source of vitamins and minerals, including folate, manganese, iron and zinc, and they are a fabulous addition to any diet.
You can make so many delicious recipes with chickpeas, from the all-time favorite chana masala to a creamy chickpea curry to this pasta with roasted chickpeas and spinach, roasted cauliflower and chickpeas, and this Lebanese chickpea stew.
Chickpeas are budget-friendly as well. And it’s cheaper to buy dry chickpeas than canned (not to mention healthier because there are no additives in homecooked chickpeas) so try and cook your chickpeas from scratch. If you have an Instant Pot you do not even need to soak the chickpeas first, although soaking has some health benefits and if you can plan in advance it’s a good idea to soak your legumes.
Why you’ll love this chickpea rice recipe
- It’s so delicious and crave-worthy: Make this dish once and you’ll be making it again and again. It’s so delicious and almost everyone, including kids, will love it for all the flavors and textures in there.
- It’s healthy! Everything in this pot is great for you, from the chickpeas to the peanuts to the veggies and the brown rice. What’s not to love?
- It’s easy. If you have the cooked rice handy–and you can use any rice you have (see more in the FAQs below)– you can put this recipe together in minutes. You can even make this a low-carb recipe with cauliflower rice.
- It’s suited to all diets. The dish is already gluten-free, soy-free and vegan, and you can skip the peanuts for a nut-free pilaf.
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil. Any vegetable oil is fine, including coconut oil or avocado oil. I would recommend against using olive oil because the flavor isn’t great with Indian foods but if that’s all you have you can use it.
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds. These add a delicious, earthy flavor through the rice.
- 1 medium onion. Red or yellow, either is fine.
- 1 teaspoon ginger garlic paste
- 1 small jalapeno pepper. Use more for more heat, less for less heat. Deseed and remove ribs if sensitive to heat.
- ¼ cup peanuts. Leave out if you are nut-free. These add a nice crunch.
- 1 medium yellow squash or zucchini
- 1 large bell pepper. Any color is fine. I used a large purple sweet pepper.
- 2 medium tomatoes
- ½ teaspoon turmeric
- 1 tablespoon garam masala
- 3 cups cooked chickpeas (approximate yield from 1 cup dried chickpeas or two 14-oz cans)
- 3 cups cooked brown rice (yield from 1 cup dry rice)
- Salt to taste
- 2 tablespoon cilantro. Mint makes a nice substitute.
How to make chickpea rice (step by step)
- Heat oil in a large wok or skillet.
- Add the cumin seeds and, when they begin to darken in a few seconds, add the peanuts and the jalapeno. Stir-fry for a couple of minutes.
- Add in the onions and saute until the onions soften.
- Mix in the ginger garlic paste and saute for a minute.
- Add in the squash and bell peppers and saute for 3-4 minutes until they get fairly tender.
- Add the tomatoes and toss quickly.
- Stir in the powdered spices–turmeric and garam masala — and mix with the veggies.
- Add in the chickpeas, stir them in, and then add the rice. Check salt and add more if needed.
- Toss the rice gently with the chickpeas and veggies, taking care not to break the rice grains, and once the rice is coated evenly with the masalas, place a lid on the skillet and let the rice steam for a couple of minutes just so it warms through.
- Sprinkle on the cilantro and serve hot.
Expert tips
- If you cook the rice from scratch add a bit of salt and a pinch of ground black pepper to it so the rice has some flavor. You can also add in a couple of bay leaves.
- When making any flavored rice, make sure you don’t overhandle or stir the rice too much as that could break the rice grains and turn the rice gummy. Stir just enough to mix, then stop.
Frequently Asked Questions
With just 270 calories in each serving, 9 grams of protein and 8 grams of fiber in each serving this recipe is more than healthy. It is packed with nutrients from the whole, clean ingredients and the veggies, with the spices like turmeric and garam masala stirring in more healthfulness.
You definitely can. Just substitute the brown rice for an equal quantity of white rice — a long-grain rice like basmati rice works best. Light brown rice, or hand-pounded rice, works too!
You can make this chickpea rice low-carb by using cauliflower rice instead of actual rice. You don’t need to pre-cook the cauliflower rice. Mix it into the chickpeas, spices and veggies with ½ cup water, cover, and let it steam and cook for 10 minutes.
Chickpeas are really tasty here but another bean like kidney bean (rajma) or pinto beans or even black beans would be nice too in this recipe.
Definitely. You can add as many veggies as you want, or leave out veggies altogether (except the onions and tomatoes). You can add zucchini, sweet potatoes, carrots, spinach, broccoli, cauliflower, and most quick-cooking veggies.
What to serve with chickpea rice
The chickpea rice is a one-pot meal with veggies, carbs and proteins all present in a single bowl. Serve it with vegan raita, which complements it nicely, for maximum deliciousness. You can also serve some poppadum on the side although it’s not necessary.
Storage instructions
- Refrigerator: The chickpea rice keeps nicely in the fridge for up to three days.
- Freezer: Freeze chickpea rice in an airtight container for up to four months.
- Reheating: Reheat frozen rice or refrigerated rice in the microwave or thaw and reheat in a skillet over the stovetop.
More chickpea recipes you might like
Chickpea Rice
This Indian inspired chickpea rice pilaf comes together quickly and easily with pantry staples. Nutty chickpeas, peanuts and veggies like bell peppers and squash fleck garam-masala-spiced brown rice, making each mouthful an adventure in texture and flavor. This is a gluten free, soy free, vegan recipe and it can easily be nut-free.
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Servings: 6 servings
Calories: 270kcal
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Instructions
-
Heat oil in a large wok or skillet.
-
Add the cumin seeds and, when they begin to darken in a few seconds, then add in the peanuts and saute a couple of minutes.
-
Add the onions and saute until they are soft.
-
Mix in the ginger garlic paste and saute for a minute.
-
Add in the zucchini and bell peppers and saute for 3-4 minutes until they get fairly tender.
-
Add the tomatoes and toss quickly.
-
Stir in the powdered spices–turmeric and garam masala — and mix with the veggies.
-
Add in the chickpeas, stir them in, and then add the rice. Check salt and add more if needed.
-
Toss the rice gently with the chickpeas and veggies, taking care not to break the rice grains, and once the rice is coated evenly with the masalas, place a lid on the skillet and let the rice steam for a couple of minutes just so it warms through.
-
Sprinkle on the cilantro and serve hot.
Notes
- For more crunch, increase the quantity of peanuts to ½ cup.
- If you cook the rice from scratch add a bit of salt and a pinch of ground black pepper to it so the rice has some flavor. You can also add in a couple of bay leaves.
- When making any flavored rice, make sure you don’t overhandle or stir the rice too much as that could break the rice grains and turn the rice gummy. Stir just enough to mix, then stop.
- You can substitute the brown rice for an equal quantity of white rice — a long-grain rice like basmati rice works best. Light brown rice, or hand-pounded rice, works too!
- You can make this chickpea rice low-carb by using cauliflower rice instead of actual rice. You don’t need to pre-cook the cauliflower rice. Mix it into the chickpeas, spices and veggies with ½ cup water, cover, and let it steam and cook for 10 minutes.
- Chickpeas are really tasty here but another bean like kidney bean (rajma) or pinto beans or even black beans would be nice too in this recipe.
- You can add as many veggies as you want to this recipe, or leave out veggies altogether (except the onions and tomatoes). You can add zucchini, sweet potatoes, carrots, spinach, broccoli, cauliflower, and most quick-cooking veggies.
- The chickpea rice is a one-pot meal with veggies, carbs and proteins all present in a single bowl. Serve it with vegan raita, which complements it nicely, for maximum deliciousness. You can also serve some poppadum on the side although it’s not necessary.
- The chickpea rice keeps nicely in the fridge for up to three days. Freeze chickpea rice in an airtight container for up to four months. Reheat frozen rice or refrigerated rice in the microwave or thaw and reheat in a skillet over the stovetop.
Nutrition
Calories: 270kcal | Carbohydrates: 42g | Protein: 9g | Fat: 8g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Sodium: 236mg | Potassium: 524mg | Fiber: 8g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 1314IU | Vitamin C: 50mg | Calcium: 64mg | Iron: 2mg
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