Cheap and Cheerful Chickpeas! (simple recipes)

This recipe for one-pot chickpeas and rice (Exploring Vegan) is so simple to make, and very nutritious, packed with protein and calcium. Don’t throw away the water. Whizz up to make vegan meringue!Really!

Once opened, store leftover tinned chickpeas in a covered bowl. Fully remove lids (or pop ring-pulls back over holes) before recycling, to avoid avoid wildlife getting trapped.

Before cooking, read our post on food safety for people and pets (many foods including onion, garlic, garlic and spices are unsafe).

It’s best to just bin allium scraps (leeks, onion, garlic, shallots, chives) as like tomato/citrus/rhubarb scraps, acids could harm compost creatures. 

A Filling Recipe for Chickpea Pasta Soup

This chickpea pasta soup (The Simple Veganista) is way more tasty, nutritious and filling than a cup-a-soup or can of watery minestrone. It’s also very rich in protein and calcium due to chickpeas (garbanzo beans).

Easy to make in one pot, this is ready for the table in around 30 minutes. It uses tons of veggies (carrots, celery, onion), a vegan  bouillon powder, herbs and bite-size pasta. So simple to make, you just fry the veggies and herbs, add the stock and chickpeas, boil and cook, then served with cooked pasta.

If you make a lot of homemade soup, it’s worth investing in a good stick blender, to save the faff of washing blenders all the time. It’s UK law that whoever sells it to you, has to take your old appliance back for recycling.

You could also use Souper Cubes. Sold in Lakeland, these are like giant silicone ice-cube trays. Just pour in cooled leftovers and freeze. Then when you want soup, just pop a portion out and thaw overnight in the fridge, before cooking up to a safe temperature.

That way, you can make bigger batches, even if you are only cooking for one or two, with no food waste. Use with plastic-free pasta!

A Simple Vegan Chickpea Curry Recipe

This vegan chickpea curry (Broke Bank Vegan) is high on taste and high in protein, yet is made with simple ingredients, and only takes 25 minutes.