Sweet squashes marry well with the earthy flavor of beans and lentils. This is apparent in the dhal and pumpkin soup in The Kitchen Diaries and here in a more complex main dish that offers waves of chile heat with mild citrus and the dusty “old as time itself” taste of ground turmeric. Dried (which is the only way most of us know them) chickpeas are the stars of the world’s bean dishes, used to fill bellies everywhere from India to Egypt. Their character—knobbly, chewy, and virtually indestructible in the pot—makes them invaluable in slow-cooked dishes where you need to retain some texture. Fresh chickpeas are bright emerald green and have an invigorating citrus note to them that is completely missing in the dried version. I saw some for the first time this year. I have long wanted to put lemongrass with chickpeas, partly to lift their spirits but also to return some of their lemony freshness to them (I use more lemon juice in my hummus than most as well). This recipe, which just happens to be suitable for vegans, does just that. Like many of those slow, bean-based dishes, it often tastes better the next day, when all the ingredients have had a chance to get acquainted.
Recipe information
Yield
enough for 4 to 6
Ingredients
To Serve
Preparation
Step 1
Drain the chickpeas and bring them to a boil in deep, unsalted water. Let them simmer for 40 to 50 minutes, until tender.
Step 2
Peel the onions and chop them quite finely. Pour the oil into a deep, heavy pot and add the onions, letting them cook over medium heat until soft and translucent. Meanwhile, peel the garlic and the ginger, remove any tough leaves from the lemongrass, then make all into a rough paste in a food processor. Stir into the softened onions and continue to cook. Add the ground coriander and turmeric, then lightly crush the seeds of the green cardamoms and seed and finely chop the fresh chiles before stirring them in. Keep the heat fairly low and on no account allow the ingredients to brown.
Step 3
Chop the pumpkin into large chunks, though no larger than you would like to put in your mouth, then add to the pan, along with the drained cooked chickpeas and the stock. Bring to a boil, then decrease to a simmer and continue to cook at a gentle bubble until the pumpkin is tender. Stop as soon as the flesh is yielding to the tip of a knife; you don’t want it to collapse.
Step 4
Stir in the coconut milk and continue to simmer. Put a splash of oil into a nonstick pan and tip in the yellow mustard seeds. As soon as they start to pop, add them to the pumpkin together with the cilantro leaves. Serve with the rice and the lime halves, ready to squeeze over at the last minute.
