- Today I'm gonna show you five incredible chickpea
recipes I make all the time, starting with these spiced chickpea tacos with cilantro pesto. These tacos actually take
just 20 minutes to make, and we're gonna start by draining
and rinsing our chickpeas. I've got a large frying
pan over medium high heat. While that heats up for a minute or two, we are going to dry our chickpeas. You don't want them to be wet
when they hit the hot pan. It's kind of fun. Add a little bit of olive oil to your pan, you don't need much, and
then pour in your chickpeas. Try to spread them out, so they're not bumping and
grinding against one another. And after about three minutes, you're gonna stir the chickpeas. Our chickpeas have some
nice golden color on them, so it's time to add our spice blend. We've got oregano, garlic
powder, smoked paprika, a little bit of cayenne and some salt. (pan hissing) Keep an eye on these, but they don't need too much babysitting. So in the meantime, we're
gonna make our cilantro pesto. The key to making a super
quick recipe like this is to do as much prep as you can and then to multitask during
the rest of the recipe. So I've already prepped some
of my stuff for the pesto. We're gonna add our garlic and jalapeno to the food processor, and 1/2 cup of roasted cashews. You could also use walnuts or pistachios. (food processor whirring) All right, that looks good. Add in your cilantro. This is a good amount, about 2 1/2 cups, maybe one small bunch. We're also gonna do the
zest and juice of a lemon, salt, and some black pepper. (food processor whirring) We've got this nice paste-like texture. So now, it's time to
stream in our olive oil. You wanna keep an eye on it
and wait until it's emulsified. I like to just add a
little bit of lime juice to the chickpeas. Pesto's ready, chickpeas are ready, so now it's time to assemble our tacos. One final step, though, because cold tortillas
scrape from the packet. Not the best, don't recommend it. So, we're going to quickly
char our tortillas. If you have a gas stove I like to add the tortilla
directly on top of the burner. Medium low heat, about
20 to 30 seconds per side or until it's nicely charred. If that method intimidates you or you have a different stove, go ahead and add your
tortillas to a dry frying pan and heat them until warmed through. To assemble, add a nice
dollop of the pesto to your tortilla. That's gonna act as kind of the glue that prevents your chickpeas from spilling out of the taco. Diced avocado for
creaminess and healthy fats, and a couple spoons of your
favorite salsa for heat. These are forking delicious, and they couldn't be easier to make. This is why I always have
canned chickpeas in my pantry and recommend that you do
too because if you have some, then you can whip up easy
yet delicious dinners at a moment's notice. I've got another 20-minute
meal coming up right now. Our next recipe is Za'atar
chickpeas with charred broccoli. We've got two really easy and delicious flavor
boosters in this recipe. A yogurt sauce and quick
pickled chili peppers. We'll start with their peppers. What you'll wanna do is
thinly slice a chili pepper and add it to a jar. Now, I'll cover it with three tablespoons of distilled white vinegar, tablespoon of maple syrup,
and a pinch of salt. Give these 15 minutes to hang out while you prep everything else. They're gonna add this
sweet, spicy, tangy flavor that is incredibly delicious. A savory yogurt sauce is one of the most underrated
ways to elevate your meal. I'm using this yogurt from Culina. It's coconut-based, but it
doesn't taste like coconut. It's nice and creamy. It's got a great tart flavor. We're gonna add a couple things here to give the yogurt sauce a savory flavor, some lemon zest and the juice, two garlic cloves, 1/4 teaspoon
each of cumin and coriander, and some salt and pepper. Now, it's time to start on our broccoli. Got a large cast iron skillet here. We're using high heat because we want the broccoli
to get nicely charred in a quick amount of time. And we're gonna add a few
tablespoons of a high-heat oil. This is avocado oil. I've got 12 ounces of broccoli here cut into smallish, medium-sized florets. If you can, try to cut the florets so they have one flat side, and that will help them
brown really nicely. PSA, eat your broccoli stems. Not only are these edible,
they're also really delicious. And when you cook them this way, they get this nice, crisp
chew that is delightful. Just make sure to peel
off the first outer layer 'cause it can be kind of tough. We're looking for little wisps of smoke. As soon as you see those,
you can add your broccoli. Be very careful when you add this. You don't wanna get splattered by the oil. Try to spread them out as much as you can and let them cook undisturbed
for two to three minutes. Now, flip the broccoli and
let it char on the other side. (pan hissing) After six minutes, the broccoli should be nicely
charred but still tender, and I like to finish it with
a squeeze of lemon juice. For six minutes, that is incredible. Now, we're gonna start on our chickpeas. And normally, to make
those a 20-minute meal, you would cook the chickpeas in a separate pan from the broccoli, cook them at the same time. But to be able to show you
in depth what I'm doing and explain things more easily, we are doing this one by one. We're gonna cook the chickpeas pretty similarly to the
method in the first recipe. The main difference here is that we want some more
Middle Eastern flavors, so we're using cumin,
coriander, and Za'atar. By the way, if you're not familiar, Za'atar is this seed condiment
with herbs and spices that's used in a lot of different
Middle Eastern cuisines. It has this nutty, herby flavor, and it's just absolutely delicious. Just a little lemon juice to finish, and now we're ready to assemble. All right, so to plate this, we're gonna add a swoosh
of our yogurt sauce, followed by the broccoli and chickpeas. A few pickled peppers
for nice color and heat, and a little of the tangy liquid
on top too is really nice. You can eat this as is, but if you wanna make
it a little heartier, you can add some bread on the side. Bread for me. Or serve it with some cooked grains that you have hanging out in your fridge. Maybe this is a little large, but this meal feels so
gourmet, it's delicious, but as you saw, it was very easy to put together. Our next recipe is a chickpea tuna salad. It tastes very similar to tuna. This recipe is even quicker
than the ones before. It takes 10 minutes to put together, but I actually like to make it as part of my weekend meal prep because it stays good in the
fridge for five or six days, and so it's really nice to enjoy throughout the week for lunch. Also, making this recipe
couldn't be simpler. We're just gonna add the
ingredients to the food processor, and that is it. To mimic the texture of tuna a little bit, we're gonna use two ingredients,
chickpeas, of course, and hearts of palm. These are sold in a can
at the grocery store, but if you can't find them, go ahead and just use more chickpeas. We've also got some ingredients that you would use in a
classic American tuna salad, vegan mayo, and Dijon mustard, and these are gonna add a
nice creaminess and tang. I also like to add some chopped
celery and celery seeds, but I know some folks
are not a fan of celery. So, if you don't like
it, feel free to omit it. Some dill pickle relish
is really nice here, too. Definitely evokes the childhood nostalgia of eating a tuna salad
sandwich at the playground, or at least that's what I think. I just, my mom packed me doll. Doll at the playground, doll at lunch, doll for dinner, doll 24 hours. To give our tuna salad the oceany taste that you might expect in tuna salad, my secret ingredient is nori. These are just dried seaweed sheets. Look like this. You can get these at most
grocery stores these days and they don't taste fishy, but they are gonna add that kind of characteristic
taste of the sea. A few final flavor
boosters, nutritional yeast, two tablespoons. That's gonna add a nice
savory umami quality. Two tablespoons of lemon juice. This is gonna brighten everything up. And of course, salt and pepper. Important note, you don't want
to blend this continuously. It's gonna turn into a pate texture, that's not what we're going for. Instead, you wanna do short,
quick bursts or pulses, and that's gonna give you
some nice texture throughout. That was about 12 pulses. Let's take a look. Delicious. It's got the
perfect texture right now. There are a lot of different ways you can use a chickpea
tuna salad during your week for different kinds of lunch. So you can add it to a
salad or a grain bowl. You can make an open-faced tuna melt. You can just have it with some
crackers or critate as a dip. But I have some really good
sourdough from my local bakery, some nice heirloom tomatoes
from the farmer's market, so I'm gonna make a tuna salad sandwich. There is no elegant way to
eat a baguette sandwich, so I'm gonna eat this off-camera but I've got another delicious
recipe coming up right now. And that is Tandoori chickpea
stuffed sweet potatoes. This recipe does take a bit
longer than the previous ones, but it is a fantastic
option for meal prep. It's still really easy to make and it's great for lunch or
dinner and even breakfast. And it's got these like really
spicy aromatic Indian flavors that you'll absolutely love. The first thing we're gonna
do is bake the sweet potatoes. I've gone ahead and scrubbed these because I'm gonna eat the peel, and you wanna take a knife or
fork and prick them all over so they don't have a little
explosion in the oven. And we'll bake these at
425 degrees Fahrenheit for 45 minutes to an hour. We're gonna start off our cilantro sauce with some very classic Indian aromatics, two garlic cloves, small knob of ginger, and half of a green chili pepper. These ingredients are a little too punchy to add raw to the sauce, so we're gonna quickly saute them in a little bit of olive oil. You wanna stir frequently
so the garlic doesn't burn. Once the garlic gets a
little bit of color on it, you're gonna add in
1/4 teaspoon coriander, 1/2 teaspoon of cumin,
and a little bit of salt. And those need just 30 seconds. Smells really good. We'll add this sauteed mixture to a blender or food
processor, either is fine, along with a heaping cup of cilantro. I had some fresh mint
that I needed to use up, so I'm also gonna add that in there, but it's totally optional. A little bit of lime juice and just enough water to
bring the sauce together. Let's blend it up. (blender clicking) Turn it on first. (blender whirring) Smells good. (blender whirring) Ooh, if your cilantro
is on the bitter side, go ahead and add a little
bit more lime juice, a little more salt, or a
pinch of sugar as needed. Now, for our chickpeas, I'm
gonna roast these in the oven so they get a little nice and crispy. And these are Tandoori spiced chickpeas, so we're gonna make a
quick Tandoori spice blend. We've got cumin, coriander,
turmeric, ginger, paprika, as well as cinnamon and cardamom. If you wanna add a little heat, you can add a pinch or
two of cayenne pepper. Also gonna add some kosher salt, and then the oil is
gonna help them crisp up and give them a better mouth feel. The chickpeas need about
25 minutes in the oven, so go ahead and add them to the oven when the sweet potatoes
have 25 minutes left. We have a little bit of time, so we're gonna make our last condiment. It's raita, which is a yogurt sauce. It's kind of like India's
alternative to tzatziki. We're gonna start with a cucumber. Probably just need 1/4 of this today. We want all of the flavor
and texture of the cucumber, but not the wateriness. So, squeeze it all out
for as much as we can. This is honestly the hardest
part of making raita. Chop up 1/4 cup each of mint and cilantro. This smells like the start
of a great summer cocktail. An inch of ginger and some
garlic, half teaspoon of cumin, as well as garam masala. If you like, a pinch of
cayenne or Indian chili powder, lime juice. And of course, the yogurt,
the most important part. This is a creamy coconut
yogurt I showed you earlier. We want one cup of that. And of course, some salt. The potatoes are ready when you can pierce them
with a fork or a knife and there's no resistance. So, to assemble, we're gonna create a slit in the middle of the sweet
potato, add in our chickpeas, top it off with some of the raita and drizzle on some cilantro sauce. Now, if you wanna add some
veggie action to this, you can top off your sweet potato with some chopped cucumbers, some chopped tomatoes, sliced red onions, maybe some sauerkraut or
pickled onions if you have it. The sweet potato is fluffy and tender, and the chickpeas are crunchy, so it's got this amazing
textural contrast. The raita is cooling, the
cilantro sauce is tingy and herby. All around outstanding. I think you guys are gonna love this one. Our next meal are these
buffalo chickpea quesadillas. Honestly, I think these are better than any vegan quesadilla I've ever had and even the regular quesadillas
I had before I went vegan. They make such a great
meal for a date night, or dinner with friends,
or dinner with your kids if they're like precocious
little baby chefs. The first thing we're gonna
do is start with our queso. I'm starting with one cup of raw cashews. These have been soaked in
boiling water for 30 minutes and also soaked them
overnight in cool water. 1/2 cup of any vegan yogurt,
as long as it's unsweetened. 1/2 cup of any salsa you like. This is a medium heat. We're already gonna have quite a bit of spiciness in the quesadillas, so I don't want the salsa to be too spicy. A little water so it's not too thick, a teaspoon of cumin, 1/2
teaspoon of chili powder, and 1/2 teaspoon of smoked paprika. Two tablespoons of nutritional yeast to add that subtle cheesy flavor. And of course, we need
some salt to season. (blender whirring) It looks perfect. I swear I should start bottling
this stuff and selling it. So good. Now, we'll prep our chickpea filling. We're just gonna mash
these up with the fork, but you wanna keep some chickpeas whole so you have a little more texture. It also looks nicer that way. We're also gonna prep some aromatics now. We'll dice up one medium yellow onion, mince four cloves of garlic, and slice one small bunch of scallions. I love this as a
collaborative date night meal because your partner can make the queso and you can work on the
aromatics and chickpeas, and then dinner will be
ready in, like, 25 minutes. These are buffalo chickpea quesadillas, so of course we need some buffalo flavor, and our buffalo sauce is very simple. We've got equal parts
vegan butter and hot sauce. You can technically use
any hot sauce you like, but if you want that buffalo flavor, you should really use Frank's. For a little extra flavor, just a tiny bit of garlic
powder, pinch of salt, and a bit of sugar. This is coconut sugar. Any sugar's fine. It's just gonna balance
some of that spicy thing. You could heat this up on the stove, but I'm just gonna stick
it in the microwave to keep things easy. Oh, it's going up the nostrils. For the chickpea filling, you wanna get a large frying pan or saute pan over medium heat, add a little bit of oil,
doesn't need too much, and then you'll go ahead
and add your onions. Once the onion is softened
and has a little color on it, you can go ahead and add the garlic. Quick reminder, I've
created a free PDF guide that has all the recipes in this video. You can print them out, have all your chickpea
recipes in one place, become a chickpea master
or chickpea god or goddess. You can find the PDF linked
in the description box below. The garlic just needs a minute. And now, we'll add our
chickpeas and buffalo sauce. Let this simmer for two minutes. (pan hissing) Add on the scallions. All right, that's it. It is time to assemble these quesadillas. So grab a tortilla,
preferably a large one, and we're gonna dollop a
nice amount of the queso in the center. Spread the queso out, but leave
a border towards the edge. Spoon the filling on top. Yum! Now, you could fold the
tortilla over in half, though I have overstuffed
this one to do that. I'm gonna add a second tortilla on top to make it a bit more filling, and we'll cook our quesadillas now. We've got a pan over medium heat. I'm adding just a little bit of oil and I'm just spreading out
the oil with the paper towel to get it evenly coated. All right, in she goes. I wanna make sure our
quesadilla has a crisp exterior, so I'm gonna weigh it
down with a clean pan. All right, it's been about three minutes. Let's see how the quesadilla is looking. Oh, that looks good. Nice little browning. Look at that. And we'll give this another
two or three minutes. This should be done by now. Okay, it's almost ready. I can't wait to eat it. But, one more thing. I whipped up a very basic guacamole. I think it'll go great
with the quesadillas, but it's totally optional. Time for the taste test! That is a life-changing quesadilla. It is honestly so good, and this alone is reason enough to keep a can of chickpeas in your pantry. You can find all the
recipes in the PDF guide that's linked in the
description box below. I'll see you in the next video, bye!
