This chickpea and tomato stew is one of my all-time-favorite vegan dishes to meal-prep. Made with plant-based ingredients: chickpeas, diced tomatoes, red bell pepper and plenty of seasoning, this vegan lunch or dinner pairs perfectly with fresh avocado or a dollop of vegan yogurt.

For those times when you can’t look at another cold wilted salad, or questioning if going plant-based means you’ll never enjoy a bowl of true filling comfort food again—enter this delicious chickpea and tomato stew.

This was one of the first recipes I routinely made when I initially began meal prepping vegan dishes over two years ago, and I still make it often today. I love this meal because it:

is made with mostly easy-to-find pantry ingredients
is budget friendly
is warm and comforting
is simple but flavorful
doesn’t require a lot of prep (minimal chopping, but mostly just tossing ingredients into one pan)
is so flexible to your own personal taste, or the ingredients you have on hand

chickpea & tomato stew plant-based ingredients:

You’ll find the full ingredient list below—but here’s what to expect in this plant-based recipe!

Chickpeas
Petite-Diced Tomatoes
Red Bell Pepper (optional, or other veggie you have on hand)
Seasoning: Cumin, Paprika, Turmeric + Dried Oregano
Cilantro (or parsley, or other herb)
Avocado

prep & serving tips:

This chickpea and tomato stew all comes together in one pan—saute the onion, garlic, seasoning, and tomato paste, then add in the chickpeas, bell pepper, and can of diced tomatoes and cook until warmed through.

I personally pair almost every soup or stew I make with a serving a jasmine rice. It keeps me full longer on those busy days at my desk, but honestly I just love adding a grain to a dish like this. I enjoy it more.

When it comes to the red bell pepper, you can be flexible. If I don’t have a pepper, I’ll often just leave it out of the recipe with no substitutions. Feel free to substitute to pepper with another vegetable—I also love finely dicing carrot, or some zucchini in its place, too.

I used a can of petite diced tomatoes because I love to make things easy. Of course, you can use fresh tomatoes (maybe about 1.5 to 2 cups, diced) or any type of canned tomatoes you have on hand. Your end result may look a little different than mine, but that’s okay! The plant-based meals I create are supposed to be versatile, and this one is particularly flexible.

As I mentioned above, my favorite pairing with this meal is fluffy jasmine rice, but if you prefer quinoa, brown rice, cauliflower rice, couscous, etc.—go for it!

For the avocado, you can top your stew with a few slices, or try mashing the avocado separately with some lemon and serve on-top of the dish like a dollop of sour cream. As an alternative (or addition) a little vegan greek-style yogurt, or plain coconut yogurt, would also be fantastic with this. Either one, or both, brings the comfort of this dish to next level status.

I always have cilantro in my kitchen, so I find myself putting the herb on most dishes I make. If you don’t have cilantro, or just aren’t a fan, parsley would be excellent here.

easy vegan meal prep:

This dish keeps great in the fridge, and is one of those meals that actually tastes better reheated as leftovers, making it perfect for plant-based meal prep.

I find I can get 3 full servings out of this recipe when paired with rice. I like to create recipes with one can of beans for about 3 meals, because it leaves room for flexibility throughout the week, and for more variety in my meal prep.

My personal preference is to prep in a way so that I have fewer portions of more recipes, giving me more options and choices throughout the week.

If you like to prep one large batch of something so that you spend less time cooking on your prep day, and are happy with one lunch choice during the week, then I would double this recipe to make sure you are all set! I’d also recommend doubling the recipe if you are prepping meals for two people for the week.

When prepping this ahead of time, wait to slice up or mash your avocado until the day you plan to enjoy this meal.

I hope you love this dish as much as I do, and I hope it simplifies your meal prep and planning

Be sure to follow along for more plant-based goodness on Pinterest and Instagram.

Easy Chickpea and Tomato Vegan Stew

20 minutes

serves about 3 when paired with rice, quinoa, or grain.

Ingredients:

• 1 can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed

• 1 red bell pepper, diced (optional: you can omit, or sub another vegetable you love)

• 1 can petite diced tomatoes, not drained

• ½ onion, diced

• 2 gloves of garlic, minced

• 1 tbsp. tomato paste

• 2 tsp cumin

• 1 tsp smoked paprika (regular is fine)

• 1 tsp. turmeric

• 1 tsp dried oregano

• Salt and pepper to taste

• 1 tbsp. of oil for sauteing

For serving:

• Rice, prepared according to package instructions Any grain will work: jasmine rice, brown rice, couscous, quinoa, etc.

• ¼-1/2 an avocado per serving: sliced, diced, or roughly mashed with lemon or lime juice

• Fresh cilantro

• Lemon wedge

Optional:

• 1 cup of spinach or kale

Instructions:

1. Heat oil in pan over medium heat.

2. Add onions and cook until translucent (about 5 minute)

3. Optional: If adding in a diced bell pepper, or other vegetable (carrot, zucchini, etc.), add it to your pan now and cook for 1-5 minutes depending on how hearty it is—a finely diced bell pepper and zucchini will need about a minute, while a finely diced carrot will need 3-5 minutes.

3. Add spices: cumin, paprika, turmeric, dried oregano, salt and pepper. Stir and cook for another minute.

4. Add garlic, stir and cook for an additional minute. Be careful not to burn garlic.

5. Add tomato paste. Stir and cook for about a minute to neutralize the acidity.

6. Add in chickpeas and stir until coated in seasoning, then add the can of diced tomatoes. No need to drain.

7. Add in salt and pepper to taste.

8. Reduce heat to low or medium-low, and cook for about 8-10 minutes until heated through.

9. At this point, you can add in your greens, if using. Stir in greens until wilted. Once wilted, your dish is ready to serve.

10. Serve over rice, or grain of choice, and garnish with avocado, cilantro, and lemon wedge.

Notes:

If meal-prepping this dish ahead of time, do not prep the avocado in advance. Slice or mash the morning you plan to enjoy the meal for lunch, or immediately before dinner.

This dish is flexible. Feel free to omit the bell pepper, or sub with another vegetable you have on hand (carrots, zucchini, etc.)

If you do not care for cilantro, you can sub parsley.