Vegan Vegetable Chickpea Stew

Hearty with a sweet and smoky flavour, this Vegetable Chickpea Stew Recipe is an easy one-pot meal! It’s delicious comfort food, perfect for chilly fall evenings, and ideal for freezing for a quick meal another day!

This veggie and chickpea stew checks off so many boxes. It’s easy to make and perfect for cooking a large batch, and it freezes well. All of those are major wins! When I find the rare recipe that ticks all those boxes, it’s definitely one I’ll be making regularly!

While the base of this stew is, of course, chickpeas, there are so many other flavours and ingredients in it making it a truly robust vegetarian stew. There are carrots and sweet potatoes, which add some more “bulk” to the stew and a little sweetness, but also smoked paprika and cumin for that warm flavour.

Of course, you can add any vegetables you want to this recipe and adjust the seasonings – that’s the beauty of it! This vegetable stew recipe can easily be adapted to individual tastes and preferences.

My favourite part of this stew, though, is how well it stores. This is a great recipe for meal prep and freezer meals! You can get almost a week’s worth of lunches out of one batch or make a double batch to keep in the freezer for those evenings you just need something fast.

Warm and hearty, this is going to be a recipe I make again and again this fall! Two of my other favourite fall meals are Vegan Thai Pumpkin Soup and Lebanese Style Red Lentil Soup.

Star Ingredients

• Vegetables – I used diced tomatoes, sweet potatoes and carrots. You can add or substitute any of your favourite vegetables.
• Diced tomatoes – Add a little richness as well as some sweetness to the vegetable gravy.
• Chickpeas – Both canned and cooked chickpeas work in this chickpea stew recipe. Make sure to rinse canned chickpeas well so as not to add the extra strach.
• Bay leaves – Used to cook in the broth to release a mild peppery flavour adding a touch of bitterness to lighten up hearty stews and soups.
• Balsamic vinegar – Adds a unique element of flavour to the dish creating a little bit of zing.

Step-By-Step Made Simple

Vegetable Stew Recipe Variations

One thing I love about this chickpea stew is how many variations of it you can make. You could make this every week for a year and just by switching up the spices and vegetables, have a different stew every time!

I actually find stews like this to be a great way to clean out the produce drawer and use up any veggies or fresh herbs and try out new spices! 

A few recommended ingredients to add include:

• Greens, like kale or spinach
• Peppers, particularly bell peppers or jalapenos for a kick
• Herbs like basil, oregano or parsley (dried or fresh)
• Cayenne pepper for a spicy twist
• Curry powder

Lefovers? No Problem.

You can store your vegan chickpea stew in the fridge for up to 4 days. It’s perfect for storing individual servings for lunch throughout the week! Just reheat in the microwave for a few minutes or on the stovetop. 

Can I Freeze Vegan Stew?

Yes, this vegetable stew recipe is ideal for freezing! It’s a great dish to have in the freezer for last-minute meals and days you just want something warm and hearty, without any fuss. To freeze, just allow the stew to cool completely and then transfer it to freezer-safe storage containers. Then I just thaw the soup overnight and bring to work to reheat in the microwave, and if I’m home, I heat it in a pot on the stove.

Can I Make This In a Crockpot?

Yes, you can easily make this chickpea stew recipe in the slow cooker! You’ll want to still saute the onions on the stovetop and combine the ingredients, but instead of cooking on the stovetop, you’ll dump the vegetables over the chickpeas in the crockpot and add the broth, spices, bay leaves, tomatoes and balsamic vinegar.

Cook on high for 3 hours or low for 6 hours or until potatoes are fork-tender and serve.

More Recipes Using Chickpeas

• Cucumber Salad with Dill & Chickpeas
• Snickerdoodle Hummus
• Decadent Chickpea Brownies