LA ASTURIANA’S RECIPE BOOK
A side of pulses you’ve never tasted before
Spinach and Chickpea Stew with Cod
(a traditional Spanish recipe made before Easter)
INGREDIENTS
- 300 grams dried chickpeas
- 300 grams de-salted cod, flaked*
- 300 grams fresh spinach
- 2 tomatoes, peeled and diced
- 1 whole carrot, peeled
- 1 whole head garlic + 2 peeled cloves for the sofrito
- 60 millilitres extra virgin olive oil
- 15 millilitres paprika
- 2 whole onions, peeled
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 litre water
- hard-boiled eggs for garnish (optional)
*If you don’t have salted cod, fresh cod that’s been cooked and flaked is a good substitute.)
1. Soak chickpeas for about 12 hours. Strain and place in a large pot with one litre of water.
2. Add carrot, the head of garlic, one onion and one bay leaf to the chickpeas in water. Heat to medium-high.
3. While the chickpeas with vegetables cook, prepare the sofrito:
Finely chop remaining onion, and mince the two cloves of garlic. Gently sauté for five minutes, then add tomatoes. Stir in paprika and remaining laurel leaf, then let cook on medium heat for 10 minutes.
4. Add spinach to the sofrito and continue to cook on medium heat for 10 more minutes.
5. Carefully remove onion, carrot and head of garlic from the boiled chickpeas. Drain chickpeas, setting stock aside.
6. Add the sofrito to chickpeas (in the pot you have just drained). If the mixture is too thick for your liking, add some stock back in.
7. Return pot with chickpea-sofrito mix to the burner and add cod. Stir gently for 10 minutes.
8. Taste before salting. Salted cod will add a large amount of salt to the dish even though it’s been de-salted, so additional salt may not be necessary.
9. Garnish, serve and enjoy this highly nutritious hot meal.
