Chickpeas & Farro: a Healthy Vegetarian One-Pot Meal

This aromatic, healthy vegetarian one-pot meal gives you plant protein and fiber from the veggies, farro and chickpeas and extra deliciousness from the lemongrass and ginger.

Yay! Farro is back in the supermarkets! When COVID-19 first disrupted the food supply, I couldn’t find one of my favorite healthy grains anywhere. After I devoured the last bit in my pantry, I was out of luck to create this one-pot meal loaded with plant protein and exquisite flavor.

What’s to love about this healthy vegetarian one-pot meal?

• After you’ve chopped and grated, you don’t have much hands-on time. (Enjoy a cup of tea, prep a salad, call your mom, read something just for fun!)
• Reheat it for dinner later in the week or do what I do: claim all the leftovers for my lunches for the next few days.
• Nutritious + Delicious – aromatic chickpea and farro stew – oh my!
• One-pot meal – says it all. But truth be told, I still like a salad or another vegetable. You know me: vegetables, vegetables, vegetables.
• Plant-protein.  You can boost the protein even more when you heap Greek yogurt on top or enjoy a glass of cold milk with your meal.
• No butternut squash? No problem. Leave it out. Add a couple extra carrots if you have them.
• The lemongrass and ginger perfume your kitchen with such a delightful aroma.
• Fiber: wow 12 grams per serving!

Though we eat a lot of vegetarian recipes, my family is not vegetarian. My regular readers are clear on that because of the number of salmon recipes I create and post. There’s no such thing as having too many salmon recipes– so good for the heart!

If you enjoy the flavors of this aromatic chickpea and farro stew, you’ll like my curried chickpea and chicken stew that I created specifically for my daughter when she was in grad school a few years ago. Funny that Erin just asked me to prep some for the freezer again, so she can eat wholesome meals while she resting from knee surgery. I’m also whipping together this lemon-mustard marinade for her to use with tofu.

Chickpeas with Lemongrass Ginger and Farro

4.75 from 8 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: Healthy One-Pot Meal, Main Dish

Cuisine: Vegetarian

Keyword: chickpeas, farro, pulses, whole grain

Servings: 6

Calories: 340kcal

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 1 large yellow onion, diced
• 4 large carrots, sliced
• 12 ounces butternut squash, cubed
• 1 4-inch piece lemongrass, smashed slightly with a knife
• 3 garlic cloves, crushed or chopped
• 1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger
• ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1 14.5-ounce can petite diced tomatoes, no salt added, undrained
• 4 cups vegetable broth look for lower sodium varieties
• 2 15-ounce cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• 1 cup dry farro
• ⅓ cup fresh basil, chopped
• 1 cup plain nonfat Greek yogurt or other plain strained yogurt of choice

Instructions

• Heat the oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Sauté the onion and carrots until slightly soft, about 4 minutes.
• Add the butternut squash, lemongrass, garlic, ginger and red pepper flakes. Stir and cook about 2 minutes.
• Add the undrained tomatoes, broth and chickpeas. Increase the heat to bring the contents to a boil. Add the farro and stir. Reduce the heat to medium low to allow the stew to cook at a soft boil. Cooked covered for about 30 minutes. Stir now and then.
• Serve with basil and yogurt.

Nutrition

Serving: 1.75cup | Calories: 340kcal | Carbohydrates: 62g | Protein: 16g | Fat: 5g | Saturated Fat: 0.5g | Trans Fat: 0g | Cholesterol: 0mg | Sodium: 650mg | Fiber: 12g

Cheers to the simplicity and health of a delicious vegetarian one-pot meal!

Learn more ways to LOVE Your Heart

with this list of heart-healthy food & ingredient swaps