Gigli with chickpeas and za'atar

Name: Gigli with chickpeas and za'atar
Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients: 45ml olive oil, plus extra to serve; 1/2 (100g) onion, finely chopped; 2 garlic cloves, crushed; 2 tsp ground cumin; 10g thyme leaves, finely chopped; 25g (about 7) anchovy fillets in oil, drained, finely chopped; 1 lemon: finely shave the skin of 1/2, then juice to get 2 tbs; 2 x 400g cans cooked chickpeas, drained; 1 tsp soft brown sugar; 400ml chicken stock; 200g gigli pasta (substitute conchiglie or orecchiette); 50g baby spinach leaves; 15g parsley, roughly chopped; 1 1/2 tsp za’atar

Instructions

“Gigli means ‘lilies’ in Italian, and their floral wavy edges are a great vehicle for the chickpeas and anchovies in the sauce. Orecchiette (ears) or conchiglie (shells) are also good for scooping and work really well here, too” - Yotam Ottolenghi. This is an edited extract from Ottolenghi SIMPLE (Penguin Random House, RRP $49.99). On sale now.

Updated at: Wed, 29 Jul 2026 08:34:57 GMT