Berza – Chickpea Stew

Berza is a traditional chickpea stew in Gibraltar and has an incredible flavour using spearmint and sweet smoked paprika that may seem unusual but work together wonderfully. This is a veggie (vegan actually) version of the traditional dish that is also very healthy.

Great

% Daily Values based on a 2,000 calorie diet

Step 1

Peel and roughly dice the cloves of garlic and gently shallow fry in a deep pan with the olive oil on a medium heat, ensuring the garlic does not caramelise or burn.

Step 2

In the meantime peel the onion and keep whole, cut the butternut squash into large pieces, and peel and cut the potatoes in half.

Step 3

Cut the green beans in half and slice lengthwise so that they are split open.

Step 4

Roughly chop the spearmint, removing any woody stalks but if soft the stalks are good to use as well.

Step 5

Add the green beans, onion (whole), butternut squash, and potatoes to the pan together with the water and tomatoes. If you are using fresh tomatoes then peel and roughly chop these up beforehand.

Step 6

Bring the heat up and add the spearmint and the sun dried red peppers (remove the seeds first!) and the sweet smoked paprika. If you don’t have these then replace with the amount specified of sweet smoked paprika.

Step 7

Add the black peppercorns and the drained tinned chickpeas.

Step 8

Add the yeast extract (Marmite) and miso paste and bring to a medium simmer.

Step 9

Allow to simmer for about 20-25 minutes.

Step 10

Simmer for another 10 minutes and then turn off the heat.

Step 11

Get the onion, butternut squash, dried peppers and some of the liquid and blend until smooth using a good blender. Add back to the pan and this will immediately thicken the sauce.

Step 12

Add salt to season and bring out the flavours, give it a good stir and serve!

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