This chickpea stew with orzo and mustard greens is the perfect way to use thinnings from the mustard green patch. We recently thinned out our seedlings of Red Giant, Sawtooth, and Tatsoi mustard greens and had enough to make this stew.
It’s savory and versatile (IE. you can use any green from the garden, even spinach), and comes together quickly. This recipe comes from NY Times Cooking. Let’s dive in.
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, more for drizzling
- 2 medium carrots, peeled and chopped
- 1 small fennel bulb or 2 celery stalks, chopped (we used celeriac – a low-FODMAP alternative)
- 1 medium onion, chopped – (we used green onion tops)
- 2 garlic cloves, minced (we used garlic oil)
- Pinch of red-pepper flakes
- 2 teaspoons minced fresh rosemary
- 2 cups vegetable broth (or water)
- 1 (15-ounce) can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
- ¾ cup roughly chopped cherry or grape tomatoes (any size will do)
- ½ cup whole-wheat or regular orzo
- 1 quart loosely packed baby mustard greens or spinach (about 5 ounces)
- Salt and black pepper
- Chopped scallions, for garnish (optional)
- ¼ cup finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, plus more as needed
Method
Step 1:
Cook carrots, celery/fennel (celeriac), and onion in a large pot with olive oil over medium-high heat for about 5-7 minutes.
Stir in garlic (hold off if using garlic oil), red-pepper flakes and rosemary, and cook 2 minutes longer. Then add the broth/water, and 2 additional cups of water. Bring the whole thing to a boil.
Step 2:
Add chickpeas, tomatoes, and orzo to the boiling mixture. Lower the heat and simmer, covered about 10 minutes until the orzo is tender. Then stir in the mustard greens and simmer about 2 more minutes. They will soften at this point.
Step 3:
You can add more water if you want to (we didn’t), then season to taste with salt and pepper. Spoon into bowls and top with scallions and grated parmigiano reggiano. So delicious!
Make this recipe with greens from your garden. You’ll love putting every leaf to good use.
