Chickpea and chorizo couscous recipe

Looking to venture away from pasta? Meet couscous, pasta's fluffy and exotic cousin. Don't know what to cook it with? Our fast and easy chickpea and chorizo stew recipe is here to save the day!

Credit: (left) Svetlana Monyakova, (right) R Villalon – Shutterstock

This easy casserole recipe is perfect for batch-cooking and can be kept in the freezer for ages.

Couscous is wonderfully low in calories. Fold in some chickpeas and chorizo, and you'll have a flavoursome and healthy meal that'll last you for days.

It can be enjoyed as a quick lunch, or if you're feeling generous, it can feed your whole flat at dinnertime instead. And at £1.23 per serving, it's super cheap to make!

Chickpea and chorizo stew recipe

Ingredients

Serves: 4 | Costs: £4.91* (£1.23 per serving) | Time taken: 20 mins

• 350g of plain couscous‌ ‌(£0.84)
• 2 vegetable stock cubes (£0.11)
• 1 teaspoon of paprika, or more if you fancy it spicy (£0.04)
• 1 teaspoon of cumin (£0.05)
• 1 teaspoon of ground coriander (£0.05)
• 1 teaspoon of olive oil (£0.07)
• 2 onions (£0.22)
• 2 cloves of garlic (£0.05)
• 1 chorizo ring (£2.50)
• 800g of chickpeas (£0.98)
• 700ml of boiling water (free).

Method

1. Stir your stock cubes, paprika, cumin and coriander into around 700ml of boiling water.
   Top tip: if you prefer your food with a little kick, you may want to increase how much paprika you add. Or even sprinkle in some chilli powder, if you're feeling really adventurous.
2. Add your couscous to the mix, stir and let it stand for around five minutes. Couscous isn't cooked the same way as rice or pasta – it's dehydrated, meaning you'll be able to tell when it's ready pretty easily (it'll look fluffy).
3. Chop your chorizo ring into slices. It's up to you how thin or thick you chop these, but we'd recommend having them quite thick.
4. Heat your oil in a pan until it's sizzling, then add in the onion, garlic and chorizo and fry until browned.
5. Throw (don't literally throw, we just wanted to sound artsy) in your chickpeas and a little water to stop everything burning, then stir for around two minutes until most of the liquid has evaporated.
6. Bring everything together by mixing your pan ingredients with the couscous and spices you prepared earlier. Stir and stir until it looks brilliant.
7. Season to taste with salt and pepper if you wish.
8. Serve in an attractive-looking bowl that'll do your dish the justice it deserves. Enjoy!

Did you know that the selenium in couscous gives your immune system a boost and helps you stay healthy?

* Prices were correct at the time of writing (using Tesco.com, Asda.com and Sainsburys.co.uk prices as guidelines).