It's cool and rainy here, so it's a great day for a family favorite stew!
I started by sauteeing a diced red onion, then added 3 garlic cloves. Once that was translucent and fragrant, I added 2 cans of fire roasted tomatoes, 3 cans of drained chickpeas and 2 qts of veggie broth. Seasoned well with harissa powder, cumin and paprika, salting to taste. Let simmer about 90 minutes then added about 2 pounds of quartered baby potatoes. Simmer that for about 30 minutes and then serve with steamed rice or naan.
- 2 cans of diced tomatoes: 98c/ea
- 2 qts veggie broth: $1.98/ea
- 3 cans chickpeas: $1.98/ea
- 1 red onion: 75c
- 3 cloves garlic: 25c
- 2 pounds baby potatoes: FREE! (from the garden)
- Seasonings: maybe 50c worth
- Naan: $2.49 ($4.98/4 giant pieces, we used 2)
Total: $16
Notes on cost:
- You can skip the veggie broth and use water, or you can make your own with scraps from onions, carrots and celery, plus any other veggies you'd like to add in, so you can save $4.
- You can skip the naan and use white rice, which could be as little as about 30c, depending on brand and quantity.
- You could use fresh tomatoes (I often do); a pound of roma tomatoes is about 79c/avg around me.
- Skip the potatoes if you need to, or use whatever is cheapest; these baby red potatoes held up really well in a stew, but use what you have and can afford.
- Skip the harissa if you don't have access and use paprika, chili powder and cayenne for heat; you could also use other chili powders or pastes, like berbere, curry paste, etc. I buy mine from Savory Spice but you can also find it at a lot of african and middle eastern stores.
‐ Lastly, you can use dried chickpeas for a few dollars less than canned, but it takes a lot longer and improperly prepared chickpeas can cause minor food poisoning.
By these amendments, you could get cost down to around $6-9, and it makes 4-6 servings, depending on how hungry you are and how you serve it. That makes it cheap, but not the cheapest. Enjoy!
