Freekeh Pilaf with Chickpeas

Food Recipes from around the world

Category: Side Dish - (669)
Origin: Palestine, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan
Source: Lee

Freekeh Pilaf is a complex, flavourful and healthy combination of colour, flavour and texture like nothing else. It’s the perfect Middle Eastern freekeh recipe that pretty much always steals the show. Servings: 6

Ingredients:

For the freekeh

▢ 1½ cups freekeh (cracked freekeh)
▢ 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
▢ ½ onion (diced)
▢ 1 garlic clove (peeled and chopped)
▢ 1 tsp cumin powder
▢ 1 tsp coriander powder
▢ ½ tsp turmeric powder
▢ ½ tsp salt
▢ Black pepper
▢ 1 tbsp tomato puree
▢ 2 tbsp barberries (or raisins/sultanas)
▢ 1½ cups stock (vegetable/chicken) or water

For the spiced chickpeas

▢ 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
▢ ½ onion (thinly sliced)
▢ 1 can chickpeas (14oz/400g) (drained)
▢ 1 tsp cumin powder
▢ ½ tsp paprika
▢ 1 tsp coriander powder
▢ ½ tsp Aleppo pepper flakes (or mild pepper flakes)
▢ ½ tsp salt
▢ 1 tsp lemon zest

Other Ingredients

▢ ¼ cup parsley (chopped)
▢ ¼ cup dill (chopped)
▢ ¼ cup mint (chopped)
▢ ¼ cup sliced almonds (toasted) (or pistachio or pine nuts)
▢ ½ lemon (juice of)

Preparation:

For the freekeh

- Cover the freekeh with cold water and leave while you prepare the onion base.
- Heat the oil in a saucepan over a moderate heat until hot. Add the diced onion, and fry gently for 2-3 minutes until soft.
- Add the garlic and fry of 1 minute before adding the cumin, coriander, turmeric, salt and pepper. Stir for about 20 seconds and then add the tomato puree and barberries.
- Stir well to combine everything. Drain the freekeh and tip into the onion mix. Stir well to combine then pour in the stock (or water). Bring this to a simmer, reduce the heat to low and cover the pan. Cook gently for 15-20 minutes until all the liquid has evaporated remove from the heat.
- Cover the pan with a clean teatowel or paper towel and return the lid. Leave for 15 minutes to absorb more of the moisture.

For the spiced chickpeas

- Heat the olive oil in a sauté pan over a medium/high heat until hot. Add the onion slices and let them fry for 4-5 minutes, turning once or twice.
- Let them get a little browned on the edges.
- Add the cumin, paprika, coriander, Aleppo pepper and salt. and stir briefly. tumble in the drained chickpeas and stir well for 1-2 minutes to combine everything. Remove from the heat and cool to room temperature.
- Once cooled, tip the freekeh into a large bowl and fluff with a fork. Fish out the lemon peel. Carefully stir in the chickpeas along with the parsley, dill, almonds and lemon juice.
- Decant to a serving bowl or platter and serve at room temperature.

Nutrition Values: