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October 24, 2018 46 Comments

Hearty Sweet Potato Chickpea Stew

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A thick and hearty vegetarian sweet potato chickpea stew made with creamy coconut milk. Serve with quinoa or brown rice for a cozy fall or winter meal!

vegetarian sweet potato chickpea stew

I originally shared this sweet potato chickpea stew back in 2016, and it quickly became a reader (and family and friends!) favorite. Both my mom and sister still have this on their weekly meal rotations, and I make it frequently, too.

So, I figured it was time to give this post a bit of a facelift with some new photos and updated text!

Soups and stews are some of my favorite dishes to make during the fall and winter.  I love to cook a big batch of soup, stew, or chili in my big (5.5 quart) Xtrema ceramic pot and enjoy it for a couple of days. Then, I’ll freeze the extra in mason jars because soup and stew freeze beautifully.

Later on, I’ll let a jar of soup defrost in the fridge overnight before heating it up for lunch or dinner the next day.  It’s like the homemade version of a frozen entree!

I originally created this recipe because I wanted a thick, hearty winter stew with simple ingredients, very little prep time, and no special tools like an immersion blender or food processor so there’d be fewer dishes to wash. I dislike washing dishes almost as much as I love cooking, so I’m all for simple one-pot soups and stews.pot of vegetarian sweet potato chickpea stew

This is THE easiest stew, and you can throw everything in the pot and have it simmering away in less than 20 minutes. From start to finish, it can be ready in under an hour.

This hearty vegetarian stew is packed with chickpeas, tender chunks of sweet potatoes, and tomatoes, with spinach for some extra nutritional goodness. Coconut milk makes it extra creamy, and adds a little bit of healthy fat, too.

For spices, I just used curry powder, cayenne pepper, and chili powder, keeping it as simple as possible. I made this sweet potato chickpea stew all of the time in college, and I actually kept all of those spices in my dorm room!

Stores like Whole Foods sell spices in their bulk bins, so you can also purchase as little as you need for a recipe if you’re wanting to try a particular spice without buying an entire bottle.vegetarian sweet potato chickpea stew in a bowl

You can eat the sweet potato chickpea stew with quinoa or rice, or serve it with a batch of your favorite naan since it’s almost curry-like. And top with sour cream or plain Greek yogurt if you want to make it extra delicious. Hope you love this one as much as I do!

If you try out this sweet potato chickpea stew, feel free to let me know in a comment or take a picture and tag me @livbane on Instagram. I’d love to see! 

Things I Used: 5.5 Quart Xtrema Ceramic Pot

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5 from 5 votes

Sweet Potato Chickpea Stew

A thick and hearty vegetarian sweet potato chickpea stew made with creamy coconut milk. Serve with quinoa or brown rice for a cozy fall or winter meal!
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 35 minutes
Total Time: 55 minutes
Servings: 8 servings
Calories: 250kcal
Author: Liv

Ingredients

  • 1 teaspoon cooking oil
  • 1 medium or large onion
  • 4 cloves garlic (can sub 1 tsp. garlic powder)
  • 2 cans (15 oz. each) diced tomatoes, with juices
  • 2 teaspoons curry powder
  • 1 teaspoon chili powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional for some heat)
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 2 cans (15 oz. each) chickpeas or garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
  • 1 large sweet potato, cubed
  • 1 can light coconut milk* or half a can of full-fat coconut milk diluted with half a can of water
  • 2 cups spinach, tightly packed
  • Optional: 1 cup quinoa or brown rice, cooked according to package directions
  • Optional: sour cream for topping

Instructions

  • In a medium or large pot, sauté onion and garlic in cooking oil for 4-5 minutes over medium heat.
  • Once onion is soft and translucent, add diced tomatoes and spices: curry powder, chili powder, cayenne pepper, and salt. Then, add chickpeas, sweet potato cubes, and coconut milk.
  • Cover pot and turn heat to high to bring liquid to a boil. Then, reduce heat to medium-low and lightly simmer uncovered for 35-40 minutes, or until sweet potatoes are soft.
  • While stew is cooking, prepare quinoa or rice, if using.
  • When sweet potatoes are soft, run a potato masher through the stew and mash just a bit to thicken it up. Add chopped spinach and wait a few minutes for spinach to wilt. Top with sour cream, if desired, and enjoy!

Notes

Different types of quinoa vary, but white quinoa takes approximately 30 minutes to cook.

Nutrition

Calories: 250kcal | Carbohydrates: 38g | Protein: 8g | Fat: 8g | Fiber: 7g

A Healthy Liv original recipe

Originally published in January 2016. Photos and text updated in October 2018.

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Comments

  1. Chrissa - Physical Kitchness says

    January 8, 2016 at 9:58 am

    This looks PEFECT for cold, January evenings. I love using coconut milk in my soups and stews. Makes them so rich and creamy. Can’t wait to try this.

    Reply
  2. Reena says

    January 26, 2016 at 12:59 pm

    As an Indian, I usually avoid any recipes with curry powder (curry powder doesn’t exist in India). However, this looked yummy to try and it was! Love the recipe and this will be a staple stew for the winter months!

    Reply
    • Liv says

      January 26, 2016 at 11:30 pm

      I’m so glad to hear you enjoyed the stew, Reena! It’s one of my new winter staples, for sure 🙂

      Reply
      • Renee says

        April 3, 2021 at 2:35 pm

        Love it

        Reply
        • Liv says

          May 8, 2021 at 12:15 pm

          So glad to hear it!

          Reply
  3. Shannon says

    January 30, 2016 at 2:59 pm

    Can I sub anything for coconut milk?

    Reply
    • Liv says

      January 30, 2016 at 3:02 pm

      The coconut milk makes the stew thicker and creamier, but you could use almond milk or regular dairy milk, as well! I’d use about half the amount of almond or dairy milk that the recipe calls for.

      Reply
  4. Trudi says

    November 16, 2016 at 4:27 pm

    i served mine with mango chutney, raita and pappadums!!

    Reply
    • Liv says

      November 16, 2016 at 10:28 pm

      Sounds delicious!

      Reply
  5. Jordan Anderson says

    February 13, 2017 at 8:50 pm

    I just made this for dinner. Holy crap that’s good! I subbed farro for the brown rice, and it added some interesting texture.

    Reply
    • Liv says

      February 14, 2017 at 1:53 pm

      I’m so glad to hear you enjoyed this sweet potato and chickpea stew, Jordan! It’s one of my favorite easy meals!

      Reply
  6. Jen says

    April 2, 2017 at 9:21 am

    Can this recipe be adapted for the slow cooker? I would need to be able to turn i on in the morning (8 am-ish?) and have it read when I get home (6 pm-ish?). Time is a luxury I don’t have after work to get food in the little one’s belly…

    Reply
    • Liv says

      April 2, 2017 at 5:44 pm

      Hi, Jen! I haven’t personally tried it, but I imagine this would work great in the slow-cooker. I’d toss everything in the slow-cooker and leave it on low for 7-8 hours. If you need to let it go longer, that may work as long as you set the temperature as low as possible, or if it can automatically switch to the “warming” setting.

      Reply
  7. Misty Bane says

    September 27, 2017 at 3:56 pm

    I made this for dinner last night with quinoa and topped with sour cream. It was delicious! I was looking forward to lunch today because I got to have leftovers!!!

    Reply
    • Liv says

      September 27, 2017 at 5:37 pm

      I’m so glad you enjoyed this recipe! It’s one of my favorite fall/winter meals!

      Reply
  8. Valerie says

    October 21, 2017 at 7:24 pm

    I can’t wait to try it! Looks delicious!

    Reply
    • Liv says

      October 23, 2017 at 2:57 pm

      You’ll have to let me know what you think 🙂

      Reply
  9. Mark says

    January 13, 2018 at 9:49 pm

    I’m planning to make this tomorrow! I have a question – would it still work with butternut squash chunks instead of sweet potatoes? I may just try the classic first and if it’s good, give the butternut squash version a try. Wish me luck!

    Reply
    • Liv says

      January 13, 2018 at 9:50 pm

      I think that sounds great! You can definitely shorten the cooking time a bit if you use butternut squash instead of sweet potatoes. Let me know how it turns out!

      Reply
      • Mark says

        January 13, 2018 at 9:55 pm

        Good point about cooking time. I don’t want it to be mush. Stay tuned!

        Reply
      • Mark says

        January 15, 2018 at 12:52 am

        Ok, made the regular version with sweet potatoes- amazing! I added a little more tomatoes than it said (I had one extra large can and who knows what to with leftover canned tomatoes) and it was GREAT. It was a hit. Really great. Sort of like a creamed tomato soup like consistency with the coconut milk, but wth some kick. Very warm and comforting. Served it over spaghetti squash and it was jut great. Thanks!

        Reply
        • Liv says

          January 16, 2018 at 9:01 pm

          Thanks for reporting back! I’m so glad to hear you loved it and serving it over spaghetti squash was GENIUS! Sounds so good!!!

          Reply
  10. Poorva says

    June 2, 2018 at 1:34 am

    Ooh, I just found this recipe and it looks delicious! Do you reckon it would work with frozen spinach?

    Reply
    • Liv says

      June 3, 2018 at 2:57 pm

      I do think that’d work well! Feel free to give it a try 🙂

      Reply
      • Richard T says

        March 17, 2020 at 2:43 am

        Thanks Liv, this stuff is great. Time wasn’t an issue so I used up a pound of dried chickpeas I’d bought a while ago. I also threw in an extra sweet potato and half a teaspoon of turmeric. They seemed to go well. Oh, and used up some old frozen spinach.

        Tomorrow this county “shelters in place”, but my wife and I will eat well.

        Reply
        • Richard Treitel says

          March 21, 2020 at 8:03 pm

          And yes, I used frozen spinach, and yes, even my teenage son likes the result.

          Reply
  11. Misty says

    October 24, 2018 at 1:14 pm

    5 stars
    This recipe is an absolute favorite and so easy to make!

    Reply
    • Liv says

      October 25, 2018 at 4:42 pm

      I’m so glad you enjoy this recipe!!

      Reply
  12. Andy Bishop says

    November 5, 2018 at 12:24 pm

    5 stars
    I made this recipe last night and it is absolutely delicious and very easy to make. Thanks!

    Reply
    • Liv says

      November 8, 2018 at 11:30 pm

      So glad you enjoy this stew!!

      Reply
  13. Joseph says

    November 17, 2018 at 4:11 pm

    Hi Liv,

    Wow! looks yummy. I’m a sweet potato lover. So, this recipe is perfect for me.

    Reply
  14. Cat says

    December 21, 2018 at 12:09 pm

    5 stars
    I made this two nights ago. My boyfriend and I absolutely loved it! It tasted like something delicious from a restaurant, and not something we could produce in our own kitchen, but the coconut milk and curry powder do magical things. We used a full cup of full fat coconut milk instead of half. We had an extra sweet potato on hand, so we added that, as well as some fresh chopped tomato in addition to the crushed tomatoes. We love wilted spinach so we added extra. (Like most stews, this one was pretty forgiving in that way!) I finally ate the last of the leftovers today for lunch and am sad to see them go. We’ll definitely make this again. Thank you!

    Reply
    • Liv says

      December 21, 2018 at 6:17 pm

      I’m the same way with recipes, always adding a bit of this and that 🙂 I’m so glad you enjoyed this chickpea stew!

      Reply
  15. Inga says

    July 18, 2019 at 6:49 am

    5 stars
    I cut curry, as its not really my favorite spice and it was divine taste!!!
    I added naan bread as well.
    Even my non-vegan other half and son loved it xxx

    Reply
    • Liv says

      July 20, 2019 at 2:21 pm

      So glad to hear that you and your family enjoyed this recipe!

      Reply
  16. Hannah Frazier says

    December 16, 2019 at 2:28 pm

    5 stars
    This is one of my new favorite things to make! It’s tasty and filling and easy to make. And I also especially like it during these colder months. Thanks for sharing!

    Reply
    • Hannah says

      December 16, 2019 at 2:30 pm

      I did actually use frozen spinach, which worked well, and also did not add the tomatoes this time.

      Reply
    • Liv says

      December 16, 2019 at 11:42 pm

      I’m so glad you’ve been enjoying this stew, Hannah! Thanks for reporting back 😀

      Reply
  17. Yvette says

    January 15, 2020 at 11:11 am

    This was delicious. I just made it today. Spicy!

    Reply
    • Liv says

      January 15, 2020 at 3:42 pm

      So glad you enjoyed, Yvette!

      Reply
  18. Thomas says

    February 8, 2021 at 8:11 pm

    Should I have drained the tomato juice from the diced tomato cans?

    Reply
    • Liv says

      February 8, 2021 at 10:50 pm

      Nope, no need to drain the diced tomatoes! I’ll update the recipe to clarify 🙂

      Reply
  19. Darci says

    December 29, 2021 at 4:47 pm

    This sounds delicious, although I hate sweet potatoes.. can you use regular potatoes as a replacement?

    Reply
  20. Lynn says

    January 21, 2023 at 2:04 pm

    What size can of coconut milk?

    Reply

Trackbacks

  1. Healthy Winter Soups and Stews: Comfort Food For Cold Winter Days - Thrive With Janie says:
    December 11, 2019 at 10:07 pm

    […] Now that is easy.  This is delicious with some cornbread or a hank of whole wheat toasted bread. Follow the recipe here and start cooking […]

    Reply

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Hi, I’m Liv! I originally started blogging to share easy meals I made in my college dorm kitchen. Years later, as an attorney now, my goal is still to share delicious, approachable recipes with simple ingredients. You can most often find me running, eating ice cream, and making a mess in my kitchen. More...

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