Spinach with Chickpeas — A Hearty Mediterranean Dish

👨‍🍳 Method

For the Fried onion

1. 1
   Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium heat.

   ⚙ Pan-fryingStoveLarge pot
2. 2
   Add the onion and fry 8 minutes, stirring now and then, until the onion is soft and translucent and starts to turn golden at the edges. If it browns too fast, lower the heat.

   ⚙ Adding to the hot fat and fryingStove

   💡Add by cooking time: what needs long (onion, carrot, meat) goes in first, and what burns fast (garlic, dry spices) goes in last, only until fragrant.
3. 3
   Add the garlic and fry 1 minute, just until fragrant. Don't let the garlic brown.

   ⚙ Adding to the hot fat and fryingStove

   💡Garlic burns fast and turns bitter. Add it only once the onion has softened, over medium heat, and add the next ingredient as soon as it smells.

To assemble

1. 4
   Add the cumin, chili pepper, salt and black pepper and stir.
2. 5
   Add the tomatoes and cook 10 minutes.

   Stove
3. 6
   Add the chickpeas and bring to a boil.

   Stove
4. 7
   Turn down the heat, cover and simmer 5 minutes.

   ⚙ SimmeringStoveLid

   💡A gentle simmer, not a boil: a hard boil dries the food out and clouds it, a slow simmer cooks it evenly.
5. 8
   Add the spinach and cook, until the spinach breaks down.

   Stove
6. 9
   Add the lemon juice and stir.