Chickpea Salad!

Usually the best things are made spontaneously and unexpectedly, most of the times surprising us in a good way. Haven't you ever chosen a random movie to watch on a rainy day and it was a such a great movie. Or have you been to a unknown restaurant and the chef totally surprised you with an amazing dish? That's what happened to me last night when I got home after school and made a chickpea dish. It was nothing like what I expected to have for dinner, but it was just amazingly delicious. A simple dish, but delicious.

Chickpea, also called garbanzo beans is a kind of legume, very much used in Middle Eastern cuisine in the form of salads, hummus and falafel. They are very rich in folate and manganese, so it's a good legumes option for women who intend to get pregnant to avoid neurological defects. In contrast, according to the principals of macrobiotics, chickpeas should be avoided by people with diabetes...


Why soaking the beans?

Soaking reduces cooking time and allow the gas producing sugars in beans (oligosaccharides) to be released in the soaking water. Soaking time varies from bean to bean and can range from 2 to 24 hours.

Chickpea Salad

1 cup dried chickpeas, soaked for 4-6 hours
3 cups fresh water
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 zucchini, chopped
1 cup broccoli florets
1/4 onion, chopped
3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
2 tablespoon olive oil
sea salt and black pepper to taste

1. Cook the chickpea with 3 cups of water (don't use the soaking water, use fresh water) and 1tsp sea salt in a pressure cooker for 20 minutes. 
2. While the chickpea is cooking, saute the onion, and garlic in olive oil for a few minutes over medium heat. Add the broccoli, zucchini, salt and pepper, stir and close the lid. Let it cook over low heat for 10 to 15min or until the vegetables are tender.
3. Once the chickpea is done, strain out the water, and mix the chickpea in the vegetables. Add olive oil to taste!

Serve hot or chilled on a bed of greens and enjoy!