Spiced Beef with Chickpeas
From Stonesoup
This dish was inspired by Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstalls’ lamb, chickpeas and spinach in his fabulous book ‘Three Good Things on a Plate’. Here we’re using thinly sliced steak because it cooks quickly and keeps the beef nice and tender. It also gives more surface area for the lovely spices to spread over.
Enough for: 2
Takes: 20 minutes
1 tablespoon baharat spice blend
2 steaks
1 can chickpeas (400g / 14oz), drained
1 large bag baby spinach or salad leaves
squeeze lemon juice
1. Heat a large frying pan on a very high heat. Meanwhile combine spices with 2 tablespoons olive oil. Season. Finely slice steaks and toss in the spiced oil.
2. Stir fry steak for about 2 minutes or until the steak is well browned and you can’t see any pink bits. Remove steak and place in a clean bowl.
3. Reduce the heat to low. Add chickpeas and spinach to the pan. Cook for another 2 minutes or until the spinach has started to wilt. Season with a squeeze of lemon.
Variations
no baharat? – use your favourite spice blend for steak or make your own. Just combine 1 teaspoon each paprika, ground cumin and ground black pepper.
vegetarian – replace the steak with sliced halloumi. Pan fry of a few minutes on one side and then turn, rather than trying to stir fry the halloumi OR cook chickpeas and spinach until just wilted then fry 2 eggs in the pan. Serve chickpeas and spinach topped with fried egg and sprinkle over a little spice.
vegan – replace beef with 2-3 large field mushrooms. Cook until mushies are browned and tender. Will take 5-10 minutes.
different legumes – replace chickpeas with canned or cooked beans or lentils.
different greens – regular spinach, kale, collard greens, silver beet will all work. Just make sure they’re well washed and sliced finely so the greens cook quickly.
saucy – serve with a dollop of natural yoghurt on top.
low carb / paleo – replace chickpeas with a few tablespoons mayo served on top.
carb lovers / more substantial – serve with warm flat bread or tortillas.
Waste Avoidance Strategy
spices, chickpeas – pantry it up!
steaks – freeze.
spinach / salad leaves – use for another meal. Or freeze it (it will wilt when defrosted but will still be edible!)
lemon – keeps in the fridge for ages.
Add to my Old Favourite Recipes
I made this a couple of nights back. Had no baharat but after a ‘google’, I did have the seeds and ground spices that goes into it, so I used the mortar and pestle and made my own. Flavours were delicious and my husband says that this is a keeper. I had run out of canned chickpeas but did have a can of butter, borlotti beans and chickpea blend that was just as good. I also sliced some Brussels sprouts finely and added them to the pan before the spinach. Overall a successful dish that took very little time to cook. Making the spice blend took more time. Cheers.
Wow good for you cracking out the mortar and pestle Yvonne!
Made this tonight and it was so flavorful and easy to make! I used a cheaper cut of steak but once it was thinly sliced it was tender and lovely. I bought some baharat just for this dish and I think it’s my new favorite spice blend. I am going to look for lots of other places to use it now!
Great Jennifer! Baharat is one of my faves… it goes well with chicken and fish too. And is lovely in meatballs for an exotic twist. Jx