The protein cooking time listed in this recipe has been updated.
As of December 2025, we’ve revised cooking times for all our proteins to reflect improved food safety guidance.
Check out the latest recommended times in our Cooking Guidelines.
Persian chickpea & aubergine stew
A feast inspired by the Middle East, full of evocatively fragrant flavours. Fill your bowl with chickpeas, red pepper and chunks of aubergine in a sumptuous sauce that’s enriched with preserved lemon, fresh ginger and cinnamon, then sprinkled with mint. And don’t forget the pile of fluffy white rice to soak it all up.
Plants 7
SWK: Source of protein
SWK: High fibre
Serving size
Ingredients
- 400g chopped tomatoes (Chopped tomatoes 65%, tomato juice, acidity regulator: citric acid.)
- 1 aubergine
- 1 onion
- 1 pepper
- 2 tbsp tomato purée
- 1 vegetable stock cube (use half) (Celery) (Sea salt, potato starch*, sustainable palm oil*, sugar*, vegetables*(6,8%) [celery*, onion*, carrot*, parsnip*, tomato*], sunflower oil*, yeast extract, caramelised sugar*, herbs* & spices* ( lovage*, turmeric*, parsley*, black pepper*) *Organic ingredients)
- 1 handful of fresh mint
- 140g basmati rice
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- 2 tsp ground coriander
- 20g preserved lemons (Sulphites) (Lemons (61%), Salt (10%). Packed in Water (29%))
- 230g chickpeas (Chickpeas, water, salt)
- 4cm fresh ginger
Nutritional Information
Calories: 539
Protein: 19g
Carbs: 85g
Fat: 5.0g
Ingredients
- 2 aubergine
- 1 handful of fresh mint
- 20g preserved lemons (Sulphites) (Lemons (61%), Salt (10%). Packed in Water (29%))
- 460g chickpeas (Chickpeas, water, salt)
- 8cm fresh ginger
- 2 tbsp tomato purée
- 400g chopped tomatoes (Chopped tomatoes 65%, tomato juice, acidity regulator: citric acid.)
- 1 vegetable stock cube (Celery) (Sea salt, potato starch*, sustainable palm oil*, sugar*, vegetables*(6,8%) [celery*, onion*, carrot*, parsnip*, tomato*], sunflower oil*, yeast extract, caramelised sugar*, herbs* & spices* ( lovage*, turmeric*, parsley*, black pepper*) *Organic ingredients)
- 2 onion
- 2 pepper
- 280g basmati rice
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 4 tsp ground coriander
Nutritional Information
Calories: 502
Protein: 18g
Carbs: 79g
Fat: 4.8g
Persian chickpea & aubergine stew
A feast inspired by the Middle East, full of evocatively fragrant flavours. Fill your bowl with chickpeas, red pepper and chunks of aubergine in a sumptuous sauce that’s enriched with preserved lemon, fresh ginger and cinnamon, then sprinkled with mint. And don’t forget the pile of fluffy white rice to soak it all up.
Cook time:
30 mins
Cuisine:
Middle Eastern
Food group:
Vegan
Allergens: Sulphites, Celery
Cooking Instructions
Chop & soften the veg
- Dice the aubergine into 2cm chunks, peel the onions and thinly slice, and deseed the peppers and dice into 1cm squares.
- Spritz a large non-stick frying pan with cooking spray and put it over a medium-high heat. Tip in the prepared veg, lightly season and cook for 8-10 mins.
Cook & spice the rice
- Meanwhile, cook the rice in boiling water for 10-12 mins.
- Drain, then mix in half the cinnamon and half the coriander.
Boost the flavour
- At the same time, scoop out the middle of the preserved lemon and discard, then roughly chop the rind. Drain and rinse the chickpeas, then finely grate the ginger.
- Add the remaining coriander and cinnamon, the ginger and tomato purée to the frying pan. Stir well and cook for 1 min.
- Tip in the chopped tomatoes, crumble in the stock and pour in 100ml water (200ml for 4 portions). Stir well, then add the preserved lemon rind and chickpeas. Simmer for 6-8 mins until the sauce thickens slightly.
Finish & serve
- Thinly slice the mint leaves.
- Top the stew with the mint and serve with the spiced rice.