Potaje de Garbanzo (Cuban Chickpea Stew)

While some people make soups or stews during colder months, Cubans make them all year round. It’s never too hot or too cold for a hearty soup!

Sometimes we make Cuban beef stew or oxtail stew while other times, we’ll make sopa de pollo. Today, we’re making potaje de garbanzo!

Potaje de garbanzo (pronounced poh-tah-heh de gar-ban-zoh) translates to chickpea stew or garbanzo stew and, like most Cuban dishes, its origin is from Spain. Sometimes, I’ve heard it be called a potage.

This Cuban chickpea stew is made with garbanzo beans (or chickpeas), chorizo, ham, veggies, and potatoes. It’s the perfect well-rounded Cuban dinner recipe for any day of the week.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

• Uses mostly pantry ingredients. With the exception of the cubed ham and Spanish chorizo, the entire recipe uses pantry staples!

• Good clean-out-your-fridge soup. It’s also a good option for cleaning out your fridge when you have extra veggies lying around and don’t know what to do with them.

• Comforting, hearty, and foolproof. This chickpea stew is a cozy meal with tons of delicious Spanish flavor that practically makes itself. Most of it is hands-off and all you need is patience while you’re waiting for it to cook!

• Perfect for leftovers. Not only are the leftovers even better the following day, but this recipe is also freezer-friendly and great for meal prep.

Ingredients You’ll Need

• Dried chickpeas. You can use canned chickpeas in a pinch but dried chickpeas are inexpensive, don’t have preservatives, have a better texture, and are more flavorful. Make sure you use them within 6 months of purchasing.

• Neutral oil. I recommend using canola oil for this recipe.

• Onions, green pepper, garlic. Sofrito! These three aromatics are the base of most Cuban recipes.

• Smoked pork ham and Spanish chorizo. Elevates the flavor of the stew with some smokiness and heat! Make sure you buy the Spanish cured kind of chorizo that you have to slice, not the Mexican version which is ground chorizo.

• Tomato sauce and dry cooking wine. Every good stew needs some acidity, sweetness, and savory flavor which the tomato sauce and dry cooking wine provide.

• Ground cumin, Spanish smoked paprika, bay leaf, salt + pepper. Spices! I always aim to start with 1/2 teaspoon of salt and 1/4 teaspoon of black pepper then I adjust from there.

• Russet potatoes. This will help thicken the stew while absorbing the rich flavors of the chorizo and the rest of the ingredients.

Step-By-Step Instructions

• Soak the chickpeas. In a large bowl, soak the chickpeas in room temp water for 10 hours. Drain and rinse.

• Simmer the chickpeas. In a Dutch oven or large pot with a lid, add the chickpeas with enough water to cover them (about 8 cups). Bring to a boil then reduce to medium-low heat. Simmer for 30 minutes, covered with a lid, stirring occasionally, until chickpeas have softened, adding 1/4 cup water at a time when necessary to prevent the stew from drying out.

• Make the sofrito. In a large skillet, heat oil at medium-high heat. Add the onions and peppers. Saute for 5 minutes or until the veggies are tender. Add the garlic and saute for 1 minute. Add the ham and chorizo. Stir together with the veggies and saute for 2-3 minutes or until the chorizo and ham are lightly browned. Stir the tomato sauce, wine, cumin, paprika, bay leaf, and salt + pepper to taste. Simmer for another 4-5 minutes. Set aside.

• Mash the chickpeas. After 30 minutes of simmering, the chickpeas should have softened. If they’re still firm, continue to simmer for another 10-15 minutes until they have softened. Remove 1/4 cup of the softened chickpeas from the pot and mash them with a fork. Add the mashed chickpeas, the sofrito, and the potatoes into the Dutch oven. Add more water if needed.

• Continue to cook the stew, covered, for another 20 minutes until the potatoes are tender. Remove bay leaf. The chickpea stew can be served immediately unless you prefer a thicker consistency. For a thicker consistency, simmer for an extra 10-15 minutes. Serve by itself or over white rice. Enjoy!

Recipe Tips

• Use a pressure cooker. Depending on the type of pressure cooker or instant pot you own, times will vary for this recipe but it should shave off about 10-20 minutes of the cooking time.

• Variations. You can add peeled and diced butternut squash, sliced carrots, or chopped green cabbage to this stew. Just make sure to add the cabbage at the very end so it’s not too mushy (unless that’s the consistency you’re going for!)

• Storage. Leftovers can be transferred to an airtight container for up to 4 days in the fridge or up to 3 months in the freezer in large freezer bags. Thaw to room temperature before reheating with about 1/4 cup of water (or more as needed).