Moroccan Chickpea Spinach Skillet! Each bite delivers robust texture from the chickpeas, freshness from the spinach, and a deeply satisfying, pantry-friendly depth that makes weeknight dinners feel special.
This Moroccan Chickpea Spinach Skillet is a warm, comforting bowl brimming with hearty chickpeas and vibrant baby spinach, all infused with fragrant Moroccan spices. Serve this nourishing skillet over fluffy rice or quinoa to soak up every last drop of flavorful sauce, or pair with a crisp side salad for a bright contrast. Ideal for meal prep, this vegetarian-friendly dish balances protein, fiber, and warmth in a single skillet, making it a top choice for cozy, spice-forward comfort food.
Whole Food Plant Based, Vegan, plant based, oil free, refined sugar free, no highly processed ingredients and gluten free.
Hi there, Ameera here!
This skillet dinner bursts with Moroccan flavor and deliciousness in every spoonful. We absolutely loved this dish—the aroma alone transports you to sunlit markets and warm kitchens, and the flavors deliver on that promise: savory chickpeas, earthy spinach, and a chorus of warming spices.
It’s easy to customize with your favorite add-ins, and the Medjool date gives a natural sweetness in flavor that keeps you coming back for more. You’ve got to give this one a try if you’re after a comforting, plant-forward meal that’s big on taste.
Tips for Success:
- Flavor Profile: This Moroccan Chickpea Spinach Skillet is full of hearty chickpeas flavored in deliciously Moroccan warming spices with a touch of Medjool date sweetness and chopped baby spinach. This is perfect comfort food filled with aromatic spices and heartiness. Pair it with rice, quinoa, or a simple salad for the perfect meal.
- Spices: You can easily ramp up the spices if you wish to suit your own personal preferences.
- Baking Soda: Baking soda is often used as a neutralizer for dishes that contain a lot of acidity, typically from tomatoes. We use it in this dish to remove some of the tomato acidity (from the tomato sauce) without losing the tomatoey flavor. When you add it, the mixture may bubble up, then settle down as it neutralizes the acidity. If you prefer that tinny taste that is typically associated with canned tomatoes, feel free to leave it out or only add a pinch.
- Medjool Dates: The Moroccan cuisine is well known for using dates, apricots, and raisins in their soups and stews. Medjool dates are naturally very soft and pliant. They add a touch of sweetness to the dish. Be sure to cut them into very small pieces. They will gently dissolve into the broth.
- Number of Medjool Dates: We used 2 Medjool dates; however, you can scale this back to one if you wish. You can always add another one if needed after taste testing the broth.
- Health Benefits of Dates: Date are packed with wonderful health benefits, everything from improving gut health to boosting brain health, improving skin and aids in preventing some chronic diseases as they are full of fiber, copper, magnesium, manganese, potassium, and Vitamin B6.
- Medjool Date Substitutions: You can substitute the Medjool Dates with a tablespoon of golden raisins or dried apricots, chop finely. If needed add another tablespoon until the desired sweetness is reached.
- Tahini Substitutions: You can generally swap tahini for other nut and seed butters like cashew butter or almond butter with the understanding that the flavor and texture may change accordingly.
- Sea Salt: Please adjust the sea salt based upon your family’s sea salt preferences and/or based upon dietary needs.
- Table Salt: If using table salt, you should use less table salt than the amount listed in the ingredients as sea salt crystals are larger than table salt crystals. Since table salt crystals are very fine, less table salt is required to season a dish. We would suggest starting with about 1/4 to 1/2 the amount of sea salt listed. You can always add more salt but cannot take it away. We recommend using sea salt as it is less refined than table salt.
Leftovers and Freezing:
Leftovers will generally keep 4 to 5 days in the refrigerator. Store in a covered air-tight container.
This dish freezes well.
Pantry Products:
- Vegetable Stock: We use Pacific Organic Low Sodium Vegetable Stock. We love this brand because it is Whole Food Plant Based compliant, as it does not contain MSG, has no oil, and does not contain any highly-processed ingredients. Feel free to use your favorite vegetable broth.
- Sea Salt: Please adjust the sea salt based upon your family’s sea salt preferences and/or based upon dietary needs.
Kitchen Equipment:
- Large skillet
If you try this comforting dish, we would love to know if you enjoy it as much as we do! Please leave us a review! Post a picture on Facebook or Instagram and tag us! We would love to hear from you.
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Moroccan Chickpea Spinach Skillet
- Prep Time: 10 Minutes
- Cook Time: 25 Minutes
- Total Time: 35 Minutes
- Yield: 4 Cups 1x
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Moroccan
- Diet: Vegan
Description
This Moroccan Chickpea Spinach Skillet is a warm, comforting bowl brimming with hearty chickpeas and vibrant baby spinach, all infused with fragrant Moroccan spices.
Ingredients
Skillet Ingredients:
- 1 medium yellow onion, fine dice
- 1 Tablespoon minced garlic
- ½ cup tomato sauce
- 1 cup low-sodium vegetable broth *
- 1 ¼ cup water
- 2 Medjool dates, pitted, finely chopped
- 2 teaspoons red wine vinegar
- 2 teaspoon tahini
- 1/8 teaspoon baking soda *
Spice/Herb Ingredients:
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika (+/-)
- ¼ teaspoon sweet paprika
- 1 teaspoon cumin (+/-) *
- ¼ to 1 teaspoon sea salt (+/-) *
- 1/8 teaspoon black pepper (+/-)
- Pinch to ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (+/-)
Other Ingredients:
- 2 – [ 15.25 oz. cans ] chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- 2 cups chopped, packed fresh baby spinach
Instructions
- Please all the Spice/Herb Ingredients (except the crushed red pepper flakes) into a small bowl, mix well, set aside.
- In a large skillet, add the diced onions, sauté over medium-high heat for 7 to 9 minutes to soften, add a splash of water, if needed to avoid burning.
- Then lower the heat to medium, add the minced garlic, sauté, stir constantly for one minute.
- Next add all the remaining Skillet Ingredients and the Spice/Herb Mix, and simmer on medium-low for 7 minutes.
- After 7 minutes, then add the chickpeas and chopped baby spinach, stir well to incorporate, heat on medium-low temperature and cook for 3 to 5 minutes.
- Check the sauce thickness, if needed add more water, up to ¼ cup) to thin out the sauce, stir well to incorporate. Add the crushed red pepper flakes, stir to incorporate.
- Simmer on low for several minutes, then serve topped with freshly chopped cilantro and/or coupled with your favorite grain like quinoa or rice, or with a simple salad.
Notes
Please reference the blog post for Tips for Success, Pantry Items Used, Storage and Freezing, and Kitchen Products Used.
Sea Salt: Please adjust the sea salt based upon your family’s sea salt preferences and/or based upon dietary needs.  Â
Servings:Â 4Â (makes 4 cups)
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