Name: Etsiz Nohut Yemeği (Turkish Meatless Chickpea Stew)
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 1 h 40 min
Total time: 14 h
Yield: 6
Cuisine: Turkish
Ingredients: 500 g dried chickpeas; as needed cold water for soaking; 70 ml olive oil; 250 g onion, finely chopped; 120 g mild long green pepper, chopped; 45 g tomato paste; 25 g mild red pepper paste; 1.4 litres hot water, plus more as needed; 12 g fine salt; 3 g pul biber; 2 g black pepper

Close view of creamy chickpeas with green pepper and red sauce — A chickpea should be soft throughout with no chalky centre.

Prep 20 minutes

Cook 1 hours 40 minutes

Soak 12 hours

Serves 6

Ingredients ↓

Overview

How to Make Turkish Meatless Chickpea Stew

Nohut yemeği is everyday Turkish pot food: chickpeas in a light red broth that can be spooned beside rice, accompanied by bread or balanced with salad and ayran. It should not be dry like roasted chickpeas or thick and smooth like hummus. Each chickpea remains visible and whole, yet its centre is fully creamy, while the broth lightly coats a spoon and still flows around the legumes.

Meat versions are common, but this one is deliberately etsiz, without meat. Onion, long green pepper, tomato paste and mild red pepper paste give the pot depth. Carrot, potato and small onions appear in other household variations, but they are not added here. Keeping the list focused makes the contrast between nutty chickpea and sweet red base especially clear.

Begin with dried chickpeas for the best control over texture. Soak them in at least three times their volume of cold water for ten to twelve hours; they expand dramatically. Drain and rinse, then cook in fresh water. The soaking water is not a stock and is discarded. A chickpea is ready for the stew base when firm pressure crushes it but it still holds its shape during stirring.

Cook onion and green pepper gently in olive oil. Hard browning would dominate the mild pulse. Add both pastes and fry them for two minutes with pul biber and black pepper; this removes their raw edge and lets the oil carry their colour through the broth. Only then add the par-cooked chickpeas and hot liquid. Cold water interrupts the simmer and lengthens the final cooking.

Salt near the end because chickpea age and paste salinity vary. Old legumes may take longer even after soaking, so rely on the centre rather than the clock. Simmer until no chalky core remains and the broth has thickened slightly from released starch. Rest the covered pot for fifteen minutes off the heat: the chickpeas settle, the sauce clings better and flavour becomes more coherent.

Serve as a main course with rice or bulgur pilaf, crusty bread, pickles or salad. Those accompaniments remain separate so the stew can also be gluten-free and vegan. Cool leftovers in shallow containers rather than leaving the heavy pot on the stove. The flavour is often even better the next day, and the stew freezes well with a small allowance of water on reheating.

Practical

Soak in a large bowlChickpeas can more than double. Generous water keeps the upper layer submerged throughout the night.
Judge age by cooking, not labelsOlder dried chickpeas soften slowly. Extend the gentle par-cook instead of raising the heat to a violent boil.
Reserve some cooking liquidIt contributes chickpea flavour and light starch, but taste it and combine with hot water if overly concentrated.

Ingredients

For the recipe

500 g dried chickpeas
as needed cold water for soaking
70 ml olive oil
250 g onion, finely chopped
120 g mild long green pepper, chopped
45 g tomato paste
25 g mild red pepper paste
1.4 litres hot water, plus more as needed
12 g fine salt
3 g pul biber
2 g black pepper

Directions

Soak and par-cook

Soak chickpeas in at least.Soak chickpeas in at least three times their volume of cold water for 10-12 hours, drain and rinse.

Chickpeas have doubled in size after soaking.
Cover with fresh water and.Cover with fresh water and simmer until almost tender, then drain while reserving some cooking liquid.

A par-cooked chickpea crushes with firm pressure but still holds its shape.

Build the red base

Soften onion and green pepper.Soften onion and green pepper in olive oil without hard browning.

Onion is translucent and pepper is pliable.
Fry tomato and pepper pastes.Fry tomato and pepper pastes with pul biber and black pepper for 2 minutes.

The pastes darken slightly and smell sweet rather than raw.

Finish the stew

Add chickpeas and hot water.Add chickpeas and hot water or reserved cooking liquid, simmer 25-35 minutes and salt near the end.

Chickpeas are intact but creamy throughout with no chalky centre.
Rest off the heat for.Rest off the heat for 15 minutes before serving.

The broth lightly coats a spoon yet remains clearly pourable.

Practical

Fry both pastes briefly

Two minutes in the onion oil removes raw harshness and gives the broth an even red colour.

Rest before serving

A covered fifteen-minute pause lets the broth settle around the chickpeas without further hard boiling.

Control points

Chickpeas remain chalky. They need more cooking, regardless of the stated time. Add hot water, cover and simmer until the centre is uniformly creamy.
The skins split and the pot turns mushy. The par-cooked chickpeas were already fully soft or the final boil was too aggressive. Use a quiet simmer and stir less.
The broth is thin and pale. The pastes were undercooked or too much water was added. Simmer uncovered briefly and mash only two or three chickpeas into the liquid.
The stew tastes salty. Paste and cooking liquid contributed more salt than expected. Add unsalted hot water and extra cooked chickpeas if available.

Nutrition

Calories450 kcal
Protein18 g
Carbohydrates65 g
Fat14 g
Saturated fat2 g
Fiber17 g
Sugars10 g
Sodium720 mg

1 of 6 servings — Approximate values are calculated from the complete measured recipe and may vary with brands, trimming, optional ingredients and actual portion size.

Allergens · Food safety

Allergens: No regulated major allergen is intentionally included; verify every packaged ingredient for cross-contact.

Food safety: Discard the soaking water and use fresh water for cooking. Keep the cooked stew above 60°C for service or cool it in shallow containers within 2 hours. Reheat leftovers to 74°C; never leave the dense pot to cool overnight at room temperature.

Storage: Refrigerate for up to 4 days; the flavour improves overnight. Reheat to 74°C with a splash of water. Freeze in meal-size containers for up to 3 months and thaw in the refrigerator.

FAQ

Can I use canned chickpeas?

Yes for speed, but rinse them and simmer only until the broth takes on flavour. Use about 1.1 kg drained and reduce the liquid.

Does nohut yemeği have to contain meat?

No. Meatless versions are well established. This recipe builds its flavour entirely from chickpeas, onion, pepper, pastes and olive oil.

Can I use a pressure cooker?

Yes. Par-cook soaked chickpeas according to the appliance guidance, release pressure safely, then finish them conventionally in the red base.

What should I serve with it?

Plain rice or bulgur, bread, salad, pickles or ayran all suit the stew. Keep them separate so diners can choose.

Creamy centres, intact shapes, flowing broth

Soak thoroughly, par-cook patiently and finish at a quiet simmer after the pastes have sweetened in the onion oil.

The decisive checkpoints are chickpeas have doubled in size after soaking; onion is translucent and pepper is pliable; chickpeas are intact but creamy throughout with no chalky centre.

How to Make Turkish Meatless Chickpea Stew

Practical

Ingredients

For the recipe

Directions

Practical

Fry both pastes briefly

Rest before serving

Control points

Nutrition

Allergens · Food safety

FAQ

Can I use canned chickpeas?

Does nohut yemeği have to contain meat?

Can I use a pressure cooker?

What should I serve with it?

Creamy centres, intact shapes, flowing broth

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