The viral ‘Marry Me’ chicken gets a lovely vegetarian makeover with these incredibly moreish, creamy ‘Marry Me’ chickpeas, made in one pot for ease. This 20 minute recipe is loaded with garlic, sundried tomatoes, lots of parmesan and juicy, plump chickpeas all simmered in a creamy sauce. A wonderful, easy weeknight meal and perfect for meal prep.
While the name continues to be ridiculous, there is no denying that the ‘Marry Me’ flavors are gorgeous. Creamy sauce, sundried tomatoes, garlic and parmesan are a match made in heaven and they work perfectly in this lovely saucy one pot chickpeas recipe.
For a long time I really only used chickpeas when making creamy hummus, but they are SO versatile and a wonderful, protein-packed ingredient to play with if you’re looking to introduce more plants to your diet. And they’re a fab blank-slate ingredient too. They pair easily with strong, bold flavors and carry them well.
This recipe genuinely takes 20 minutes and is SO easy. It’s all made in one pot and has hardly any hands on time, so it’s brilliant for busy weeknights, or for a speedy weekday lunch.
I LOVE this flavor combination so much. So much in fact, that I’ve created quite a few recipes that use the same flavors. If you like the sound of this one, you’ll love these creamy sundried tomato ‘Marry Me’ white beans, ‘Marry Me’ orzo, ‘Marry Me’ chicken gnocchi, ‘Marry Me’ chicken meatballs or ‘Marry Me’ chicken pasta.
Ingredients
- Chickpeas. Use canned or jarred chickpeas – either work well. Canned are cheaper but jarred generally have better flavor and tend to be a little softer and creamier.
- Sundried tomatoes. If you can, try to use sundried tomatoes in olive oil as they tend to be of better quality. But any will do!
- Coconut milk. Use full-fat coconut milk here for the right creamy, thick consistency. Light coconut milk will mean your sauce is a lot runnier (it will still taste wonderful!) You can also use heavy (double) cream, half and half or another plant-based alternative.
- Spinach. I love to stir through handfuls of baby spinach leaves at the end to add a little bit of green to the recipe – if you have larger leaves, chop them into small pieces.
- Stock. The amount of stock to use depends on how thick you prefer your sauce and how thick your coconut milk or cream is. Start by adding 1/4 cup and then add a little more if you’d like to loosen up the sauce.
How to make them
Soften the garlic, herbs and sundried tomatoes, then add the chickpeas, cream (or alternative), and a little stock or water, if needed if it looks quite thick. Stir, then let simmer until thick and glossy.
Scatter the parmesan cheese and spinach leaves on top, stir through the saucy chickpeas, then divide between plates and serve. I LOVE a little drizzle of chili oil to finish things off beautifully.
Got a question?
Yes! This is a brilliant one to prep in advance (I love enjoying it for lunch throughout the week). It’ll keep for five days in the fridge and can easily be reheated in the microwave.
You definitely can. Steamed or broiled broccoli, green beans, asparagus, cauliflower or zucchini are brilliant here. Just stir them through the chickpeas at the end, or serve them on the side.
I love these with crusty fresh bread or garlic flatbreads– it’s wonderful with this no knead chili cheese focaccia, no knead seeded bread or no knead rosemary parmesan bread – but it’s equally brilliant served over pasta, rice, quinoa or with crispy skin on roast potatoes.
Watch how to make them
Like this recipe? Try these easy one pot recipes next
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One Pot Creamy ‘Marry Me’ Chickpeas
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
- Diet: Vegetarian
Description
The viral ‘Marry Me’ chicken gets a lovely vegetarian makeover with these incredibly moreish creamy ‘Marry Me’ chickpeas, made in one pot for ease. This 20 minute recipe is loaded with garlic, sundried tomatoes, lots of parmesan and juicy, plump chickpeas all simmered in a creamy sauce.
A wonderful, easy weeknight meal and perfect for meal prep.
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon oil from your sundried tomato jar (or olive oil)
- 6 garlic cloves, crushed
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon chili flakes
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ cup sundried tomatoes, finely chopped
- 2 x 14oz/400g cans of chickpeas, drained
- 1/2 cup chicken (or vegetable) stock
- 1 cup full fat coconut milk (or heavy cream, half and half or coconut cream)
- ½ cup parmesan cheese, grated
- Handful of spinach leaves
- 2 tablespoons of chili oil, to serve
Instructions
- Soften the garlic. Set a high sided skillet or pan over medium-high heat. Add 1 tablespoon of oil, then add the crushed garlic and 1 teaspoon each of dried thyme, chili flakes and salt. Stir for a couple of minutes, until the garlic is lovely and fragrant.
- Add the sundried tomatoes and chickpeas. Add the chopped sundried tomatoes, chickpeas, 1 cup of coconut milk (or alternative) and 1/2 cup of stock, if you’re using it. PRO TIP: If your coconut milk is light, it will be more watery so you may want to add slightly less stock. If you don’t mind the sauce being a little runnier, then don’t worry too much.
- Simmer the chickpeas. Stir, then bring the chickpeas to a simmer. Once simmering, lower the heat and leave for about 10 minutes, until the sauce is lovely and thick, and glossy.
- Add the parmesan and spinach. Once the sauce has thickened, scatter over the grated parmesan cheese and the spinach leaves. Mix them into the sauce (the spinach will wilt, and the cheese will melt, helping to thicken the sauce even more).
- Garnish and serve. Remove the chickpeas from the heat, then divide between plates. Drizzle with the chili oil to serve and enjoy while hot.
Notes
INGREDIENT NOTES: I like using full-fat coconut milk here – light coconut milk will make the sauce a lot runnier. You could use heavy cream, half and half or another plant-based alternative if you prefer. Canned or jarred chickpeas are perfect here – I love to use jarred when I can because they tend to be softer and more flavorful – but canned is perfectly fine and more accessible.
STORAGE INSTRUCTIONS: Store any leftovers in the fridge for 5 days, then reheat in the microwave until piping hot.
SERVING SUGGESTIONS: I love to serve the chickpeas with some kind of fluffy flatbread or fresh bread (it’s great with no knead chili cheese focaccia, seeded bread or rosemary parmesan bread). But you can serve it over rice, quinoa, pasta or with crispy roast potatoes. You can also bulk up the recipe with grilled or steamed vegetables – broccoli or broccolini, green beans, asparagus or cauliflower is great.
- Prep Time: 5
- Cook Time: 15
- Category: one pot
- Method: stove top
- Cuisine: american
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 200g
- Calories: 409
- Sugar: 5.8g
- Sodium: 1123.5mg
- Fat: 23.9g
- Saturated Fat: 13.6g
- Unsaturated Fat: 8.1g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 37.5g
- Fiber: 9.5g
- Protein: 16.2g
- Cholesterol: 8.1mg
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