Gypsy Stew with Ham, Lentils & Chickpeas

I am re-posting this stew recipe because this post got messed up when I transferred it over from the old site–and it’s a REALLY good stew. I love the Morrocan seasonings with the ham, vegies, pretty red lentils & chickpeas. I could curl up with a bowl of this lovely Gypsy Stew anytime.

To me, the treasure when making a ham is the ham bone. Because that means we get to make soup. There is something about a ham bone that gives a soup such good flavor. The ham is nice, too, but I the part I really covet is that bone. You just can’t get that same kind of flavor any other way.

I confess I stole the ham bone from our Christmas ham. I didn’t ask if I could take it, I just took it. I know what my mom would have said. I always ask her what she wants me to take, and she always tells me to take whatever I like … I’m not sure my dad wouldn’t have fought me for it, though. A ham bone is seriously something to fight over in my family.

I call this stew “Moroccan” not because it’s an authentic Moroccan recipe, but because the seasonings are sort of like what you would find in a Moroccan Harira … except a Moroccan Harira would be made with lamb. I am sure the Moroccans would be horrified if I called this Harira or that I even used ham in this stew, but it was the spices in the Harira recipe in my Mediterranean cookbook that helped me season my pretty orange-red soup. Someday I ought to actually go to Morocco and taste the Harira.

Gypsy Stew with Ham, Lentils & Chickpeas

• Prep Time: 30 minutes
• Cook Time: 1 hour
• Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes

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Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

• 1 cup chopped celery stalk (save the leaves, too!)
• 1/3 cup chopped carrots
• 1 cup chopped red onion
• 2 – 3 cloves of garlic, chopped
• 1 Tablespoon olive oil
• 1 ham bone, trimmed roughly
• 1/4 cup juices from cooking the ham (skim off the fat and scoop up some of the jellied stuff that collects at the bottom of the ham pan)
• 1 bay leaf
• 2/3 cup lentils (I used red lentils, but you could use green or brown ones too)
• 2/3 cup dried chickpeas
• 7 cups of water
• 2 cups of chicken broth
• 1 cup canned tomatoes with juices
• 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
• 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne (or more to taste)

For garnish: fresh parsley

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Instructions

1. In a stockpot, saute the onion, carrot, celery and garlic in the olive oil over medium-high heat until the onions are soft and translucent.
2. Add the rest of the ingredients (except the garnish and the leaves from the celery), bring to a boil and cook until the lentils and chickpeas are soft and the flavors have melded. This might take an hour or two or longer … I’m not sure exactly how long I cooked mine as I just got it started and let it cook while I was doing other things.
3. Add salt and fresh ground pepper to taste, and more ham if you like. Personally, I like more vegies and beans than meat, but go ahead and add meat if that is your heart’s desire.
4. If you want to reduce the fat in your soup, chill it overnight, then skim off the fat that collects on the top.
5. About 15 minutes before serving, chop the celery leaves and add to the pot.
6. Sprinkle with fresh parsley before serving.

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Notes

I’m guessing on the cook time! Just put a pot of this stew on the stove and let it cook while you’re relaxing at home, stopping by to check on it every once in a while.

This recipe was shared on Tastetastic Thursdays, Full Plate Thursdays, Cast Party Wednesdays, Recipe of the Week: Healthy/Low Cal Recipes, Sunday Night Soup Night, Scrumptious Sunday, Nifty Thrifty Sunday, Menu Plan Monday, Christmas Leftovers Party, KM’s Chickpea Bloghop, and Katherine Martinelli’s Bean Blog Hop.