One-Pot Moroccan Chickpea and Sweet Potato Stew with Red Lentils and Kale
A cozy one-pot Moroccan chickpea sweet potato stew with red lentils, kale, cumin, cinnamon and raisins, brightened with lemon. Ready in about an hour.
- Prep
- 15 min
- Cook
- 40 min
- Serves
- 6
One-Pot Moroccan Chickpea and Sweet Potato Stew with Red Lentils and Kale is a vegan dinner recipe made with olive oil, yellow onion, fine salt. It takes 55 minutes of hands-on time, serves 6, and each serving has 292 calories, 13 g of protein and 10 g of fiber.
Toasting the cumin, coriander, cinnamon and ginger in oil with tomato paste gives this stew a deep, warm base that tastes a lot like ras el hanout. Red lentils break down as they simmer and thicken the broth on their own, while sweet potato cubes stay intact for texture. Raisins add small bursts of sweetness. A squeeze of lemon at the end keeps all those warm spices from tasting flat.
A cuisine (Moroccan ras el hanout–style cumin-cinnamon spicing) + cooking method (brothy one-pot stew with red lentils and sweet potato instead of a dry skillet or coconut curry) take on our Smoky Chickpea & Spinach Skillet.
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp27 golive oil
- 1 large150 gyellow onion, diced
- 1¼ tsp7.5 gfine salt, divided
- 4 cloves12 ggarlic cloves, minced
- 1 tbsp6 gfresh ginger, finely grated
- 2 tbsp32 gtomato paste
- 2 tsp4.2 gground cumin
- 1 tsp1.8 gground coriander
- 1 tsp2.6 gground cinnamon
- ½ tsp1.5 gground turmeric
- ¼ tsp0.5 gred pepper flakes
- 1 large169 gsweet potato, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes (about 3 cups)
- ¾ cup144 gred lentils, rinsed
- 1 can411 gdiced tomatoes, with juices, 14.5 oz can
- 4 cups960 gvegetable broth
- 1 can240 gchickpeas, drained and rinsed, 15 oz can
- ⅓ cup48 graisins
- 1 cup237 gwater, to loosen as needed
- 1 bunch150 glacinato kale, stems removed, leaves chopped (about 4 packed cups)
- 2 tbsp31 gfresh lemon juice
- ½ tsp1.2 gblack pepper
To serve
- ¼ cup4 gcilantro or parsley, chopped (optional)
- ¼ cup36 gsliced almonds, toasted (optional)
- 1 cup173 gcouscous, cooked according to package, 1 cup dry (optional)
Kit: large Dutch oven or heavy soup pot, chef's knife, cutting board, fine-mesh sieve
Tips
- Cut the sweet potato into even 1/2-inch cubes. Bigger chunks will still be firm when the lentils are done.
- Rinse the red lentils until the water runs mostly clear. This removes extra starch that can make the stew gluey and cause it to scorch.
- The stew thickens a lot as it sits. Add a splash of broth or water when you reheat it.
- If you have ras el hanout, you can use 2 tsp of it in place of the cumin, coriander, cinnamon and turmeric.
Swap ideas
- Butternut squash instead of sweet potato
- Tastes a bit less sweet and cooks a little faster. Check for tenderness at 15 minutes.
- Chopped dried apricots or dates instead of raisins
- Gives a jammier, more tagine-like sweetness.
- Spinach instead of kale
- Wilts in 30 seconds and gives a softer texture. Add it right before the lemon.
- 1 tsp harissa paste instead of red pepper flakes
- Adds smoky, garlicky chile heat and deeper color.
The numbers
Nutrition per serving
292kcal per serving
Everything else · 6 servings per recipe
- Saturated fat
- 1 g 5%
- Sugars
- 13.1 g
- Sodium
- 1080 mg 47%
- Potassium
- 815 mg 17%
- Calcium
- 163 mg 13%
- Iron
- 5.1 mg 28%
- Vitamin C
- 40 mg 45%
- Vitamin B12
- 0 µg 0%
% Daily Value on a 2,000 calorie diet. Calculated from USDA FoodData Central values for each ingredient; optional ingredients are excluded. Estimates vary with brands and portions.
Sources: Oil, olive, salad or cooking, Onions, raw, Salt, table, Garlic, raw, Ginger root, raw, Tomato products, canned, paste, without salt added (Includes foods for USDA's Food Distribution Program), Spices, cumin seed, Spices, coriander seed, Spices, cinnamon, ground, Spices, turmeric, ground, Spices, pepper, red or cayenne, Sweet potato, raw, unprepared (Includes foods for USDA's Food Distribution Program), Lentils, pink or red, raw, Tomatoes, red, ripe, canned, packed in tomato juice, Soup, vegetable broth, ready to serve, Chickpeas (garbanzo beans, bengal gram), mature seeds, cooked, boiled, without salt, Raisins, dark, seedless (Includes foods for USDA's Food Distribution Program), Beverages, water, tap, drinking, Kale, raw, Lemon juice, raw, Spices, pepper, black
Method
Heat the olive oil in a large Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onion and 1/2 tsp of the salt. Cook, stirring now and then, until soft and turning golden at the edges, 6–8 minutes.
Add the garlic and ginger and stir for 1 minute until fragrant. Add the tomato paste, cumin, coriander, cinnamon, turmeric and red pepper flakes. Stir constantly for 1–2 minutes, until the paste turns brick red and starts to stick to the bottom of the pot.
Add the sweet potato and stir to coat it in the spices. Add the rinsed lentils, diced tomatoes and broth, then scrape up any browned bits from the bottom of the pot.
Bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer, partly covered. Stir every 5 minutes so the lentils don't stick. Cook until the lentils have broken down and the sweet potato is tender when pierced with a fork but still holds its shape, 20–25 minutes.
Stir in the chickpeas, raisins and the remaining 3/4 tsp salt. If the stew has gotten thicker than you'd like, add water 1/4 cup at a time. Simmer 3 minutes, until the chickpeas are heated through and the raisins have plumped.
Stir in the kale a handful at a time and cook until it wilts and turns bright green, 2–3 minutes.
Take the pot off the heat. Stir in the lemon juice and black pepper, then taste and add more salt or lemon if needed. Serve in bowls, on its own or over couscous, with herbs and toasted almonds on top.
Storage: Let the stew cool, then refrigerate it in an airtight container for up to 4 days. You can also freeze it for up to 3 months, though the kale will be softer after thawing. Reheat on the stove over medium heat with a splash of water or broth until it's steaming hot all the way through.
Questions
- How much protein is in one-pot moroccan chickpea and sweet potato stew with red lentils and kale?
- Each of the 6 servings has 13 g of protein, 10 g of fiber and 292 calories, calculated from USDA FoodData Central values for every ingredient.
- Is one-pot moroccan chickpea and sweet potato stew with red lentils and kale vegan?
- Yes. It contains no dairy, eggs, honey or other animal products.
- How long does one-pot moroccan chickpea and sweet potato stew with red lentils and kale take to make?
- 15 minutes of prep and 40 minutes of cooking, so 55 minutes of hands-on time.
- Can you make one-pot moroccan chickpea and sweet potato stew with red lentils and kale ahead?
- Let the stew cool, then refrigerate it in an airtight container for up to 4 days. You can also freeze it for up to 3 months, though the kale will be softer after thawing. Reheat on the stove over medium heat with a splash of water or broth until it's steaming hot all the way through.
- What can I substitute in one-pot moroccan chickpea and sweet potato stew with red lentils and kale?
- Butternut squash instead of sweet potato — tastes a bit less sweet and cooks a little faster. check for tenderness at 15 minutes.. Chopped dried apricots or dates instead of raisins — gives a jammier, more tagine-like sweetness.. Spinach instead of kale — wilts in 30 seconds and gives a softer texture. add it right before the lemon.. 1 tsp harissa paste instead of red pepper flakes — adds smoky, garlicky chile heat and deeper color..
- Does one-pot moroccan chickpea and sweet potato stew with red lentils and kale contain gluten or tree nuts?
- Yes — the ingredient list includes gluten and tree nuts, in some cases as an optional ingredient you can leave out. Check the labels on the products you buy if you're cooking for an allergy.
Nutrition is calculated from USDA data for every ingredient — how we work it out.
Published October 1, 2026 ·Moroccan
