A Salad with Chickpeās to beat Türkiye

Eat ‘em & Beat ‘em 2, USMNT opponents 0. However, today could be the end of the streak. Am I worried about our competition? No. But, we’ve already locked-up first place. Today is all about playing well and not getting injured. Turkey Türkiye (more on this in a second) is looking to get out of North America with some pride and would like to score, maybe even win a game. There is more on the line for them than us. 

Can we talk about why they changed their name? Technically, the “new” name is their official name in their native dialect. However, they only requested to be officially recognized as Türkiye to the UN about 4 years ago, because they were tired of being associated with the bird we eat on Thanksgiving. Anyway, we play Türkiye tonight in our last group stage game. I made a delicious Turkish Chickpea Salad which will go great with any Mediterranean main dish. Anyone wanna fight me to make me call it a “garbanzo” bean salad? 

Turkish Chickpea Salad

• 1 cup of dried garbanzo beans

• Aromatics (onion, carrot, celery, bay leaf, thyme, parsley, etc.)

• Cheesecloth

• Saffron (optional)

• Red onion, halved and sliced ¼ inch thick

• Red bell pepper, seeded and sliced into ¼” strips

• 2 tbsp DeLallo sun-dried tomato bruschetta

• 2 garlic cloves, minced

• ½ tsp cumin

• Heavy pinch chili flakes

• 1 tsp sumac

• Juice from 1 lemon

• Large handful of fresh parsley leaves

• Few sprigs of basil

Prepare the beans (alternatively, just use a can of beans). Place the beans in a bowl and cover with 8 cups of water. Season with 2 tbsp of kosher salt and let sit for about 12 hours…or, place the beans in the same amount of salted water in a pot and bring to a boil for 2 mins. Let sit covered for an hour. 

Drain and rinse the soaked beans.

Place the soaked beans back in the pot and cover with about 4 inches of water. Place all of the aromatics in cheesecloth and tie up with butcher string. Add to the pot with a heavy pinch of kosher salt and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer covered for about 2 hours, until the beans have softened. 

After 90 minutes, crush saffron threads between your fingers over a small bowl. Cover with boiling water and allow to steep for several minutes. Then add to the bowl of beans along with another pinch of kosher salt. 

Once the beans have a slightly creamy interior, drain the beans and place in a large bowl. 

Prepare the salad. Once the beans have cooked, place some olive oil in a skillet set over medium heat. Add in the onions and peppers, along with a pinch of salt and cook until softened, about 7 minutes, stirring often. 

Meanwhile, chop the parsley and chiffonade the basil. 

Once the peppers and onions have softened, stir in the sun dried tomatoes along with the garlic and other spices. Cook for one minute stirring constantly. 

Pour the skillet contents over the beans and season with a little salt and black pepper, the lemon juice, and herbs. Stir until combined, adding extra-virgin olive oil as needed. 

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