Acelgas esparragás are a typical dish of the province of Almería: an easy recipe that is also healthy, light and full of flavour. But do you know where the name “esparragás” comes from? The food writer Antonio Zapata explains in his book Vivir para comer en Almería that in the classic version of this stew the chard is “as lonely as an asparagus”, because in other recipes chard usually comes with other vegetables.
We make it with chickpeas, but you can use white beans instead. We also add potatoes and onion, which not every recipe includes, to give the stew a bit more life.
Here are the ingredients and method for acelgas esparragás, a recipe suitable for vegetarians and vegans:
Ingredients
- 2 bunches of chard
- 300 g chickpeas
- 2 garlic cloves
- 70 g almonds
- 2 slices of bread
- 2 potatoes
- 1 small onion
- 1 tomato
- 1 tablespoon sweet paprika
- Extra virgin olive oil
Method
Soak the chickpeas the night before. Once they are rehydrated, cook them in boiling water. Towards the end, add the chopped potatoes, cook for 20 more minutes and turn off the heat.
Chop and wash the chard and cook it on its own in a little salted water. Drain well. Fry some almonds, a couple of garlic cloves and two slices of bread, then blend them. Sauté the onion in a little oil, add the paprika and the tomato, cook gently for a few minutes and blend together with the almond mixture.
To finish, add the chard and the blended sauce to the chickpeas, stir well and heat just until it comes to the boil.
It’s ready to serve. This dish is eaten hot.
