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Pork Stew With Chickpeas

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Jenny Skrapaliori-Graves | Last Updated: October 28, 2024


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Pork Stew With Chickpeas in a dutch oven with a silver serving spoon.

This Cretan pork stew with chickpeas is hearty and delicious. It slow-cooks with few simple ingredients and has delicate, rustic flavors.

If you’re a fan of our delicious Pork Stew With Chickpeas, you’re in for a treat with our Pork and Beans, Greek Beef Stew-Stifado, and Greek Lamb Stew Avgolemono!

Why this recipe sings

  • It’s delicious Cretan recipe. Pork stew with chickpeas is a recipe whose variations can be found all over Greece. This particular one is from Crete, from the area called Anogeia. It is traditionally cooked and enjoyed on the eve of the wedding.
  • It is easy, beautiful food. This Cretan version of this pork stew follows Cretan cuisine’s simple beauty with few ingredients and beautiful flavors.
  • It is versatile. This mushroom stew can be served over mashed potatoes or polenta for a main course and the leftovers are terrific as a sauce next to a protein.

Here is what you need

  • Pork shoulderโ€” this cut of meat is great for slow cooking and perfect for this recipe. It is a fattier cut, so we brown the meat first, render some of this fat, and turn it a little crispy at the edges but tender inside.
  • Chickpeasโ€” also called garbanzo beans. They taste delicious and are very good for you. You may use dry beans or canned for convenience. Below you will find instructions for both.
  • An onionโ€” roughly chopped or diced.
  • Wineโ€”a dry white or red wine works just fine.
  • Canned Tomatoesโ€” I prefer genuine San Marzano tomatoes, which are always in the pantry and can be used all seasons. If it’s peak tomato season, using fresh ripe tomatoes is amazing, but I still love the convenience of good canned ones.
  • Sun-dried tomatoesโ€” the magical ingredient that adds umami or โ€œdelicious savory tasteโ€ in Japanese. They deepen and intensify the flavor of the stew.
  • Extra virgin olive oil, sea salt, freshly ground pepper, and ground cumin.

How to make this pork stew

For dry chickpeas

  • Soak the chickpeas overnight in plenty of water. Half an hour before cooking, rinse them well, put them back in a bowl, add plenty of water and a tablespoon of baking soda.
  • Rinse chickpeas well and add them to a pot with plenty of water. Bring them to a boil and cook until soft but not mushy. Save 2 cups of chickpea water and set it aside for later.

For canned chickpeas

Drain the chickpeas in a bowl using a colander. Save the liquid from one of the cans and mix it with a cup of water. Set aside for later.

Pieces of pork cooking in olive oil.
  1. Heat the oven to 155ยฐC / 315ยฐF degrees.
  2. Pat the pork with a paper towel to blot any extra moisture. Season with sea salt and pepper.
  3. Heat 2-3 tablespoons olive oil in an ovenproof pot (like a Dutch oven).
  4. Add 3-4 pork pieces and brown all over. Transfer to a plate and repeat until all are browned.


  1. Move all the pork back into the pot on high heat. Carefully add the wine and let the alcohol evaporate.
Chickpeas, tomatoes, pork and seasonings in a pot.
  1. Add the onions, chickpeas, and tomatoes and season with sea salt, freshly ground pepper, cumin, and cayenne pepper (to taste). Stir gently. If needed, add a little saved chickpea water.
  2. Cover and place the pot in the oven. Cook for 60 minutes.


Pork stew with chickpeas cooked in a pot.
  1. Stir and add the sun-dried tomatoes, cover and continue cooking in the oven for 30 more minutes.
  2. Uncover, add a little chickpea water if needed, stir, and continue cooking for 30 more minutes.
  3. Let the pork stew sit for 15 minutes. Adjust sea salt and pepper to taste and serve.
Pork Stew With Chickpeas in a dutch oven with a silver serving spoon, over a cloth napkin.

Tips

  • If you go with dry chickpeas, different varieties need more or less soaking time. If available, I like to use a small Italian chickpea variety called sultano that only requires 2 hours of soaking.
  • Instead of tomatoes, use 2 tablespoons of tomato paste diluted in a cup of water.
  • If wine is unavailable or not desired, use a cup of veggie or chicken stock.
Pork Stew With Chickpeas in a plate with a fork and spoon, over a cloth napkin.

How to serve this pork stew

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Pork Stew With Chickpeas in a dutch oven with a silver serving spoon.

Pork Stew With Chickpeas

by Jenny Skrapaliori Graves
This slow-cooked Creatan pork stew with chickpeas is hearty and delicious. It has a few simple ingredients and delicate, rustic flavors.
5 from 8 votes
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 2 hours
Course Main Course
Cuisine Cretan, Greek
Servings 6
Calories 368 kcal

Equipment

  • A 5 QT dutch oven or an oven proof pot

Ingredients
  

  • 2 lbs pork shoulder
  • 3 cups cooked chickpeas Please see the recipe notes.
  • ยฝ cup extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 red onion diced
  • 1 cup dry white wine or dry red wine
  • 14 oz tomatoes canned or fresh, roughly chopped
  • 1 cup sundried tomatoes roughly chopped (optional)
  • 2 tablespoons ground cumin
  • sea salt
  • freshly ground pepper

Instructions
 

  • Heat the oven to 155ยฐC / 315ยฐF degrees.
  • Pat the pork with a paper towel to blot any extra moisture. Season with sea salt and pepper.
  • Heat 2-3 tablespoons olive oil in an ovenproof pot (like a Dutch oven).
  • Add 3-4 pork pieces and brown all over. Transfer to a plate and repeat until all are browned.
  • Move all the pork back into the pot on high heat. Carefully add the wine and let the alcohol evaporate.ย 
  • Add the onions, chickpeas, and tomatoes and season with sea salt, freshly ground pepper, cumin, and cayenne pepper (to taste). Stir gently. If needed, add a little saved chickpea water(see recipe notes).
  • Cover and place the pot in the oven. Cook for 60 minutes.ย 
  • Stir and add the sun-dried tomatoes, cover and continue cooking in the oven for 30 more minutes.
  • Uncover, add a little chickpea water if needed, stir, and continue cooking for 30 more minutes.
  • Let the pork stew sit for 15 minutes. Adjust sea salt and pepper to taste and serve.

Notes

Dried chickpeas versus canned

One cup of dry chickpeas will yield 3 cups of cooked chickpeas. For this recipe, ยฝ pounds of dried chickpeas (about 2 cups), will yield about 3 cups of cooked chickpeas.
ย 

Making this stew with dried chickpeas

  • Soak the chickpeas overnight in plenty of water. Half an hour before cooking, rinse them well, put them back in a bowl, and add plenty of water and a tablespoon of baking soda.
  • Rinse chickpeas well and add them to a pot with plenty of water. Bring them to a boil and cook until soft but not mushy. Save 2 cups of chickpea water and set it aside for later.

ย 

Making this stew with canned chickpeas

Drain the chickpeas in a bowl using a colander. Save the liquid from one of the cans and mix it with a cup of water. Set aside for later.
ย 
ย 
ย 
Nutritional Infoย โ€“ Please keep in mind that nutritional information provided is only an estimate and can vary based on products used.

Nutrition

Calories: 368kcalCarbohydrates: 37gProtein: 28gFat: 10gSaturated Fat: 3gCholesterol: 62mgSodium: 130mgPotassium: 1422mgFiber: 9gSugar: 13gVitamin A: 757IUVitamin C: 19mgCalcium: 103mgIron: 7mg
Tried this recipe?Mention @thegreekfoodie__ or tag #thegreekfoodie__

Pork Stew With Chickpeas
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5 from 8 votes (2 ratings without comment)

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15 Comments

  3. Oooh, I love learning about different wedding foods! This looks like a nice, filling way to get life started together. ๐Ÿ™‚

    Reply

  4. This is odd but I’ve never used chickpeas in anything but cookies. It’s time I give them a try! This sounds like a great recipe to try.

    Reply

  5. 5 stars
    This stew looks so tender and delicious, with that great combination of pork, chickpeas and tomatoes. I had not known what fond was – nice to learn a new term.

    Reply

  6. 5 stars
    I’ve been to Crete twice and loved the food, especially in the inland, mountain restaurants! I ate honeycomb for the first time there! Anyway, this pork and chickpeas looks really delicious. makes me think of rustic old fashioned recipes. What here in Italy we call ‘la cucina povera’! On my to make list!

    Reply

  8. 5 stars
    Every time I “invent” a new recipe, I google the ingredients and discover somebody else thought of it first. But I’m so glad I found your website. There are a dozen more wonderful recipes here that are out of the ordinary and very appealing. You have joined my shortlist of favorite recipe sites

    Reply

  9. 5 stars
    Loved this recipe but modified it a bit. Used ground pork instead of butt (didnโ€™t have it), cooked in stock pot, drained fat, set aside. Sautรฉed onion in bacon fat in fry pan, added diced yellow bell pepper, jalapeรฑo, garlic and cumin. Added wine and let simmer a few minutes then canned tomatoes and chickpeas. Let cook 10 minutes then added veggie mix to meat. A little chicken broth and V-8 helped to give it some body. Salt and pepper to taste plus a sprinkle or two of cayenne, Italian seasoning, garlic powder, onion powder. Finished with a small bag of frozen spinach for some color and extra nutrients. Simmered half an hour to let flavors meld. Delicious! Maybe more Southwest or Italian than Greek but thank you for your recipe!

    Reply