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Chickpea Breakfast Scramble

Plants Not Plastic
This chickpea scramble is flavorful, so easy to make, pairs great with your favorite mix of veggies, and a perfect morning option for at home or on the go. It's a great substitute for the traditional egg scramble and a whole food alternative to the more common tofu scramble. It also stores great in the fridge and can be prepared in advance for even easier prep!
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Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Total Time 15 minutes
Course Breakfast
Cuisine American
Servings 3 cups/2 servings
Calories 231.8 kcal

Equipment

  • Non-stick frying pan [note#1]

Ingredients
  

  • 1 1/2 cups chickpeas 1/2 cup dry or 1-15oz can
  • 1/3 cup vegetable broth sub water
  • 1/4 medium onion finely diced (about 1/4 cup)
  • 1 tbsp nutritional yeast
  • 1/2 tsp chili powder
  • 1/4 tsp turmeric
  • 1/8 tsp paprika
  • salt & pepper to taste

Optional Additions

  • 1 medium Roma tomato diced; ~1/4 cup; sub cherry tomatoes, halved or quartered
  • 1/4 medium red bell pepper diced; ~1/4 cup
  • 1/4 small broccoli crown cut into bite-sized pieces
  • 1/4-1/2 cup crimini or white mushrooms sliced or cubed
  • other veggies of choice asparagus, spinach, carrots, zucchini, artichoke, chiles, etc. [note #2]

Instructions
 

  • In a blender, combine your chickpeas and vegetable broth and pulse 2-4 times until the chickpeas are mostly broken apart and look grainy, but the mixture is not smooth. You can also just use a fork to break them up and then stir in the vegetable broth.
  • In your medium non-stick pan over medium heat, sauté the onion until soft, about 2-4 minutes.
  • Add your other veggies and cook them down [note #3].
  • Add your spices and cook for an additional 1-2 minutes until spices are fragrant, then add the tomatoes and chickpea-vegetable broth mixture.
  • When it begins to bubble, reduce to a simmer and cook for another few minutes until some of the moisture cooks off and thickens a bit.
  • Sprinkle with salt & pepper to taste and serve by itself, over toast, with salsa on top, or with other breakfast favorites. I eat mine with toast and sprinkle with basil & parsley.
  • Enjoy!

Video

Notes

  1. I don't cook with oil, so a nonstick fry is necessary for this recipe to ensure nothing sticks.
  2. You can really use any kind of veggie you might normally put into a scramble, just aim for 3-4 types of veggies max or you'll start to lose the chickpea scramble to sauteed vegetables. I typically choose bell pepper, mushrooms, and spinach or broccoli for some greens.
  3. If you are adding any additional veggies, keep in mind that cook time will vary depending on how 'soft' the veggie is that you're cooking. Cut your groupings of veggies (hard to soft) similar in size pieces so they cook down evenly,:
  • Hard veggies (smaller pieces): carrots, broccoli stems, celery, etc.
  • Medium veggies (slightly larger pieces): broccoli florets, asparagus, zucchini, artichoke, etc.
  • Soft veggies (larger pieces): mushrooms & greens (spinach, kale, etc.)
Mushrooms and tomatoes are good options for throwing in as they're so watery they'll help to deglaze your pan if anything starts to stick. Tomatoes also won't be able to cook down or caramelize enough in a short cook time, so expect to use them as a fresh, acidic addition in this dish rather than a sweet one.
Total cook time may also vary depending on the types of veggies you've chosen, but in all cases you are looking for that first bit of browning on the pan and for almost all of the water to have cooked off before moving to the next step and adding your spices.
Nutrition label is just for the base recipe and does not include any additional veggies.
Keyword breakfast, breakfast scramble, chickpea scramble, chickpeas, chili powder, cumin, garbanzo beans, paprika, turmeric, scramble, tofu scramble, vegetable broth, vegetable scramble, vegetables