Revithada

One of the things I love about living in Greece is that I am learning about all kinds of dishes that I would probably have never thought of making, would I have stayed in my own country.
One of these recipes is "Revithada", a beautiful chickpea stew that doesn't really require any cooking skills, it just bubbles along by itself while it turns into a healthy, warmhearted, honest meal.
Chickpeas are quite common in the Mediterranean kitchen, we for sure all know hummus !
The only thing we should do to prepare for this dish is soak the chickpeas overnight, this rehydrates them and results in more tender beans when cooked.
What I do is the following: I take 500gr gr. chickpeas, soak them overnight in plenty of clean water, the next day I boil half of them in a pan with plenty of water to cover them, I add a whole onion for taste and some salt.
It takes about two hours for the chickpeas to get soft enough to make hummus.
The other half of the chickpeas I use for my Revithada and here is the recipe !

Ingredients:
500 gr. chickpeas
2 onions, chopped in wedges
1 can of chopped tomatoes
1 tablespoon of cumin (great suggestion from chef Con Zar)
1 tablespoon of rosemary
4 tablespoons of olive oil
salt, pepper
2 tablespoons of plain flour
enough water to cover the peas

Put the chickpeas in a pan or even better in a tagine or in an oven dish.
Add the onions, the chopped tomatoes, the herbs, salt and pepper, the oil and the flour.
Cover the chickpeas with water, but not more than necessary.
Cook them on a low flame, or on a low temperature in the oven and just leave them there for 3 to 4 hours.
Check the liquid every now and then and add water when needed.

Enjoy this dish as much as I do! That's my wish for you!!
This dish serves about 4 people. To make your meal complete present it with traditional Greek corn bread and a green salad.

With love,
esther.