Chickpea cacciatore with pan-fried tofu and olives

Name: Chickpea cacciatore with pan-fried tofu and olives
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 5 h 30 min
Total time: 5 h 50 min
Yield: Serves 4
Ingredients: 2 carrots, quartered lengthways, cut into 1 cm (½ inch) slices; 2 rosemary sprigs; 1 fresh or dried bay leaf; 80 g (2¾ oz/½ cup) pitted Kalamata olives, halved; 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar; 2 tablespoons plain (all-purpose) flour; 300–600 g (10½–1 lb 5 oz) firm tofu; 2 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf (Italian) parsley; 2 garlic cloves, crushed or finely chopped; 3 celery stalks, thinly sliced; 250 ml (9 fl oz/1 cup) good-quality vegetable stock; 1 brown onion, coarsely chopped; 2 tablespoons tomato paste (concentrated purée); 1 large eggplant (aubergine), cut into 1–2 cm (½–¾ inch) dice; 1 teaspoon dried oregano; 400 g (14 oz) tin diced tomatoes; 2 x 400 g (14 oz) tins chickpeas, drained and rinsed; 2 tablespoons olive oil; 250 ml (9 fl oz/1 cup) dry white wine or extra stock

Preparation info

Serves
4

Difficulty
Medium
Ready in
6 hr

Appears in

Slow Cooker Vegetarian

By Katy Holder

Published 2018

About

This isn’t just a one-pan slow cooker recipe. Instead, the tofu is pan-fried in a seasoned coating, then served topped with the delicious cacciatore sauce. You can leave out the tofu and serve the sauce over pasta or rice instead.

Ingredients

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large eggplant (aubergine), cut into 1–2 cm (½–¾ inch) dice
1

Main course
Vegan

Method

Heat the oil in the insert pan of a slow cooker or a large frying pan over medium–high heat and cook the eggplant for 4–5 minutes until softened. Return the insert pan, if using, to the slow cooker, or transfer the eggplant to the slow cooker with the remaining ingredients, except the white wine vinegar, olives and parsley. Season well with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper and cook on l