Vegan Chickpea Pasta With Mushrooms

Serve a plate of vegan chickpea pasta with mushrooms for a wholesome, quick weeknight dinner that's bursting with flavour. Made with simple pantry ingredients, this is easy comfort food at its best, which also happens to be great for meal prep. Oil-free and gluten-free, as long as you use gluten-free pasta.

One thing that never gets boring is pasta. I eat it by the bucketful, and still can't get enough. There are just so many possibilities with it, suited to all preferences, cooking abilities, etc. So, no matter what anyone says about carbs, I'll be staning pasta until the end of time.

Another all-time favourite of mine? Chickpeas. Of course, they're a classic vegan staple. So when pasta and chickpeas come together, it's pretty magical as far as I'm concerned! Try this recipe to convince yourself that I'm 100% not exaggerating ;).

Vegan chickpea pasta with mushrooms

Served with a glass of red and some vegan cheese grated on top, this pasta dish has all the homemade fancy 5* dinner vibes. You know, the sort of thing you'd want to make to impress a date. But that's without the inevitable disaster of overestimating your commitment to cooking actual fancy food.

Because truth be told, this chickpea pasta is ridiculously easy. The ingredients are also far from fancy. In fact, you most likely have them sitting around in your pantry already. If you don't that not a problem, and I've outlined some easy swaps below.

My favourite thing here is the rich, creamy tomato sauce. The creaminess results from simply adding plant based milk. That's it! No cashews, no coconut milk from a tin. Just good old oat milk/almost milk/any unsweetened plant alternative. It clings to the pasta and brings tonnes of flavour into every bite!

Take your quick and easy pasta to the next level!

Now, easy pasta dinners tend to evoke images of whacking pre-made pasta sauces in the microwave and hoping for the best. But with just a few easy steps, you can make a sauce from scratch that is so much better. Here are my top tips:

• Add plenty of vegetables! And that's not just for health reasons. Veggies help add flavour naturally, and make the dish a lot more satisfying.
• Be generous with the spices. The more the merrier, at least up to a certain point. I'm obsessed with adding a lot of garlic powder to my pasta meals at the moment.
• Nutritional yeast. My favourite 'secret' ingredient. It adds an amazing cheesy undertone to dishes without the need to add actual vegan cheese, which is more expensive and higher in fat.
• Don't overcook the pasta. Seriously. It'll fall apart, get soggy, and you'll end up with a questionable deconstructed soup.

Okay, now onto this recipe.

What you'll need (+ substitutions)

• Pasta of your choice. Use gluten-free pasta in order to ensure that this dish is gluten-free.
• Onion. Either white or red is fine.
• Green bell pepper. To make this more pantry-friendly, you can leave it out. Or - replace with whatever veggies you have on hand!
• Tomato paste.
• Chestnut mushrooms. I much prefer these to ordinary white mushrooms in terms of flavour.
• Turmeric.
• Cumin.
• Garlic granules. You can also use fresh garlic.
• Chickpeas. Use either tinned chickpeas, or cook your own from dry ahead of time.
• Chopped tomatoes.
• Plant based milk. Use any unsweetened version of your choice. You can also use veggie broth, or tinned coconut milk if you want it to be extra creamy.
• Nutritional yeast. Perfect for adding a hint of cheesiness, but can be left out.
• Peas. Use any variety you have on hand: tinned, or frozen.

How to make vegan chickpea pasta

STEP 1: Cook the pasta according to packaging instructions until al dente.

STEP 2: Meanwhile, add the onion, garlic and tomato paste into a non-stick frying pan together with a splash of water (around 2 tbsp). Sauté for 2-3 minutes, until softened and fragrant.

STEP 3: Add the mushrooms, turmeric, cumin, and garlic granules. Continue to sauté for a further 3-4 minutes, until the mushrooms start to cook down and soften.

STEP 4: Add the chickpeas, chopped tomatoes, plant based milk and nutritional yeast. Simmer and stir over a medium heat for around 5 minutes to allow the sauce to thicken slightly.

STEP 5: Drain and rinse the pasta. Transfer it to the frying pan and stir it through the sauce together with the green peas, seasoning with salt.

STEP 6: Serve immediately, or divide between meal prep containers and store in the fridge for up to 5 days.

A few notes

• This dish is gluten-free as long as you use gluten-free pasta.
• If the sauce is too thin, thicken it by adding 1-2 tbsp gluten-free flour or cornstarch.
• You can, of course, replace the chickpeas with any other bean variety. The sauce works with pretty much anything!

My favourite vegan pasta recipes

• Nut-free creamy pasta with butter beans
• Cold spaghetti salad with balsamic tofu
• Kidney bean one pot pasta
• Creamy tofu pasta
• Vegetable and mushroom pasta

Recipe