RECIPE: Sesame Chickpeas (or Sesame Chicken)

After posting about increasing my fiber yesterday, someone asked for the Sesame Chickpeas recipe. I didn't realize I never posted it before, so I figured I'd share it today. It's SO good! I always made this with chicken breasts until recently, so I'll write it out for both chickpeas and chicken, and that way you can make it how you like.

When making sauces like this (or General Tso's or Sweet & Sour, etc.) I like to use a mason jar. I put all of the ingredients inside, screw on the lid, and then shake it so everything mixes well. A lot of times, I'll prep the sauce in the morning and then when I want to cook, I don't have to take out all the ingredients; the sauce is ready.

If you like to have a lot of sauce so you can mix it into your rice, then you may want to double this sauce recipe.

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Sesame Chickpeas (or Chicken)

For the sauce:

2 Tbsp. soy sauce (I like tamari, but either is fine)
1 Tbsp. water
1-1/2 tsp. sesame oil
1-1/2 Tbsp. brown sugar
1-1/2 Tbsp. rice vinegar
1/2 tsp. fresh ginger (I buy this in a squeeze tube to keep in the fridge)
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 Tbsp. sesame seeds
1 Tbsp. cornstarch

Other ingredients:

2 (15 oz) cans chickpeas OR 1 pound chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces
2 tsp. cooking oil if using chicken
cooked rice or other grain for serving
4-5 green onions, sliced, for topping

Mix together all of the ingredients for the sauce and set aside.

If using chickpeas: Drain and rinse the chickpeas. Pour the chickpeas and sauce into a medium-size pot and heat over high heat just until it comes to a boil and thickens (there is no need to cook canned chickpeas--they will heat through with the sauce). Remove from heat and serve over rice; garnish with green onions.

If using chicken: Heat oil in a skillet over medium-high heat and add the chicken. Sauté until the chicken is browned and cooked through. Add the sauce and bring just to a boil so that the sauce thickens. Remove from heat and serve over rice; garnish with green onions.

Variations:

Steam some broccoli or other vegetables on the side and stir them into the chickpeas or chicken with sauce.

Use another sort of grain for serving. My favorite is barley, but I've also used quinoa.

If you like a light breading on the chicken (I haven't tried this on the chickpeas, so I'm not sure if that would work), put an egg and 2 Tbsp. cornstarch in a Ziploc bag and seal. Mash the egg and cornstarch together. Then add the chicken and and shake to coat. Then add to skillet as above.