Chickpea Salad with Red Onion, Sumac, and Lemon

A few weeks ago was my tenth anniversary of running this food blog. It used to be a blog about daily musings but I decided my love of food was more interesting. Anyway on to today's recipe. The chickpea is definitely my favorite legume. It is so versatile. You can add it to salads, make falafel out of it, use as a flour, and of course hummus. My mother even made a stew with it. Delicious. So many different cultures use it as part of a meal.  I was drawn to the recipe because of the sumac it called for. I love sumac. It is part of the ingredients that make up Zaatar. The salad was fantastic. I threw in some tomatoes and olives for good measure. 

Chickpea Salad with Red Onion, Sumac, and Lemon

 adapted from 

The Kitchn

3 cups uncooked chickpeas
4 garlic cloves, smashed
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 large red onion, sliced very thin
1 tablespoon sumac
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 bunch Italian parsley, leaves finely chopped
1 large lemon, juiced (about 3 tablespoons)
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons pomegranate syrup
5 to 6 sprigs fresh mint

Cover the chickpeas with water in a large bowl and soak overnight. Or do a fast soak: Cover with an inch of water in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Turn off the heat, cover, and soak for 1 hour.

Drain the soaked chickpeas. Cover with fresh water and stir in the garlic cloves and a few pinches of salt and pepper. Bring to a boil then lower the heat and simmer for 60 minutes to 2 hours, or until just tender but not falling apart. You can also cook them in the pressure cooker for about 40 minutes (or according to your pressure cooker instructions). When cooked, spread on a large baking sheet to cool.

Recipe Shortcut: You can also substitute 4 cans of canned chickpeas. Drain and rinse thoroughly before using. I do encourage you to use freshly cooked chickpeas; they are creamy and tender in a really different way than canned garbanzos.

While the chickpeas are cooling, peel and quarter the onion. Shave it as thin as possible into a large bowl, using a very sharp knife or a mandoline. Stir in the sumac, chili powder, and salt. Use your hands to massage the spices and salt into the onions for several minutes. Drain off any liquid that develops in the bottom of the bowl.

Add the chickpeas and chopped parsley to the onions and use your hands or two forks to toss everything thoroughly. Whisk together the lemon juice, olive oil, and pomegranate syrup and toss with the salad. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Continue tossing until the onions are fully incorporated and no longer in small clumps. Refrigerate until serving (this salad gets better overnight).

Just before serving, finely chop the mint leaves and sprinkle over the salad.