Sausage and Chickpea Stew

Flavorful Sausage and Chickpea Stew has Italian Sausage, chickpeas, tomatoes, red bell pepper, mushrooms, olives, and pesto! And this is a perfect slow cooker stew to make in less than 3 hours; try it when you’re home on the weekend and want to make a dinner that has leftovers for another meal.

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This new recipe for Sausage and Chickpea Stew is an updated version of an older slow cooker stew that was much higher in carbs, and this is the latest in an ongoing series of recipes I’m updating to make lower in carbs. Of course I realize some people might be fans of the older recipe or don’t especially care about the carbs, so you can find the original version of this recipe back in the archives.

This is the kind of slow cooker recipe that’s perfect to make on an afternoon when you’ll be home, and I had fun with Kara turning this fairly simple stew into a recipe that’s a lot more interesting! And when we tested it Kara said, “This is so flavorful!” and I loved it too. 

The updated version makes eight generous servings, will keep in the fridge for quite a few days, and also freezes well too, so I hope you feel like it’s worth pulling out the slow cooker for a stew that will make at least two meals for most families. I hope you enjoy this interesting chunky stew if you try it!

What ingredients do you need for this recipe?

(This is only a list of ingredients; please scroll down for complete printable recipe. Or if you use the JUMP TO RECIPE link at the top of the page, it will take you directly to the complete recipe with ingredient amounts.)

• Olive Oil (affiliate link)
• turkey or pork Italian Sausage (hot or mild, but I used hot; be sure to use gluten-free sausage if needed)
• onion
• Minced Garlic (affiliate link)
• can of chickpeas (garbanzo beans)
• can of petite-diced tomatoes
• ground fennel (affiliate link), probably optional, but this adds amazing flavor
• Italian Herb Seasoning (affiliate link)
• Spike Seasoning (affiliate link)
• tomato paste (affiliate link)
• water
• red bell pepper
• mushrooms
• can of black olives
• basil pesto (homemade or purchased)
• salt and fresh ground pepper to taste
• freshly-grated Parmesan cheese (to add at the table if desired)

How low in carbs is the Sausage and Chickpea Stew?

The updated version of this chunky flavorful stew has only about 17 net carbs and 20 grams of protein!

What if you’re not a fan of Chickpeas?

If you’re not much of a Chickpea fan, just use Cannellini Beans or another type of white beans in this tasty stew with sausage and vegetables.

Can you make this slow cooker stew without beans?

I haven’t tried it but if you love the other ingredients here but don’t want beans, I think you could make a pretty good-tasting slow cooker stew simply by following the recipe but leaving out the beans. That will be fewer servings than this recipe though, unless you increase one of the other ingredients.

Do you want a slow cooker stew with more liquid?

The raw peppers and mushrooms that cook in the Sausage and Chickpea Stew release liquid when they cook, which is why I only start with one cup of water in this recipe. In one of the later steps I have you check the amount of liquid and add more water if needed. You can add even a bit more liquid than I suggest at that point if you want a stew with more liquid. I might use a few teaspoons of something like Better Than Bouillon Mushroom Base (affiliate link) if you’re adding much more liquid.

What size slow cooker did I use for the Sausage and Chickpea Stew?

I used a 5-Quart Slow Cooker (affiliate link) for this recipe, but any similar size will work.

Weekend Food Prep:

This recipe for Sausage and Chickpea Stew has been added to a category called Weekend Food Prep where you’ll find recipes you can prep or cook on the weekend and eat during the week!

How to make Sausage and Chickpea Stew:

(This is only a summary of the steps for the recipe; please scroll down for complete printable recipe. Or if you use the JUMP TO RECIPE link at the top of the page, it will take you directly to the complete recipe.)

1. Brown sausage in small amount of olive oil, breaking apart. 
2. (For pork sausage, you might want to push sausage over and wipe out some fat with paper towel.)
3. Then push the sausage over, add onions and garlic, and cook for a few minutes. 
4. Add sausage, onions, and garlic to slow cooker and turn to HIGH, cover slow cooker.
5. Drain chickpeas into a colander, and rinse.
6. Put rinsed beans into slow cooker with canned tomatoes and juice, spices, tomato paste, and one cup water. Put lid back on.
7. Cut apart red pepper, remove seeds, and cut into pieces. 
8. Rinse mushrooms if needed, pull out stems and trim, and cut mushrooms into pieces.
9. Put lid on slow cooker and cook for one hour 30 minutes.
10. Drain can of olives and cut olives in half. Add to slow cooker (with additional water if not enough liquid.)
11. Put lid on slow cooker and cook 30 minutes more.
12. Then add pesto and cook about 30 minutes longer.
13. Season to taste with salt and fresh-ground pepper. (We didn’t add much salt.)
14. Serve Sausage and Chickpea Stew hot, with freshly-grated Parmesan cheese desired.

Make it a low-carb meal:

This stew with sausage, chickpea, tomatoes, red bell pepper, mushrooms, olives, and pesto can definitely be a one-dish meal. But if you wanted something more, it would be great with one of these low-carb side dishes:

• Olive Bread
• Low-Carb High Fiber Savory Muffins
• Savory Almond Flour Bread

More Low-Carb Dinners with Sausage:

• Deconstructed Pizza Casserole
• Cauliflower Rice Sausage Casserole
• Beef and Sausage Meatballs with Tomato Sauce
• Air Fryer Sausage and Peppers
• Italian Sausage and Zucchini Skillet Meal 

Continue to Content

Print

Yield: 8 servings

Sausage and Chickpea Stew

Prep Time 20 minutes

Cook Time 2 hours 30 minutes

Total Time 2 hours 50 minutes

Sausage and Chickpea Stew is a delicious chunky stew to make in the slow cooker, and this recipe has so many other interesting ingredients. Plus the addition of pesto gives extra flavor to the stew!

Ingredients

• 1 T olive oil
• 19.5 oz. package  turkey or pork Italian Sausage links (see notes)
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 2 T minced garlic
• one 15 oz. can of chickpeas, drained
• one 14.5 oz. can petite diced tomatoes, with liquid
• 2 tsp. ground fennel (probably optional, but this adds amazing flavor)
• 2 tsp. Italian Herb Blend
• 2 tsp. Spike Seasoning
• 1 T tomato paste
• 1 cup + 1/4 cup water
• 1 large red bell pepper
• 16 oz. mushrooms (see notes)
• one 6 oz. can black olives
• 1/2 cup basil pesto (see notes)
• salt and fresh ground pepper to taste
• freshly-grated parmesan cheese to add at the table (optional)

Instructions

1. Heat olive oil in large non-stick frying pan. Squeeze sausage out of the casing, add to pan, and brown it well over medium-high heat, breaking apart with a turner as it cooks. Yes, it’s important to brown the sausage before you put it in the slow cooker. Don’t rush this step.
2. If you use pork sausage, you might want to push sausage over to the each side of the pan and and wipe out some of the fat with a paper towel before you add onions and garlic. (We did this to keep the finished stew from being greasy.)
3. Then push the sausage over, add onions and garlic to the pan, and cook for a few minutes.
4. Add browned sausage, onions, and garlic to the slow cooker and turn to HIGH, cover slow cooker and let it start to heat
5. Drain chickpeas in a colander placed in the sink, and rinse with cold water until no more foam appears.
6. Then put rinsed beans into the slow cooker, with canned tomatoes and juice from the can, spices, tomato paste, and one cup water. Put lid back on slow cooker.
7. Cut apart red bell pepper, remove seeds, and cut into bite-sized pieces. 
8. Rinse mushrooms if needed. (No need to dry them.) Pull out mushroom stems and trim if needed. Cut mushrooms into quarters (or even more pieces if they're extra large mushrooms.)
9. Add diced red peppers and mushrooms to the slow cooker. Put lid back on and cook for one hour 30 minutes
10. Then drain the can of olives and cut olives in half. Add olives to the slow cooker.
11. Add an additional 1/4 cup of water if it seems like there is not enough liquid. If you feel like you will want even more liquid than that, go ahead and increase the amount of water a little more, but I would add something like Better Than Bouillon Mushroom Base (affiliate link) if you add much more water.
12. Put the lid back on slow cooker and cook 30 minutes more.
13. Then add the pesto and cook about 30 minutes longer
14. Taste the stew and season to taste with salt and fresh-ground pepper. (We didn’t add much salt.)
15. Serve the Sausage and Chickpea Stew hot, with freshly-grated Parmesan cheese to add at the table if desired.

Notes

I would always use turkey Italian sausage if I could find it, but for a few years now my Kroger store hasn't been carrying it. Use either hot or mild Italian sausage, but I used hot.

We used brown Cremini mushrooms for this recipe, but regular white mushrooms will also be fine.

I would always use my Basil Pesto with Lemon for this recipe if I had some in the freezer, but purchased pesto will be fine.

I used a 5-Quart Slow Cooker (affiliate link) for this recipe, but any similar size slow cooker will work.

Recipe created by Kalyn and Kara, adapted from an earlier recipe that was much higher in carbs.

Nutrition Information

Yield

8

Serving Size

1
Amount Per Serving Calories 425Total Fat 28gSaturated Fat 8.3gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 19.3gCholesterol 38mgSodium 1369mgCarbohydrates 24gFiber 7.2gSugar 7.8gProtein 20g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated by the Recipe Plug-In I am using. I am not a nutritionist and cannot guarantee 100% accuracy, since many variables affect those calculations.

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Low-Carb Diet / Low-Glycemic Diet / South Beach Diet Suggestions:
This Sausage and Chickpea Stew with tomatoes, red bell pepper, mushrooms, olives, and pesto will work for low-carb diet plans, but it’s probably too high in carbs for strict Keto. This maybe be high in carbs for the Original South Beach Diet, but if you can find turkey Italian Sausage that will make it lower in fat.

Find More Recipes Like This One:
Use Slow Cooker Recipes to find more recipes like this one. Use the Diet Type Index to find recipes suitable for a specific eating plan. You might also like to follow Kalyn’s Kitchen on Pinterest, on Facebook, on Instagram, on TikTok, or on YouTube to see all the good recipes I’m sharing there.

Historical Notes for this Recipe:
This stew with chickpeas, sausage, and pesto was first posted in 2013. In 2025 the original recipe was archived, and this post was updated to the current lower-carb version that includes red bell pepper, mushrooms, and olives.

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