Here’s a different chickpea recipe for you – a healthy and hearty Greek chickpea soup packed with lots of protein and nutrients!
Greek Vegan Chickpea Soup
This easy Greek chickpea soup is made in only 1 pot and will be ready in less than an hour or even quicker if you use canned chickpeas.
And while I would definitely recommend making the soup with dried and soaked chickpeas and then slowly simmering it to build more complexity and flavor, using canned chickpeas also gives pretty decent results.
The soup is low cost and super low effort. All you have to do is brown the veggies, add the vegetable stock and chickpeas along with the spices, slow simmer blend, and enjoy! This a perfect no-fail recipe for lemony Greek chickpea soup to make as a weeknight dinner! What else could you ask for?
Health benefits of chickpeas
Described in a few words for me, chickpeas are a superfood! They are one of the most versatile plant-based foods you can turn into many things.
- Packed with protein – they have 19 grams of protein on 100g, which takes them to the top of the list for protein-packed legumes.
- Have many nutrients – fiber, magnesium, zinc, iron, and so much more.
Ingredients and substitutions
- Chickpeas – dried and soaked overnight is best.
- Carrot – peeled and chopped into the desired size and cooked with the onion. Sauteeing the veggies makes an excellent base for the vegetable stock and gives flavor to the soup.
- Onion – red or white onion works best.
- Garlic – optional but recommended for building flavor into the soup.
- Lemon – a few tablespoons of freshly squeezed lemon juice in the soup for added brightness.
- Vegetable stock – can be substituted with vegetable stock bouillon cube.
- Bay leaf and spices
The short answer is yes! And while I would recommend and prefer to make it with soaked chickpeas because it gives more flavor to the soup, using canned chickpeas would also work as a charm.
One thing to remember is that you’d need to use less water than you could if you’d make this soup with dried chickpeas. I find that the best ratio is 1×1, or 1 cup chickpeas, to 1 cup water. As opposed to if you’d make this with dried and soaked chickpeas, the ratio would be 1 cup chickpeas and 2 1/2 cup water.
And if you do decide to use canned chickpeas, you’d need only to boil the soup for 10-15 minutes just so the flavors mingle together.
How to make this greek chickpea soup recipe?
Add the dried chickpeas to the bow and rinse through cold water. Fill the bowl with water and make sure there are a few cm/inches of water above the chickpeas. Soak them overnight (6-7 hours).
To a small pot, add the vegetable stock and let it preheat over medium-high heat while you sautee the veggies.
To a medium pot, add olive oil and preheat it over medium heat. Add the peeled and chopped carrot along with the diced onion and cook for 3-4 minutes or until the veggies are softened and the onion has become translucent. Toss the minced garlic and cook for another minute.
Pour the boiling vegetable stock into the carrot and onion mixture, then add the chickpeas without the water where they’ve been soaking. And finally, add the bay leaf, salt, and pepper to taste.
Once the soup comes to a boil, lower the heat to medium-low and cover the pot with a lid and let it simmer for 35-35 minutes or until the chickpeas are soft. If you feel there isn’t enough water, add 1/2 or 2/3 cup more of the vegetable stock to the chickpea soup.
Add some of the cooked chickpeas, a few tablespoons of the stock, and lemon in a food processor. Blend well until the mixture is smooth and creamy. Transfer the mixture back to the pot and stir well to combine. Add parsley and taste the soup; add more salt and pepper to taste.
What to serve with Greek chickpea soup?
The first and possibly the best thing that comes to mind when I think of what to serve this simple chickpea soup with is crispy croutons, toasted baguette, or any other bread you have on hand. Toasted bread would complement this hearty and comforting soup perfectly!
Salad will be the other option if you are up for more veggies in your meal. I’d make tuna salad which goes great with chickpeas and is also a great source of protein.
Other delicious chickpea recipes you’d love to try:
Chickpea Fritters From Canned Chickpeas
Crispy Chickpeas And Avocado Toast
Chickpea Pancakes, aka. Socca
Greek Chickpea Soup
Ingredients
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 1 carrot
- 1/2 white or red onion
- 210 g 1 1/3 cups dried chickpeas if using canned use 2 cans or 3 cups (500g) of chickpeas without the liquid
- 2 bay leafs
- 1000 g 4 cups vegetable stock (2/3 cup or 100g more if needed) if using canned chickpeas, use only 3 cups stock
- 1-2 tbsp lemon adjust to taste
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Add the dried chickpeas to a bowl, and rinse them a few times through cold water. Fill the bowl with clean water covering the chickpeas a few inches/cm above the chickpeas, then let them coak for up to 6 hours or overnight.
- Once you are ready to make the soup in a pot, add the vegetable stock and let it preheat.
- In the meantime, in another medium pot add olive oil and preheat it over medium heat. Chop the carrot and dice the onion then add them to the pot and sautee for 3-4 minutes, then add the diced garlic and cook for an additional minute.
- Add the vegetable stock to the pot with the onion and carrot. Then add the soaked or canned chickpeas without the water where they’ve been soaking.
- Then add the bay leaf and season to taste with salt and pepper. Let the soup come ti a boil, then lower the heat down to medium-low and let it simmer for 35-45 minutes. If using canned chickpeas, simmer only for 10-15 minutes. (If you feel like a lot of water has evaporated while cooking the chickpeas feel free to add ⅔ cup or more stock.
- Continue cooking until the chickpeas are cooked and soft.
- In a food processor or in a blender, take 150g of cooked chickpeas from the soup along with 50g of the stock and add the lemon as well. Blend everything until smooth. If you feel like the mixture is too dry in the food processor, add a bit more from the vegetable stock.
- Pour the blended chickpeas back to the soup and stir to combine. Taste the soup and add more salt to taste.
- Serve with crispy croutons or on the side with a big bowl of salad, and enjoy!
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