Chickpea Soup

Tasty, wholesome, and earthy, this Italian-inspired chickpea soup is one of our favorite chickpea recipes and soup recipe ever.

It's easy to make, with minimal effort and a few simple and affordable ingredients. It tastes like home, it's cozy, and it'll make you forget about all the bad news on TV.

For us, it is the perfect dinner to take care of your family and loved ones. It'll nourish every cell in your body, and you will feel amazing.

Our chickpea soup recipe is rich in fiber, plant protein, heart-healthy fats, and antioxidants from rosemary and vegetables.

Serve it with a slice of grilled or toasted rustic bread brushed with fresh garlic and drizzled with good quality extra virgin olive oil. Close your eyes and bite; the flavors will transport you to the idyllic Tuscan countryside.

Back to reality, the soup keeps well in the fridge for 3 to 4 days, and it tastes even better the day after.

So you can make a big batch and store the leftover soup in the fridge for the week ahead.

The recipe is naturally vegan and gluten-free (bread excluded).

Chickpeas

You can use canned chickpeas to make this soup quickly as an everyday dinner, or you can use dry chickpeas that you first soak overnight.

With canned chickpeas, the soup is ready in about 30 minutes; with dry chickpeas, it takes about 2 hours.

Potato

Potatoes make the soup earthy and fulfilling. You can substitute sweet potatoes, butternut squash, cauliflower, or broccoli for potatoes.

You can even substitute a short pasta like ditalini, fusilli, or rotini for potatoes and make a delicious chickpea noodle soup.

Olive oil

We recommend using good quality extra virgin olive oil; it's healthier than regular vegetable oils as it has more antioxidants. It also adds a pleasantly fruity and nutty flavor.

We use the oil for cooking the flavor base and drizzling on top before serving.

Leek, carrot, celery, and onion

We use these ingredients to make the flavor base that makes the chickpea soup very tasty. This is common practice in Italian cooking, and it's referred to as "soffritto."

If you can't find leek, replace it with a couple of garlic cloves.

Tomatoes

We recommend using a can of crushed tomatoes, diced tomatoes, or whole canned peeled tomatoes.

If you have fresh ripe tomatoes, you can chop them up and use them too.

Aromatics

Like any homemade Italian-inspired soup, this chickpea soup needs aromatic herbs to shine. Most common are bay leaves and rosemary, ideally fresh.

You can substitute dried oregano or thyme for the bay leaves.

Alternatively, you can add spices such as cumin, turmeric, and red pepper flakes.

Vegetable broth

We use store-bought vegetable broth to speed up the recipe. Using veg broth instead of beef or chicken broth is a great and painless way to reduce your meat consumption without realizing it.

If you are on a low-sodium diet, you can get a reduced-sodium vegetable broth.

Salt and pepper

We recommend sea salt or kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Add-ins

If you like to add more veggies and greens to this chickpea soup recipe, you can add fresh or frozen leafy greens such as kale, spinach or baby spinach, chard, and broccoli rabe.

You can also add peas, beans, and lentils to mix up the legume component or whole grains such as barley, whole oats, and farro to make this soup even more nutritious and fulfilling.

Optionally, you can add a sprinkle of parmesan cheese or a squeeze of lemon juice on top before eating it.

To a large pot or dutch oven, add the olive oil. Finely chop carrot, celery, onion, and leek and add them to the pot.

Fry on medium to low heat for 5 minutes, stirring often, until the veggies soften up, then add the rosemary and bay leaves.

Tip: you can tie the rosemary and bay leaves together to make a bouquet garni and tie it to the pot's side. It'll be easier to remove them later on.

Add drained and rinsed chickpeas and the potatoes you previously peeled and chopped, and stir with the veggies on medium-high heat for a minute.

Add the vegetable broth, crushed tomatoes, salt, and black pepper.

Simmer on medium heat for about 30 minutes or until the potatoes are tender. Pierce a potato piece with a fork to check for doneness.

Note: if you like a thicker chickpea soup, you can blend some of it (not much) with an immersion blender. We don't do this as the soup is thick enough for our taste.

Taste and adjust for salt, then serve in a bowl with a small sprig of rosemary and a slice of toasted crusty bread brushed with garlic.

Drizzle with good quality extra virgin olive oil and enjoy this wholesome, earthy, and delicious Italian chickpea soup.

You can serve a small portion of our chickpea soup as a starter paired with bread or a bread-based topping like:

• Crostini with tapenade or olive oil and salt
• Focaccia: a no-knead recipe that you can prepare the night before baking it
• Croutons with Italian herbs they're ready in just 15 minutes!
• Bruschetta with fresh tomatoes or grilled vegetables

Serve a larger portion as a main dish with a thick slice of grilled rustic bread or rosemary focaccia, or with a side of veggies such as:

• Roasted broccoli florets with lemon and grated garlic
• Carrot salad with a lemon vinaigrette and fresh herbs
• Easy side salad: pairs perfectly with soups and stews
• Green bean salad with a creamy mustard dressing and fresh tomatoes

Chickpea soup with greens and turmeric

Add a teaspoon of turmeric and one of your favorite greens, such as kale, spinach, or Swiss chard.

You can add them 10 minutes before the soup is ready, and you can either use fresh or frozen ones.

The turmeric is incredible with rosemary, chickpeas, and leafy greens. This way, your chickpea soup recipe will be even more nutritious and tasty.

Chickpea noodle soup

To turn this recipe into a chickpea noodle soup substitute your favorite pasta for potatoes. We recommend a short pasta type such as ditalini, fusilli, rotini, or conchiglie.

Let the chickpeas simmer in the broth for 15 minutes, then add the pasta and let simmer until the pasta is cooked al dente. You might need to add some more vegetable broth if the soup thickens up too much.

Chickpea soup stores well in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.

Reheat leftovers in a small pot with a dash of water or in the microwave for 2 minutes.

You can also freeze the soup for up to 3 months if you wish, although freezing will change the texture of the chickpeas and the potatoes, making them softer. Let the soup cool down completely before putting it in the freezer.

More soup recipes

• Tuscan bean soup: a wholesome and winter-friendly soup with healthy leafy greens
• Kabocha squash soup made with roasted kabocha squash and easy-to-find ingredients
• Lentil soup: a protein-rich Italian soup that will nourish you for hours!
• Tofu soup: a 20-minute recipe with an Asian-inspired technique
• Broccoli soup with vibrant green color and velvety smooth texture
• Cauliflower soup: our easy and cheesy soup that is perfectly paired with roasted chickpeas
• Sweet potato soup: a perfect soup for the holidays and special occasions
• Butternut squash soup: a reader favorite with an easy bake-and-blend technique!

• One-pot chickpea stew with sweet potato, minced tomatoes, and fresh herbs
• Chickpea pasta salad with a creamy mustard dressing and fresh vegetables
• Easy chickpea salad ready in just 20 minutes and perfect for meal-prepping
• Roasted chickpeas: an excellent protein boost for salads, soups, and stews!