This Greek Chickpea Soup or Revithosoupa is an easy, healthy dish that is made with simple ingredients but full of flavour!
I am definitely biased as a Greek girl, but one of my favourite things about the cuisine I grew up with is how the simplest ingredients can be transformed into something so delicious. This is especially true with my absolute favourite Greek soups and casseroles. Greek Lemon Chicken Soup (Avgolemono Soup) and Chicken Youvetsi (Chicken and Orzo in Tomato Sauce) are easily up there as my all-time favourite comfort foods and they are so simply made with only a handful of ingredients.
This Greek Chickpea Soup is no exception. It is made using simple ingredients you likely already have on hand and requires minimal fuss. In truth, it really comes down to using great quality ingredients to make the most of the simplest ingredient list. Good quality olive oil is key as are good dried herbs. Add fresh veggies and dried chickpeas and this simple soup transforms into something wonderful.
What I also like about this soup is how it lends itself so well to a healthy lifestyle without breaking the bank. It is inexpensive to make, making it a wonderful mealtime option that is easily accessible.
How to cook chickpeas (and some shortcuts you can take)
This soup is incredibly easy to make but it does take a long time when you consider the time required to prepare and cook dried chickpeas.
My recipe card (below) shows the long version. It requires soaking the chickpeas overnight and then pre-cooking them for about an hour and a half before they are added to the soup pot. This is just a reality of cooking with dried legumes and while it does take long, it is not labour-intensive.
Freezing chickpeas
If you want to simplify this process, there are a few tricks I have used before to speed things up. One option is to prepare chickpeas in bulk using the method above and then draining them, cooling them, and freezing them in freezer safe bags for future use. My amazing mother-in-law does this often and supplies us with bagfuls which we keep on hand in our freezer.
When you are ready to use them, defrost and use! This is awesome for making soups like this as well as hummus!
Quick-cooking and slow-cooking methods
When preparing dried legumes like chickpeas, your pressure-cooker can be an awesome time saver! This can cut down cooking time quite a bit!
You may have already used this method before or heard of others doing it. But did you know you can also prep chickpeas in a slow-cooker? Neither did I! But what a genius idea for preparing the chickpeas overnight or while you are busy tending to day-to-day activities. When you are ready to make the soup, voila, chickpeas are already set and ready for use!
For tips on how to use either of these methods, I found an awesome comprehensive guide put together by Inspired Taste. Click here to learn how to use all of these methods!
Using canned chickpeas
While traditional Greek cooking doesn’t use canned chickpeas, the convenience and time-saving option of doing so can’t be ignored. While I firmly believe you cannot beat the nutritional value and taste of dried chickpeas, if you are looking for a more last-minute shortcut, this option is for you!
To use canned chickpeas, skip the first 2 steps of this recipe and then proceed with the rest of the recipe as is. Be sure to rinse the chickpeas well before adding them to your pot.
This recipe calls for 1 1/4 cups dried chickpeas. Dried chickpeas triple in size as they cook which means you end up with 4 cups cooked chickpeas. For canned chickpeas, that means you will need multiple cans to account for 4 cups worth. This will depend on the size of your cans but for me, that means about 3 cans.
How to make Greek Chickpea Soup
To make this soup, you will need:
- 1 1/4 cups dried chickpeas
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1 carrot, chopped
- 1 celery stick, chopped
- a medium onion, finely chopped or pureed
- 5 cups of vegetable broth or water
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
- salt and pepper
- 1/2 lemon, juiced
Place chickpeas in a large bowl and cover with water. Let soak overnight.
Place the chickpeas in a pot with plenty of water to cover them. Bring them to a boil over high heat and then lower to medium heat and let them simmer on the stove for an hour and a half or so, until they begin to soften. (I find the time needed to cook chickpeas varies between brands and the size of the chickpeas so adjust the cooking time as needed). Set aside.
In a separate large soup pot, heat the olive oil over medium heat and add the carrot and celery. Sautee for a few minutes. Add the onion and continue to sauté for about 4-5 more minutes until the vegetables begin to soften.
Add the vegetable broth or water, bay leaves, oregano, thyme, and salt to the pot and bring to a boil. Drain the chickpeas and add to the pot as well.
Let the soup simmer on the stove for about 30 minutes. Remove from heat and remove the bay leaves.
To thicken the soup, puree a few ladles of soup in the food processor and stir back into the pot. Taste and season with salt and pepper as needed. Add as much lemon juice as desired.
I hope you enjoy this healthy soup!
-Cathy
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Greek Chickpea Soup (Revithosoupa)
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cups dried chickpeas
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1 carrot chopped
- 1 rib celery chopped
- 1 onion finely chopped or pureed
- 5 cups vegetable broth or water
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
- salt and pepper
- 1/2 lemon juiced
Instructions
- Place chickpeas in a large bowl and cover with water. Let soak overnight.
- Place the chickpeas in a pot with plenty of water to cover them. Bring them to a boil over high heat and then lower to medium heat and let them simmer on the stove for an hour and a half or so, until they begin to soften. (I find the time needed to cook chickpeas varies between brands and the size of the chickpeas so adjust the cooking time as needed). Set aside.
- In a separate large soup pot, heat the olive oil over medium heat and add the carrot and celery. Sautee for a few minutes. Add the onion and continue to sauté for about 4-5 more minutes until the vegetables begin to soften.
- Add the vegetable broth or water, bay leaves, oregano, thyme, and salt to the pot and bring to a boil. Drain the chickpeas and add to the pot as well.
- Let the soup simmer on the stove for about 30 minutes. Remove from heat and remove the bay leaves.
- To thicken the soup, puree a few ladles of soup in the food processor and stir back into the pot. Taste and season with salt and pepper as needed. Add the juice of half a lemon or more if desired.
