Greek Chickpea Soup
Greek chickpea soup is filling, simple and so easy to make! This chickpea lemon soup is packed with veggies, made in one pot and super budget friendly! This vegan chickpea soup uses pantry ingredients you almost always have on hand.
If you love making soup for a comforting, filling meal, you should check out my other soup recipes, including this White Bean Rice Soup or Brown Rice and Lentil Soup.
Here, you’ll find simple, gluten free recipes that are easy to make and packed with the best ingredients. I love sharing easy, from-scratch meals that fit into busy lives. Head over to the About page to get to know more about Bites of Wellness and my unique take on food.
Why you will love this recipe
- Easy to make
- Simple, pantry ingredients
- Leftovers are great
- Great way to use up veggies at the end of the week
Ingredient spotlight
- Vegetable broth – vegetable broth helps the soup taste like it’s been cooking all day long. Vegetable broth (or stock) is packed with flavor and such an easy way to infuse flavor into any dish. You could also use chicken broth or stock if you are not vegan/vegetarian.
- Chickpeas – I use canned chickpeas or precooked chickpeas in this recipe to help it cook faster. You could also use any other white bean you have on hand (cannellini, butter beans, great northern white beans, navy beans).
- Rice or orzo – you can use brown rice, white rice, orzo or any small pasta you have on hand. The brown rice will take the longest to cook followed by white rice than the pasta. I used a brown jasmine rice but have also made this with gluten free orzo. Be sure to rinse the rice well before adding it to the soup (especially white rice).
- Lemon – this recipe uses the zest and the juice of the lemon. Be sure to zest the lemon before juicing it!
How to make greek chickpea soup
Start by chopping the veggies – finely chop the onion, carrot, celery and garlic. Tip: you can use a mini food processor to quickly chop your veggies (except for the garlic). You can use a garlic press to make chopping garlic a breeze.
Cook veggies: Preheat a large pot over medium heat. When hot, spray with olive oil and add the onions. Sauté for 3-4 minutes then add the garlic, carrots and celery. Cook for 4-5 minutes.
Simmer the soup: Add the vegetable broth, water, chickpeas (rinsed and drained), rice (rinsed) and spices. Stir well and cover the pot. Turn heat to high and bring to a boil. Once boiling, turn down to simmer and cook the soup 20-30 more minutes (until the rice is fully cooked).
Note: if you are using orzo or pasta, bring the soup to a boil first then add the orzo/pasta and only cook the soup for as long as the box indicates or the pasta will start to fall apart.
Chop the kale and add to soup: While the soup is cooking, chop the kale. Be sure to remove the thick stems then chop into bite size pieces. Once the rice (or orzo/pasta) is fully cooked, turn off the heat. Add the kale and stir well.
Zest the lemon into the pot. Add the lemon juice and carefully taste for seasoning. If you need more lemon, add the juice of another lemon.
Other additions
- Veggies: Finely chopped zucchini, summer squash, spinach, green beans, finely chopped broccoli or cauliflower, bell peppers, roasted red peppers
- Fresh herbs: Add fresh parsley, dill or oregano
- Spice: Add crushed red pepper flakes
- Creaminess: Blend some of the soup with an immersion blender or add in 1/2 cup cashews blended with 1/3 cup water
- Protein: Add shredded chicken or shrimp
What to serve with chickpea rice soup
- Salad – Greek Salad with Kalamata Olive Dressing
- Crusty bread or homemade crackers
- Appetizers: Fresh or roasted veggies with lemon tahini dip
Common questions
Can you use dried chickpeas?
This recipe was written to use canned (or precooked) chickpeas. If you have dry chickpeas, you will need to cook them first.
- Dry chickpeas typically need to be soaked overnight before they can be cooked. Once soaked, you drain the soaking liquid and cook the chickpeas over medium heat for 1-1.5 hours.
- You can also cook dry chickpeas in the instant pot without soaking in advance. Add 6 cups of water for every 1 pound of chickpeas, cook for 30 minutes at high pressure, let pressure naturally released.
Do you have to peel the chickpeas before adding them
You do not have to peel the chickpeas before adding them to the soup.
What equipment do you need
- Microplane
- Lemon juicer
- Mini food processor (optional)
- Large pot
Greek Chickpea Soup
Ingredients
- 1 medium onion
- 3 medium celery stalks
- 2 medium carrots
- 4 cups vegetable broth
- 1 cup water
- 2 cans chickpeas
- 1 cup dry brown rice (or orzo)
- 2 tsp sea salt
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 cups chopped kale
- 2 medium lemons, juiced (zest of 1 lemon)
Instructions
- Chop the onions, carrots, celery and garlic.
- Place a large pot over medium heat. When preheated, spray the pot with olive oil then add the onions and cook 3-4 minutes. Add carrots, celery and garlic to the onions and cook 4-5 minutes.
- Add vegetable broth, water, spices, chickpeas and brown rice to a pot and turn the heat up to high. Cover and cook until boiling. Once boiling, turn the heat down to low and simmer for 20-30 minutes until the rice is tender. Note: if you are using orzo or pasta, bring the soup to a boil first then add the orzo/pasta and only cook for as long as the box indicates or the pasta will start to fall apart.
- Chop the kale and when the rice is tender, turn off the heat and add the chopped kale. Stir well.
- Zest a lemon and then add the juice to the soup. Stir well and taste the soup. Add the juice of another lemon if needed.
Notes
- You will need to add some water or broth to leftovers, as the rice or orzo will absorb the liquid as it sits in the fridge.
- Start with the juice of just one lemon and taste for brightness. Depending on how big your lemons are and how juicy they are, you may only need 1 lemon.
- If you want to thicken the soup, blend about 1/4 of the soup with an immersion blender or in a high speed blender.
- Time saving tip: Chop your onion, celery and carrots in the food processor to chop them quickly. Use a garlic press to quickly chop the garlic.
- Fridge – store any leftover soup in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 5 days. I like to store individual servings in mason jars (they are easy to pour out into the pot for reheating).
- Freezer – freeze leftover Greek chickpeas soup for up to 3 months. Be sure to let the soup cool completely before transferring to a freezer safe container to freeze. Be sure to put a label with the name, date and use by date on the bag/container.
- Tip: I like to use Soupercubes to portion out individual servings before freezing. This way when I’m ready for leftovers, I can simply heat up one portion at a time. Once frozen, transfer to a freezer safe bag or container.
- Stove – add ¼-1/2 cup of water to the soup when reheating (the rice will absorb most of the extra liquid when stored in the fridge). Reheat over medium low heat, covered until warmed through. You can reheat from frozen the same way, it will just take longer.
- Microwave – cook on high for 3-4 minutes, stirring occasionally. You can also reheat from frozen in the microwave, however it will take longer.
