Chickpea Vegetable Soup

It’s not chicken noodle soup, it’s better – chickpea vegetable soup! This vegetarian version of the feel-good chicken soup has all the same warm and comforting flavors, and is loaded with vitamins and minerals. 

My kids have been loving the warm and cozy flavors of chicken noodle soup lately. They’ve asked for the cans of it at the grocery store, but since I don’t eat chicken, or really do canned soups for that matter, I decided to make a vegetarian “chicken noodle soup” for dinner. As Dr. Michael Greger reminded me on a recent Live with Kelly and Ryan show, “Beans are our healthiest source of protein…” You can watch the rest of the segment here. Our whole family loved this soup. See our 20 BEST VEGAN SOUP recipes too! 

Veggie heavy soups have long been one of my favorite family dinners. If you’re the same, you’ll also love this Italian Farro Vegetable Soup or Instant Pot Lentil Soup! The small soft veggies make soups like this one great for little kids. Though I didn’t add chicken or noodles to this chickpea veggie soup, it had the same qualities we all love. If you wanted to add some cooked pasta at the end, your definitely could. For an Italian version check out this Pasta e Ceci! 

This soup has become one of my staple recipes for those nights when I haven’t been grocery shopping in days and totally forgot about dinner until the last minute. I can’t be the only one this happens to? This recipe is so easy because I almost always have all the ingredients on hand. Everyday ingredients like onions, carrots, celery and a couple of cans of chickpeas.

To make it even easier, I’ve tested this soup recipe in the Instant Pot so I can give you those instructions too. The wonderful thing about the Instant Pot is that you can toss everything in and forget about it while you help your kids with homework or whatever else you need to get done. Be sure to read all the manual and safety information before using your pressure cooker.

Chickpea vegetable soup starts out just the way many soups do – with onion, garlic, carrot, and celery sauteed just a bit before adding broth. I also added potatoes, which I completely forgot about during this photo.

If you’re looking for a deep vegetarian chicken soup flavor, this Better Than Bouillon no chicken base is the way to go. It’s made with seasoned vegetables but has a ton of flavor. I use vegetable broth all the time, but when I want a really deliciously flavorful broth soup, I use a tablespoon or two of this base mixed with water. The caveat is that it is not low sodium, so if sodium is an issue for you, be sure to check the back so you know how much you’re getting. Though it does contain corn products, the website says they are all Non-GMO. It’s unclear if this product is gluten-free because the company does share a manufacturing facility with flour products. I did notice similar products at Whole Foods. If you have homemade vegetable broth, well, that’s even better.

This is such a simple and tasty soup. I’m sure my kids would like it even better with some noodles, like a vegetarian chicken noodle soup, but I prefer it the way it is. We have even made this with tortellini added at the end.

Continue to Content

Yield: Serves 4-6

Chickpea Vegetable Soup

Prep Time 5 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

Total Time 35 minutes

A hearty and delicious vegetable soup with chickpeas. This vegetarian version of the feel-good chicken soup has all the same warm and comforting flavors, and is loaded with vitamins and minerals.

Print

Ingredients

• 1 yellow onion, peeled and chopped
• 4 carrots, diced or sliced
• 3 celery stalks, diced
• 1 1/5 cups diced potatoes (I used baby yellow, red, and purple potatoes)
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 4 cups water (or your favorite broth)
• 1-2 tablespoons No Chicken Base (if using water)
• 2 (15 oz.) cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• 1/3 cup chopped fresh parsley

Instructions

1. In a large soup pot over medium low heat, saute onion in a tablespoon of olive oil or water until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the carrots and celery, and saute until veggies just begin to soften, another 2 minutes. Add the potatoes, garlic, and thyme and saute another minute. Add the water and broth base (or your favorite broth) and bring to a low simmer. Simmer until all the vegetables are tender, about 20 minutes. Stir in the chickpeas to warm. Stir in the parsley and season to taste with salt and pepper, if desired.

Notes

*Instant Pot instructions: Turn the electric pressure cooker to saute mode. Saute the onion until beginning to soften, about 3 minutes. Add the rest of the veggies, garlic, and thyme and saute another minute longer. Add the water and broth base. Lock the lid on the pot and set the valve to sealing. Set the pot to manual mode for 4 minutes. Let the pressure come down naturally for 10 minutes, then carefully release any remaining pressure. Remove the lid away from you. Stir in the chickpeas and parsley and place the lid back on to warm them.
*Optional add-ins: This soup would also be great with pasta, rice, quinoa, or barley. I've even made it with tortellini added in during the last three minutes of cooking. *Nutrition information is approximate and based on 1/4 of this recipe. If your health depends on nutrition information, please calculate again using your favorite nutrition calculator. I am not a nutritionist and these numbers are my best estimate using an online calculator.

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 46 Serving Size: 1/4 recipe
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 211Carbohydrates: 42gProtein: 10g