This hearty chickpea soup is Fall and Winter comfort food at its best. With chicken, white beans, and your favorite Southwestern spices, you’ll find this recipe very rewarding … in a feisty sort of way.
You’re going to love this recipe and especially if you’re not a beef eater. Chunks of chicken, white beans and chickpeas come together for a hearty flavorful chickpea soup recipe.
Fall is perfect soup weather, and a perfect to spend time in the kitchen on a new soup recipe. This chickpea soup was a great way to use the new harvest Colorado chickpeas I picked up at our Farmer’s market.
On our annual trip to roadside markets east of Denver, I grabbed a bag of about every Colorado grown dried bean they offered. I couldn’t resist including this photo. Of course I wanted to play in those big bins of beans.
I purchased quite a lot of dried chickpeas to make homemade hummus. And I also love incorporating chickpeas into soups.
Their beautiful bit of crunch proved to be a great addition to this chickpea soup with navy beans and chicken.
And using the crock pot to cook dried beans makes this an easy meal.
Let’s take a look.
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Cilantro
- Dried Chickpeas and Navy Beans
- Chicken Broth
- Chicken Thighs
- Onion: Sweet onion or yellow.
- Green Bell Pepper
- Jalapeno Pepper
- Canola Oil
- Spices: Mexican Oregano, Chili Powder, Dried Onion, Garlic.
- Bay Leaf
- Fresh Lime
Ingredients Subs
- Dried legumes: Use Great Northern beans, canellini beans, pinto beans or Mayocoba beans in place of Navy beans.
- Broth: Vegetable broth may be substituted for chicken broth.
- Bell Pepper: Use any color of bell peppers, red, yellow or orange.
- Jalapeno Pepper: A poblano pepper is always a good substitute for a jalapeno pepper. And it’s less spicy hot.
- Oregano: Mexican oregano is preferred for this recipe. It’s peppery, grassy, earthy flavor is a good compliment for Mexican Food. If you don’t have Mexican Oregano, substitute Marjoram. Known for its aroma and delicate flavor, its related to oregano and will bring a sweet undertone to any recipe.
- Chicken: You can substitute chicken breast for chicken thighs.
Step by Step Instructions
- Step 1: Cook the dried chickpeas and beans. The crockpot is my tool of choice to cook dried beans to use in any type of soup. It’s easy. Just rinse the beans and pick through them and remove any misfits. Place them in your crockpot and cover them with enough water to cover by an inch. Throw in a bay leaf and add one heaping tablespoon of lard. Cook on low for 5 – 7 hours. When the beans are soft, drain them and remove the bay leaves.
- Step 2: You’re ready to cook the Soup: Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in 6-quart soup pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat until hot. Pat the chicken dry, and season with salt and pepper. Cook chicken until browned, 2 to 3 minutes per side. Once the chicken is almost cooked, add the onion, bell pepper and jalapeno pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally for 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.
Pro-Tip Cooking Dried Beans: Cooking time will vary with the freshness of the beans. Look for fresh harvest 1st year beans at Farmer’s markets. Or purchase beans from the bulk section. The fresher the bean, the less cook time. Beans purchased in bags at the grocery store are more than likely older and will take longer to cook.
- Step 3: Add the chili powder, Mexican oregano and dried onion flakes. Add the chicken broth and bring to a simmer.
- Step 4: Turn the heat down to medium low. Add beans and chickpeas. Cover and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the chicken is tender, about 30 minutes. If the soup gets too thick, thin it with a little water. Add lime juice and serve.
Chickpea Soup FAQ’s
Chickpeas, also known as garbanzo beans, are a rich source of vitamins, minerals and fiber. Chickpeas may offer a variety of health benefits such as aiding weight management and improving digestion. It’s high in protein, offering an excellent replacement for meat in vegetarian diets. Source: Healthline.
Yes. Here’s a handy ratio to keep in mind when substituting canned beans for dried beans in any recipe. One 15-ounce can of beans equals the same yield as 1/2 cup dried beans. One cup dried beans will yield three cups cooked beans. With that said, substitute one 15-ounce cans of chickpeas for the dried. Drained and rinsed. Skip the slow cooker instructions and add the canned beans and chickpeas at the same time you add the broth.
Yes, everything about this soup is freezable. Freeze in an airtight container for up to three months. Just thaw in the refrigerator overnight and reheat stovetop.
It’s my opinion that the only reason to soak beans overnight is so that they’ll cook a little faster. It simply all depends on if you plan ahead. Soaking beans overnight is optional.
There is no difference between chickpeas and garbanzo beans. We’ve simply ended up with two names for the same legume because Garbanzo is the Spanish term and Chickpeas is the common English term. So yes, this can be called Garbanzo Bean Soup.
Chickpea Soup (Garbanzo Bean Soup) with White Beans and Chicken
Toppings For Chickpea Soup
The toppings are an important addition to this chickpea soup by adding color and pizzaz. Here are some ideas:
- Sliced green onions.
- Sour cream.
- Bacon bits.
- Diced Tomatoes. Chopped multi-colored cherry tomatoes are a good choice here. Roasted tomatoes, such as slow roasted cherry tomatoes are a special treat for this recipe.
- Chopped cilanto.
I hope you give this Chickpea Soup recipe a try. It’s as hearty as it is healthy and a cozy way to feed the family.
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Chickpea Soup with White Beans and Chicken
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup dried chickpeas or one 15-ounce can chickpeas, drained and rinsed.
- 1/2 cups dried navy beans or one 15-ounce can navy beans, drained and rinsed.
- 1 heaping Tablespoon lard
- 2 bay leaves
- 4 Tablespoons vegetable oil or olive oil
- 2 pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs or breasts or both, cut into bite-sized pieces
- salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
- 1 medium sweet onion chopped
- 2 Tablespoons dried onion flakes
- 2 cloves garlic chopped
- 1 medium green bell pepper chopped
- 1 medium jalapeno seeds and veins removed, chopped
- 2 Tablespoons chili powder
- 1 Tablespoon Mexican Oregano dried
- 3 1/2 cups chicken broth
- 1 Tablespoon fresh lime juice
- Garnishes: sour cream, cooked chopped bacon, diced cherry tomatoes, sliced green onion
Instructions
- Rinse and pick through beans and chickpeas and remove any misfits. Place beans and chickpeas in a crockpot. Cover with enough water to cover by 1 inch. Soak beans overnight.
- The next morning, add a tablespoon of lard (or vegetable oil) and the bay leaves. Cook on low until beans are tender. Depending on how fresh the beans are, this could take anywhere from 5 – 7 hours.
- Remove bay leaves.
- Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in 6-quart soup pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat until hot. Pat the chicken dry, and season with salt and pepper. Cook chicken until browned, 2 to 3 minutes per side.
- Once the chicken is almost cooked, add the onion, bell pepper and jalapeno pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally for 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.
- Add the chili powder, Mexican oregano and dried onion flakes.
- Add the chicken broth and bring to a simmer.
- Turn the heat down to medium low. Add beans and chickpeas. Cover and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the chicken is tender, about 30 minutes. If the chili gets too thick, thin it with a little water.
- Stir in the lime juice, and season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Serve with the garnishes.
Notes
Nutrition
Southwestern Chickpea Soup (Garbanzo Bean Soup) … It’s What’s for Dinner
Lea Ann, I am a soup lover! I would have been all over the bean bins (fun) No telling what I would have brought home.
This is a beautiful chick pea and navy bean soup loaded with textures and flavors. Delicious!!!
Cheers to cooler weather!
Velva
Love chicken chili! The chickpeas are a wonderful addition — a bit different, and their flavor really works in chili. Very creative — thanks.
I don’t often cook with dried beans but your tips will motivate me to give it a try. Chili in the crock pot is what gets me through the winter! i love it for lunch and dinner and don’t mind leftovers. Yours looks so good.
That looks really good LA and you don’t find many recipes calling for lard – I think we may even have some at home. As for the snow and cold, think Tucson.