Chickpea Chicken Soup — Yummy and Hearty

Healthy and comforting, with a refreshing lemon twist! This Mediterranean-flavored chickpea chicken soup is a delicious fall/winter staple, made with (mostly) pantry ingredients.

Photo credit: © Eatwell101.com

The recipe starts off simply with sauteeing garlic until fragrant. Then you add tomatoes, a few spices, and chicken broth, and let the whole thing simmer for about half an hour or so, to finish with chickpeas. This hearty soup is the perfect comfort food for any day of the week! Definitely a must-try.

Ingredients list for the chickpea and chicken soup

Serves 4:

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 chicken legs
• 3 large garlic cloves, crushed
• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne (optional)
• 2 15oz (2x400g) cans chickpeas (preferably low sodium), drained and rinsed
• 1 large can (1kg) whole tomatoes
• 4 cups (1l) low sodium chicken broth
• Juice of 1 lemon
• A handful of fresh parsley
• Kosher salt and black pepper

Photo credit: © Eatwell101.com

Directions

1. Heat olive oil in a large pot over low heat. Cook garlic for 2 minutes, until fragrant. Add tomatoes, paprika and cayenne; saute for 5 minutes. Add the chicken legs and stir well.

2. Cover with broth and bring to a boil, then lower heat and simmer about 30 – 40 minutes or until broth has reduced slightly.

3. After 40 minutes, remove chicken legs form the pot, shred the flesh and discard the bones. Put the shredded chicken flesh back into the pot.

4. Cook for 5 minutes more then add the drained chickpeas. Adjust seasoning and cook for 5 minutes more then divide the soup into bowls and serve with chopped parsley and a dash of fresh lemon juice. A chunk of crusty bread is optional, but definitely recommended.

Note: This easy chickpea and chicken soup heats up really well the next day, so serve it up right away, or divide into batches for lunch tomorrow. You heat and reheat half a dozen times, it will always taste fantastic. For a vegan version, just omit chicken!