This Greek chickpea soup with lemon is packed with vegetables and enhanced with Mediterranean flavours for a nutritious yet super tasty dinner. The perfect warming comfort food for a cold winter's night, revithia soupa is naturally vegan and pairs well with some crusty bread.
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I love vegan Mediterranean recipes because they're incredibly full of flavour and they're also super easy to make (most of the time, I'm looking at you, moussaka).
This chickpea soup with lemon (revithia soupa) is a vegan Greek recipe that's easy to make and super satisfying at the same time.
It's typically made with dry chickpeas that you have to soak overnight and then boil for up to an hour, but nobody's got time for that.
I make it with tinned chickpeas, and I promise you it's so tasty I'm always gulping it down like there's no tomorrow.
The only secret is to buy high-quality tinned chickpeas, organic if possible – it really makes a difference.
What ingredients do you need?
This is a very simple recipe that's also budget-friendly, and you only need a handful of ingredients to make it.
As mentioned above, chickpeas are key here. If you use tinned chickpeas, simply rise them off and use them just like they are.
If you're not one to cut corners and want to do it the authentic Greek way, you need to soak dry chickpeas overnight because this makes them tender and reduces cooking time.
You're also looking at cooking the soup for 1-2 hours instead of 30 minutes if using dry chickpeas.
Lemons are super important for this chickpea soup as well. I only use the juice, but you can add the zest too, if you want the soup to be extra lemony.
The juice of two medium lemons is typically enough, but you can adjust this according to your taste.
I use fresh rosemary for this soup for a true taste of the Mediterranean, but you can skip it or use dry rosemary instead.
I take off the needles from the sprig and mince them instead of simply simmering the soup with an entire sprig of rosemary inside because I really like the flavour. You can do it either way, depending on how much you like rosemary.
How do you make revithia soupa?
You start by frying the onion, garlic, and the rest of the vegetables for a couple of minutes. They don't need to be completely cooked at this point.
You then add the herbs and cook a bit more to allow them to infuse the veggies, add the chickpeas, veggie stock, stir well and let it simmer for 25-30 minutes with a lid on.
When the soup is ready, add some extra olive oil (optional but highly recommended) and the lemon juice. Season to taste, and you're done — you have a delicious vegan chickpea soup with minimal effort.
What do you serve with it?
I like to make my crispy rosemary focaccia for this soup (and basically any other soup), but you can serve it with your favourite crusty bread.
You can also serve it with Kalamata olives on the side for an authentic Greek experience, or, if you're not a vegan, with feta cheese slices.
You can add an extra drizzle of olive oil and lemon juice to the individual bowls before serving.
If you liked this Greek chickpea soup with lemon (revithia), you might also like some of my other vegan soups and stews:
Red Lentil Potato Soup with Lemon
Tuscan Bean and Barley Stew with Kale
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Greek Chickpea Soup with Lemon (Revithia)
This Greek chickpea soup with lemon is packed with vegetables and enhanced with Mediterranean flavours for a nutritious yet super tasty dinner. The perfect warming comfort food for a cold winter’s night, revithia soupa is naturally vegan and pairs well with some crusty bread.
Ingredients
- ½ cup olive oil + extra 2 tbsps, divided
- 1 large red onion
- 2 cloves garlic
- 2 celery sticks
- 1 carrot
- 2 tbsps oregano
- 1 sprig rosemary, needles only, minced
- 1 bay leaf
- 2 x 400 g (14 oz) chickpea cans (or 450 g / 1 lb dry chickpeas)
- 750 ml (3 cups) vegetable stock
- 2 lemons, juice of
- Fresh parsley, optional
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil in a large pot and fry the onion over medium heat for 1-2 minutes until it softens. Add the garlic and continue to cook for 30 seconds until fragrant.
- Add the carrot and celery to the pot together with the oregano, rosemary and bay leaf. Stir well and tip in the chickpeas and vegetable stock.
- Stir well and bring to a simmer. Lower the heat and cook for 25-30 minutes with a lid on.
- When the soup is done, turn off the heat. Add the extra two tablespoons of olive oil, lemon juice and chopped parsley if you want and stir well. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper and serve with crusty bread on its own.
Notes
If you think that the soup is too thick, add some more vegetable stock.
To thicken the soup, try to crush some of the chickpeas with a wooden spoon.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield:
4Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 350Total Fat: 11gSaturated Fat: 1gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 8gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 600mgCarbohydrates: 55gFiber: 13gSugar: 18gProtein: 13g
Nutritional information is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator.
Heather says
I found the flavour strange initially - but then I just fell in love with it! So so good! Light but filling too. Fabulous recipe - including the recommend amount of oregano and lemon! Thank you!
Alice says
I'm so glad to hear that, Heather!
Mary A Miller says
I just have a question, could you put this in a crockpot?
Alice says
Hi Mary, I've never tested this recipe in a Crockpot.
Abby says
Thanks for the recipe, Alice! This was lovely. I had particularly juicy lemons, so the soup turned out very lemony (which suits me just fine). Absolutely delicious.
Alice says
I'm so glad to hear that you enjoyed the Greek chickpea soup, Abby! It's wonderful to know that the extra lemony flavor from your juicy lemons worked out well.
Eunice says
This soup is amazing! I love your recipe.
Jennifer Theriot says
LOVE this soup so much! I always make individual serving stashes for the freezer and when I thaw it, I'll add wild rice, orzo or whatever I have a taste for at that time.
Nancy says
I am vegan. Made the soup today for the first time and added more carrots and 1/2 the olive oil ( generally I use no oil at all and have found that to be just fine). It was delicious. My guests loved it and one suggested some orzo in it next time!
Alice says
So happy you enjoyed the soup, Nancy. Orzo sounds like a great addition!
Sherri says
Made this today and felt the rosemary was not something I would put in again and I'd reduce the oregano just a bit, but overall a winner! Filling and very budget friendly
Shelley F says
I’m going to make this today. Can I batch cook and freeze this please?
Alice says
Sure, it freezes well for up to 3 months. I hope you enjoy it, Shelley!
Nic says
Do you take the skins off the chickpeas?
Alice says
No, I never take them off.
Jessie says
I have been looking for this Greek lemon soup for year, first trying at work colleague was greek I tried and fell in love. Thank definitely trying.
Linda Barker says
Hello! Your recipe looks wonderful, but I have one concern. How essential is it to use such an amount of olive oil? I am cooking for a dieting son who loves chickpeas and lemon, so this looks perfect, but I wonder if the oil is necessary. Thank you,
Alice says
It's not quite essential, it's mainly for that authentic Greek flavour. You can definitely reduce the amount of oil 🙂
Linda Barker says
Thakk you. I'll make it today and report back.
karen says
Is the oregano fresh or dry?
Alice says
It's dry 🙂
Rose N says
Hi Alice, could lentils be incorporated into this recipe?
Alice says
Hi Rose, I haven’t tried it myself but I don’t see why not. I’d use green or brown lentils preferably canned or precooked. If you want to add them dry, you may need to adjust cooking times.
Kendra says
Are the chickpeas drained?
Alice says
Yes, they’re drained.
Sandra Hernandez says
Omgoodness!!! So good. I ate half of it in my own. 🙂
Only personal change for me is, 1 tbsp of oregano next time.
Thank you for sharing your amazing recipe.
Alice says
I'm so glad you liked it, Sandra!
Seanna says
Love this recipe! So good!
Sana Ullah says
I made it exactly as the recipe but found that the oregano & lemon flavor overpowering. It's a nice recipe but next time I will use much less of those two ingredients. 2 tablespoons of oregano seemed like a lot.
Kirsty says
Just made this for dinner. I didn’t have celery so left that out, it was so good! Felt really wholesome and comforting ❤️
Alice says
I'm so happy you enjoyed it, Kirsty!
Whitney M says
Lovely meal! The rosemary and oregano really give this a perfect taste. I will definitely make this again 🙂
Alice says
I'm so glad you liked it, Whitney! Thank you for taking the time to leave a review 🙂