An unhurried Greek soup for the fasting table, tender chickpeas drawn out over hours with lemon, bay, and good olive oil. Start it the night before with a soak, then let it simmer low and slow.
Revithia (Chickpea Soup)
A traditional Greek chickpea soup, slow-simmered with lemon and herbs until silky and tender.
Servings 6
Ingredients
For the soup
- 2 cups dried chickpeas
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 2 large onions, diced
- 3 cloves garlic
- 1 carrot, diced
- 1 stalk of celery, diced
- 3 bay leaves
- 1 tsp thyme
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp oregano
- 1/4 cup parsley, chopped
- 1/2 lemon, sliced
- 8 cups vegetable stock
- to taste salt and pepper
Method
- Soak the chickpeas overnight in a bowl of water with a little baking soda, adding enough water to cover them by about 2 inches. The next morning, drain, rinse, and set them aside.
- In a large pot, heat the olive oil. Add the onions, garlic, carrots, celery, bay leaves, thyme, and paprika, and sauté for about 15 minutes, until the vegetables soften.
- Add the chickpeas, vegetable stock, parsley, and lemon slices. Bring to a boil, then simmer on low to medium heat with the lid slightly ajar for 2 1/2 to 3 hours, until the chickpeas are tender.
- Remove the bay leaves. If you like, remove the remaining lemon rind, which can turn a little bitter if you bite into a piece.
- Add the oregano and season with salt and pepper to taste.
- For a thicker soup, blend about a cup of the chickpeas with an immersion blender, though this is optional.
To keep it strict (oil-free)
Soften the onions and vegetables in a splash of the vegetable stock instead of the olive oil to keep a strict fast.