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Chickpea Stew

Bowl of chickpea stew with cilantro and feta cheese garnish
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This chickpea stew recipe is a delicious, hearty, and budget-friendly winter meal. Inspired by Tunisian lablabi soup, this recipe is simple to make, yet incredibly flavorful. Yum!

Ingredients

Units Scale
  • 2 cups of dried chickpeas, soaked overnight
  • 1/4 olive oil
  • 1 sheet of kombu seaweed
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1/2 loaf sourdough, or any
  • 1 onion diced
  • 6 cloves of garlic, minced
  • 1 tablespoon cumin
  • 3 tablespoons harissa or 10oz jar harissa sauce
  • 6oz can tomato paste
  • 1 lemon, zested and juiced
  • 3 cups fresh spinach
  • 1/4 cup feta cheese crumbles
  • Handful of fresh cilantro, de-stemmed and chopped

Instructions

  1. Cook the chickpeas in the Instant Pot. Add the chickpeas, 6 cups of water, 1 tablespoon olive oil, kombu, and bay leaf to the Instant Pot. Set the Instant Pot to the beans setting and cook under pressure for about 45 minutes. If cooking the chickpeas on the stovetop, bring to a boil and then reduce the heat to a simmer. Cook for 2 hours.
  2. Preheat the oven to 400°. Tear up a loaf of crusty bread into approximately 1-inch, bite-sized pieces. Spread the bread chunks evenly on a baking sheet. Once preheated, bake in the oven for about 10-12 minutes, until they are crunchy and begin to brown, like croutons. Set the bread off to the side until serving. Or skip the oven step entirely if you have stale bread that needs to be eaten up!
  3. While the chickpeas and bread are cooking, start the soup base. Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil to a large soup pot. Turn the heat on high. Once the pan is warm, reduce the heat to medium and add the chopped onion. Cook the onion for about 5 minutes until it begins to caramelize. Stir frequently to avoid burning. Next, add the minced garlic. Cook for another minute.
  4. Add the cumin, harissa, tomato paste, lemon zest, and remaining olive oil to the soup pot. Stir to combine with the onions and garlic. Cook for 2 minutes.
  5. Add lemon juice and 6 cups of water to the soup pot. Bring the pot to a boil and then reduce the heat to a simmer. Keep the pot at a simmer until the beans are done cooking.
  6. Back to the beans, once they have finished cooking, remove the bay leaf and kombu. Pour 1/2 of the chickpeas and cooking liquid into the soup pot. Using an emulsion blender (stick blender), blend the chickpeas into the soup to give it a thicker texture. Then pour the rest of the chickpeas and liquid into the soup pot. Bring to a boil and then turn off the heat. Add the fresh spinach and give it a stir. This soup greatly retains its heat, the spinach will cook very quickly.
  7. To serve, toss a handful of the bread croutons into a bowl, and pour the chickpea soup over the bread. Garnish with fresh cilantro and feta cheese crumbles. Great with a fried egg on top as well. Yum!

Notes

This soup is delicious as leftovers; the flavors improve as it sits for a day or two. My recommendation is to make a big batch and have this for lunch the next day.

Find it online: https://bowlofyum.com/2026/01/chickpea-stew/