I am a self-proclaimed soup queen and have no shortage of soup recipes, but this my Lemony Chickpea Soup might just be my favorite-ever soup because it’s deceptively delicious.
It’s made with simple ingredients, most of which you likely already have on hand, but the flavors and texture are shockingly good. I’m talking a rich, savory, creamy soup that will have your tastebuds asking “how is this dairy-free??”
It’s especially perfect for cool, sunny spring days, but honestly, you’ll catch me enjoying it all year round. (Yes, even during the summer when warm soups make me sweat a bit. It’s that good!).
Table of Contents:
1. Why this recipe works
2. Ingredient notes
3. Step-by-step instructions
4. Tips for making this recipe
5. Frequently Asked Questions
6. Recipe card with notes
Why this recipe works
Simple ingredients get upgraded
The secret to this soup’s delights is treating chickpeas a little differently. Instead of tossing in whole chickpeas right from the can, half of the chickpeas get pureed with heavy-hitting ingredients like lemon zest, miso, and nutritional yeast into a rich puree.
The puree is stirred into the soup, making every spoonful creamy and super flavorful. Long-grain white rice also naturally thickens the soup, adding seriously luxurious body.
And while this soup is rich, it’s still bright and fun, thanks to a very generous amount of dill and fresh lemon juice.
Wholesome comfort food you can make ahead of time
Let’s be honest—we’ve all been burned by the words “wholesome” and “comfort” used together (like when your bestie promised you healthy mac ‘n cheese and it tasted 100% healthy and 0% cheesy). But I promise you, this soup is truly both.
The chickpea puree and olive oil add creamy and rich notes (no heavy cream needed!), while spinach and chickpeas pack in the nutrients. With 16g of fiber and 20g protein per serving, this soup really is wholesome and comforting.
It’s also a meal prep game-changer. The leftovers last for at least 5 days, plus it’s freezer-friendly. For the quickest thawing experience, I freeze leftover soup in single-serve Souper Cubes, then plop them into a saucepan to reheat (affiliate link).
Easy to customize
While I’d love for you to try the recipe as written the first time, there are so many ways to put your own spin on its flavors, consistency, and textures:
- Add more veggies for a boost of nutrition and flavor, like celery or fennel along with the carrots and onions.
- Replace the chickpeas with white beans for extra creaminess.
- Use a mix of fresh herbs instead of just dill (think parsley and dill, or dill and basil), or replace the dill entirely with fresh parsley.
- Top your soup bowls with something crunchy, like croutons or the crispy lentils from my Butternut Squash Soup!
Ingredient notes
Chickpeas
My pantry is always stocked with canned chickpeas because they’re one of the fastest starting points for an emergency meal, like my 20-Minute Chickpeas Tacos.
Pro tip: You can also cook your beans from scratch if you have time. It’ll make your soup even more delicious! I loved loved loved how this soup tasted when I used freshly cooked chickpeas, but canned chickpeas are definitely more convenient and still taste fantastic here.
This soup uses two cans’ worth of chickpeas in two different ways: (1) one can is simmered in the soup, and (2) the other is pureed with lemon zest and juice, nutritional yeast, miso, and plant milk to make the creamy chickpea puree. This puree is how you get that cheesy creaminess that makes this soup positively divine and still wholesome.
Long-grain white rice
A small amount of rice is added to the soup as it simmers, naturally thickening it and further transforming it into a hearty complete meal. Any long-grain white rice works well, but I’m partial to jasmine.
Substitute: Swap the white rice for long-grain brown rice instead, but not if time is of the essence (and let’s be honest—we’re all way too busy). Brown rice takes much longer to cook, so you’ll need to pre-boil it in a separate pot. Head to the recipe card for instructions.
Lemon
A very generous amount of freshly squeezed lemon juice and grated lemon zest add a pop of refreshing tartness and brightness. For the quickest prep work, you’ll need a microplane for zesting and a citrus juicer for juicing (i.e., essential kitchen equipment in my book).
Dill
Lemon + dill = the perfect pairing for a fresh, springy soup! The dill is citrusy and grassy, while the lemon is tart and zingy. It’s a flavor bomb of a combo.
If you end up with leftover dill, whip up a batch of my Vegan Ranch Dressing for the best salads ever, or make this Asparagus Galette that’s also perfect for spring.
Substitute: If you can’t find good-quality fresh dill, substitute with fresh basil or fresh flat-leaf parsley. Or, to mix up the flavors, use a blend of all three!
Miso + nutritional yeast
This umami-packed duo makes the soup feel savory and cheesy, giving it that lovely comforting edge that truly sets it apart. And nutritional yeast is your best friend whenever you need cheesy plant-based notes in the kitchen, especially for my Easy Vegan Pesto.
Tip: Make sure you use white or mellow miso paste, not red or brown miso. While these other miso varieties are lovely, only white miso is appropriately mild in flavor for this soup.
Step-by-step instructions
Start by rinsing the rice in a fine-mesh sieve until the water runs clear.
Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Once hot, add the carrot and onion and cook until they’ve softened, about 10 minutes.
Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, stirring often. Stir in the tomato paste, oregano, coriander, turmeric, and red pepper flakes. If needed, deglaze the pot with a splash of vegetable broth.
Add the rinsed rice and toss to coat. Next, add one can of chickpeas, along with a pinch of salt and pepper. Toss to coat.
Pour in the vegetable broth and half of the chopped dill. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer.
Simmer, covered, for 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, make the chickpea puree.
In a food processor, blend together until smooth: one can of chickpeas, plant milk, lemon zest, lemon juice, nutritional yeast, miso, salt, and pepper.
Taste and adjust the seasonings as needed.
Stir the chickpea puree and chopped spinach into the soup. Simmer until thickened and the spinach is wilted.
Turn off the heat and stir in the lemon juice and remaining dill. Season to taste with salt and pepper, then serve the soup in bowls with crusty bread on the side for dunking. Enjoy!
Tips for making this recipe
Adjust the flavors to your liking
Once the soup is finished simmering, give it a taste and adjust the flavors however you want.
Love big lemony flavor? Add more fresh lemon juice or zest. Want some spice in just about everything? Add an extra pinch of red pepper flakes. There’s always room to sprinkle in more fresh herbs or a dollop of vegan pesto. Or keep it simple, and drizzle every bowl with good-quality olive oil for richness.
Want to add more veggies? Go ahead!
Looking for more nutrients? Add some sliced celery, fennel, or cabbage after sautéing the onions and carrots.
Or, add a handful of small cauliflower florets when you add the broth and chickpeas.
For even more green goodness, use a bit more baby spinach (5 ounces/140g or 1 standard-sized bag).
Multitask efficiently
To make this chickpea soup recipe come together as efficiently as possible, you’ll want to do a little multitasking. Here’s what I do.
1) Since the onions and carrots sauté for about 10 minutes and don’t need to be stirred very often, use that time to chop the garlic and measure out the tomato paste and spices.
2) While the soup simmers, make the chickpea puree and chop the baby spinach.
Frequently Asked Questions
While an immersion blender works well when you’re blending soup, here, the blending that happens is with the chickpea puree. It has pretty minimal liquid (just ½ cup milk) so an immersion blender won’t be able to blend things smoothly.
Stick with a food processor or a small-capacity blender cup.
Once you’ve let the soup cool to room temp, transfer the leftovers to an airtight container and store them in the fridge for 5 to 6 days. Reheat your leftovers on the stove over medium or medium-low heat, stirring frequently to prevent the rice from sticking together.
To brighten up the leftovers as needed, top the reheated soup with a pinch of lemon zest, a squeeze of lemon juice, and a drizzle of good-quality extra virgin olive oil for richness.
Although I find this lemon chickpea soup plenty hearty and filling on its own, I never say no to crusty bread for dunking.
Gluten-free? Opt for simple roasted potatoes, or go the fancy (but easy) route with my Crispy Smashed Potatoes!
Absolutely! Freeze the soup in a few airtight containers for 3 to 4 months. We love to freeze soup in these handy Souper Cubes (affiliate link) for single-serve portions that are quick to defrost. Let the leftovers thaw in the fridge overnight before reheating on the stove the next day.
If you love this Lemony Chickpea Soup recipe, please be sure to leave a rating and review below! And tag me on Instagram – I love seeing your photos!
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Lemony Chickpea Soup
Ingredients
- ⅓ cup (65 to 70g) long-grain white rice (see Note 1)
- ¼ cup (56g) extra virgin olive oil
- 4 medium carrots, scrubbed and finely chopped
- 1 large yellow onion finely chopped
- Kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper
- 2 (15-ounce / 425g) cans chickpeas, divided
- ¾ cup (12g) fresh dill (no thick stems), chopped and divided
- 5 cloves garlic, finely chopped
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 2 teaspoons dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon ground coriander
- ½ teaspoon ground turmeric
- ¼ to ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes (½ tsp for a kick)
- 4 cups (960 mL) vegetable broth
- 3 ounces (85g) baby spinach or baby kale (can add more, see Note 2)
- ½ cup (120 mL) creamy unsweetened plant-based milk, such as full-fat oat milk or canned “lite” coconut milk
- 1 large lemon zested + 3 to 4 tablespoons lemon juice, divided
- ¼ cup (20g) nutritional yeast
- 1 tablespoon white miso
Instructions
- Add the rice to a fine-mesh sieve and rinse a few times until almost clear, then drain.
- Drain and rinse one can of chickpeas and set aside for step 5. Drain and rinse the other can of chickpeas and transfer to a food processor or small-capacity blender for step 8.
- In a large saucepan or Dutch oven, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Once shimmering, add the carrots and onion. Season with a few pinches of salt. Stir occasionally, until softened and lightly browned, about 10 minutes.
- Add the garlic and cook for 2 minutes, stirring frequently. Add the tomato paste plus spices (oregano, coriander, turmeric, and red pepper flakes). Stir almost constantly for 1 to 2 minutes until the tomato paste is a darker red brick color. If it sticks or starts to burn, lower the heat and deglaze with a splash of broth.
- Add the rinsed rice and toss to coat in the aromatics and oil for 1 minute. Add one can of drained chickpeas, plus ¼ teaspoon kosher salt and pepper to taste. Toss to coat. Pour in the vegetable broth, followed by half of the chopped dill. Bring to a boil.
- Reduce the heat to low to maintain a simmer and cover the pan. Simmer, covered, for 15 minutes, stirring once or twice, or until the rice is soft.
- While the soup simmers, roughly chop the spinach and make the chickpea puree.
- Chickpea Puree: To the chickpeas in the food processor or blender, add the milk, lemon zest, 2 tablespoons lemon juice, nutritional yeast, miso, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, and pepper to taste. Blend until pureed and creamy, scraping down the sides as needed. Taste for seasonings, adding more salt or lemon juice as needed.
- Stir the Chickpea Puree into the soup to combine, then add the chopped spinach. Simmer for 1 to 2 minutes, or until the soup thickens and greens slightly wilt.
- Off the heat, stir in the remaining dill and 1 tablespoon of lemon juice. Taste, adding salt/pepper or more lemon juice as desired. Transfer to bowls and drizzle each bowl with a bit of good-quality olive oil for richness.
Notes
- If using brown rice, you’ll need to quick-boil it first. Bring a medium saucepan of water to a boil and season with a pinch of salt. Stir in the brown rice and gently boil without stirring for 10 minutes. Drain the rice in a fine mesh sieve and set aside.
- For a nutrition boost, feel free to go up to 5 ounces (140g) of baby spinach (1 standard-sized bag).
I loosely made this recipe, and it turned out incredible. I say loosely because mine had no chickpeas; I used brown lentils. I also added the “purée” straight into the pot since purée is an uncomfortable texture thing for me so I didn’t want a soup with that consistency. I’m more of a stew person and went with that preference. I also added celery into the carrot/onion mixture, and used a little whipping cream (non vegan) to thicken the soup.
I’ve never had any lemony food and this recipe did not disappoint. It was bright but in a refreshing, nourishing way. The lentils and rice kept me full all night, and I added some oyster crackers on top of the finished soup for a bit of crunch. Let’s just say I was a happy camper, and I love your recipes, Nisha!
Hello again! I went ahead and made two huge 25 qt pots of this for an event. Turned out beautiful. I followed the recipe times 8 and used sour cream instead of the vegan dairy options because it was cheaper. RAVE reviews. Delicious!
I am a total “soupie”, sometimes eating soups twice a day in the winter. This was bar none one of the very best I’ve ever tasted. I’ve been following you and your recipes for a few months and I hugely appreciate you!
I went straight for adding celery to the soup, used arugula instead of spinach and switched up a couple of the spices since I had 21 Seasoning Salute (from Trader Joe’s) and Chinese Five Spice instead of straight coriander, but otherwise followed the rest as you laid it out. It was freaking awesome!!! Highly recommend it and look forward to following your lead Nisha and making this many times a year!
This soup is now on our weekly rotation! I didn’t think I liked dill! It is hearty, and so flavorful. We don’t use much oil, but otherwise follow to a t. My husband and I share the prep and make it together. We can eat almost the whole recipe. I think we will start doubling it so we can have leftovers. Thank you for your delicious ideas!!
Your positive feedback is the best reward for our hard work. Thank you, Marnie!
So good! I wanted a good soup for lunches this week, and this one delivered big time! So delicious and filling. I’d rate it as medium easy in the chopping department (carrots, am I right?), but totally easy for the rest of it. Good for a dinner, lunch, or a snack!
We appreciate your feedback and support, Kris. Thank you for leaving a review!
Big fan of this soup. What I appreciate most is that it’s something different. So many soup recipes are just kind of variations of each other with one ingredient different… but this recipe feels like its own unique thing.
I don’t have a food processor, so I used an immersion blender to make the puree. Worked fine. I just had to add a touch of extra plantmilk to get it started.
My grocery store didn’t have fresh dill available, so I used a combination of dried dill and fresh parsley. Seasonings turned out great.
Hi Kat, Thank you so much for such a fantastic review! Appreciate you taking the time!
I made this soup over the weekend and my 84 yr old mom and I loved the flavor and we are making this again for easter Sunday with our other vegan food.
Amazing, Christine! Thanks for sharing :)
I’m finally leaving a long overdue comment after finishing off my “leftover” (read: even better than the first day) bowl of this absolutely delightful soup/stew. I’ve loved every recipe from Nisha but this has got to be my very favorite soup. The brightness of the lemon and dill are exquisite. And it’s creamy and filling, but also super digestible. Another perfect recipe – thank you Nisha <3
Thanks for the wonderful review, Annabel! We appreciate it!
Phenomenal! Complex, layered, with sophisticated flavor profile. Everyone at my dinner party was blown away. One person said it was “the best soup I think I’ve ever had!” I sent out several links to this website. Thank you for creating this fantastic soup—Brava!
Hi Srobona, we’re thrilled to hear everyone enjoyed this recipe! Next time, would you mind leaving a rating alongside your review? Star ratings are big help to readers who are thinking of making the recipe. Thanks!
A freaking mazing! This recipe was a lot of work but so worth it! So hearty yet fresh at the same time with so many nutrients! My fiance ADORED it when he tried it… Made him fall in love all over again haha! The flavors made it taste salty but I think that was just the lemon juice and red pepper flakes fooling me BC there is not much salt in the recipe. So maybe next time I may reduce the salt a tad? But for sure a 5/5 recipe! Thank you!
Thanks for the awesome review, Skye! And by any chance did you use diamond crystal kosher salt? The other salts have a higher amount of sodium by volume. We hope you get it just right next time! :)
I. made this soup tonight and it is a resounding winner. I used more lemon than Nisha posted and less salt. I used kale and all other ingredients were as posted. This is definitely a winner. I would highly recommend it and it makes plenty for leftovers.
This soup was outstanding. I had to add 3X the lemon. that was indicated in the recipe but it was the right answer. I could not think of a better wonderful soup to serve for dinner on a simple cozy night.
We appreciate you taking the time to leave such a sweet review, Margaret!
I feel like the luckiest girl in the world! After working a long day, I came home to my husband having just finished making this recipe for dinner! Not only is it visually beautiful with all of the colors, but the flavors are just delicious! Just the perfect combination, I love the lemony flavor. We both had seconds! This is definitely a keeper recipe that I will be making more of in the future!
Hi Eileen, we appreciate the fantastic review :) Thank you!
One of the best dishes I’ve ever made! Superyum!
Hi Kiki, Thank you so much for such a fantastic review! Appreciate you taking the time!
This recipe is much more work than I usually put into a dish but it was worth it. I tried it because I had most of the ingredients and the reviews said how tasty it was.
I don’t use fat so I sweated the veggies in my ceramic frying pan with lid.
I didn’t have veg stock so I just used water like I usually do.
I didn’t have tomato paste so I added apple-juice-sweetened tomato ketchup.
And I didn’t have any baby greens but when I have a glut of cabbages I shred, cook and freeze them. I put that in at the end.
We’re happy you enjoyed the recipe even with all the substitutions, Patricia!
What a wonderful recipe! Perfect for the cold snap we experienced during our “false spring” in VA. We wouldn’t change a thing!
Rosemary, So glad to hear you loved this recipe!