It is getting chilly out some days and I have been craving peppery brothy soups for dinner. This is an easy soup in which you can add whatever you have in the fridge or pantry. Use any beans or lentils, some mushrooms and greens, veggies and some light peppery spices. Simmer and serve.
The garlic and ginger add a lot of flavor. Black pepper, white pepper, cinnamon and cumin add a deep complex profile to the warming flavorful broth. Cinnamon helps the pepper and the broth flavor profiles. Use other spices of choice. Add other veggies of choice. Add some cooked pasta for variation.
The next few weeks will be about trying to balance between 2 big events. Diwali on Nov 11 (that is so close!) and thanksgiving and then the rest of the holiday season. I found Diwali Bazaar on Amazon just today. I am off shopping for some Indian clothes and thinking of Diwali recipes for the week.
More soups from the blog
- Curried butternut squash soup
- Chard Mushroom Shallot Pasta soup
- Chipotle corn Chowder
- Moroccan lentil soup
- Cream of Mushroom Soup
Mushroom Chickpea Soup with Veggies and Greens
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup (80 g) chopped onion
- 4 cloves of garlic finely chopped
- 1 cup (96 g) sliced mushrooms I used cremini
- 1 to 2 tsp fresh ginger minced
- 1/2 cup (64 g) chopped carrots
- 1/2 cup (91 g) other veggies like bell pepper, celery, sweet potatoes
- 1/2 cup (82 g) cooked chickpeas
- 1/4 tsp (0.25 tsp) cumin
- 1/2 tsp (0.5 tsp) black pepper use less or more
- 1/4 tsp (0.25 tsp) white pepper
- 1/4 tsp (0.25 tsp) cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp (0.25 tsp) cayenne
- 2 tsp soy sauce/tamari use gluten-free soy sauce if needed or Coconut Aminos to make soy-free
- 2 tsp rice vinegar
- 1 to 1.5 tsp sugar or other sweetener
- 2 cups (470 ml) broth or water
- 1.5 cups (375 ml) or more water
- 1 cup (30 g) spinach
- 1/2 tsp (0.5 tsp) or more salt use less if you plan to use salted broth, or add later
- cornstarch to thicken in the end if needed
Instructions
- Heat oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Add onions, garlic and a pinch of salt and cook for 3 minutes or just about translucent. Stir occasionally.
- Add mushrooms and mix and cook for 3 minutes or until they starts to get golden.
- Add ginger, carrots and veggies and cook for a minute.
- Add chickpeas and spices and cook for 2 minutes.
- Add soy sauce, vinegar, sugar, broth and water. Partially cover and cook for 15 minutes. Add salt to taste and mix. Add in the spinach or other greens. Cook for 2 minutes. Taste and adjust salt, sweet, tang, spice. Reduce heat to medium-low. Continue to simmer for another 10 minutes. Garnish with fresh herbs of choice or scallions. Serve hot.
- To thicken, mix 2 tsp cornstarch in 2 tbsp water and mix into the soup in the last 5 minutes. Bring to a boil.
Notes
Nutrition
Sue says
November 2, 2015 at 12:54 pmThis looks so good! However, you have tagged it gluten free and soy sauce has gluten in it. Thank you!
Richa says
November 2, 2015 at 1:00 pmThank you Sue. Lots of soy-sauce brands are gluten-free. look for gluten-free on the label
Mrs. Edwards says
November 25, 2017 at 10:47 amFYI…the side note to use a gluten free soy sauce is in the notes.
Bogusia says
November 2, 2015 at 2:28 pmlooks really nice! I Just made chickpea with Spinach and coconut milk. My fav flavours!
Richa says
November 2, 2015 at 9:34 pmnice!
lani says
November 2, 2015 at 3:35 pmI want this NOW! Happy Diwali on the 11th..May your world be filled with light,just like you have given us!
Richa says
November 2, 2015 at 9:33 pmThank you Lani!
Siya says
November 2, 2015 at 9:32 pmToo good! Amazingly, I had all the ingredients today! Wow. My family loved it so so much. Thanks Richa!
Richa says
November 2, 2015 at 9:35 pmAwesome!!
Rebecca says
November 3, 2015 at 2:49 amI’ve just made this soup and it was lovely!
I thought the cinnamon sounded a bit strange, but decided not to omit it and I’m glad I didn’t 🙂
I used kale instead of spinach just because that was what I had, it worked really well.
Thank you for a great winter warming recipe.
Rebecca
Richa says
November 3, 2015 at 9:25 amAwesome! So glad you loved it! The cinnamon helps the pepper and the broth flavor profiles, though the soup can be made without as well.
Linda says
November 3, 2015 at 3:39 amGoing to make this today!
masala girl says
November 3, 2015 at 9:14 amyum! send me some? haha. i am sick and drinking so much soup.
also, i am so excited to see some diwali recipes 🙂
Jenni says
November 3, 2015 at 3:12 pmThis is comfort in a bowl. I love chickpeas and mushrooms together.
Heather says
November 3, 2015 at 7:19 pmThis looks like a great crockpot recipe. Can I throw all ingredients, except greens, in the crockpot in the morning and then add greens just before serving? I usually cook on high 6 hours and then keep warm.
Richa says
November 3, 2015 at 8:21 pmI dont know. I have never used slow cookers.
Saranda says
November 4, 2015 at 12:44 pmI found this page today, made this soup right away and it’s just perfect! Thanks! (And this comes from someone who HATES cooking)
Richa says
November 4, 2015 at 12:51 pmyay! i am so glad you tried it 🙂 There are days when i cant stand much in the kitchen for various health reasons, so i do try to keep most recipes on the easy side. 🙂
Sascha says
November 17, 2015 at 3:40 pmThis soup is delicious but I made a mistake 🙁 I didn’t have fresh ginger so I used dry powder and I put too much 🙁 Is there any way I can repair it?
Richa says
November 17, 2015 at 3:48 pmhow much did you use? You can drain some of the broth out and add more broth and simmer. or make another batch and mix in.
Sascha says
November 17, 2015 at 4:10 pmWell I made a double batch and I used a one and a half teaspoon. I think the flavour is more potent when you use dry spice, isn’t it? Thank you for the ideas, I will try them tomorrow!
Richa says
November 17, 2015 at 4:47 pmit definitely is. ginger goes from nice to bitter really quickly in dry spice. hope it works out!
Leigh says
December 14, 2015 at 9:31 amThanks for another great dinner!
Richa says
December 14, 2015 at 10:42 amAwesome!!
Jessica says
January 19, 2016 at 8:17 pmI made this soup and it was absolutely fabulous! I ate it all so will have to make more for hubby!! Super healthy too!!
Richa says
January 19, 2016 at 9:14 pmAwesome!!
Ana @ Ana's Rocket Ship says
February 29, 2016 at 1:33 pmMmm. I love how this combines the excitement of picking out veggies in a broth soup with warming flavors and spices usually found in blended soups!
Wesam says
June 25, 2016 at 11:46 pmI’d like to thank you for this fantastic soup. I wouldn’t chamge anything. It’s heavenly.
Richa says
June 26, 2016 at 10:59 amThanks!
Jackie says
August 4, 2016 at 9:48 amThis soup recipe is awesome!
Mansi says
October 16, 2016 at 4:53 pmMade this tonight and the little one loved it! Thanks!
Judy says
January 2, 2017 at 8:55 pmI’ve recently stopped using chicken stock to make vegetable soup and have been struggling to get flavor with only vegetables. But this soup has such a robust and interesting flavor, I believe it will be my new favorite!
I used frozen spinach and think that was a mistake, next time I’ll use fresh.
Richa says
January 2, 2017 at 9:50 pmawesome! I like using spices and herbs for flavor rather than premade stock.
motta says
January 14, 2017 at 6:36 amAmazing recipe! made this today and added a piece of fresh chili pepper. Loved it!
Julia says
May 21, 2017 at 5:45 amThis soup is so, so good. I made it when company came for dinner and it was a huge hit. Thank you!
Diane marie says
October 11, 2017 at 4:33 pmMade this soup for dinner and yummmmm!!!! Also had kholarabi slaw over a wedge of lettuce. PERFECT dinner on a cold rainy day. Soup and salad.
Caroline says
December 27, 2017 at 5:33 pmSooo good. A pinch of cayenne was enough for us. It is -22 F here, this soup was perfect for our cold winter ! Thank you !
Richa says
December 27, 2017 at 6:36 pmbrrrr. that is cold! so glad the soup worked out!
alan says
January 24, 2018 at 5:02 pmThank you for another great recipe–much appreciated. I decided to add some quinoa and pearl barley to thicken it up and make it more of a meal in itself.
Merrill Dellas says
September 24, 2018 at 8:42 pmEasy to make! So delicious I instagrammed it! I subbed shallots for onions and it turned out fabulous! There’s enough to freeze ahead!
Richa says
September 24, 2018 at 10:24 pmawesome!
Courtney says
November 5, 2018 at 5:48 pmThis was ridiculously good!! The spice combo is magical!
Richa says
November 5, 2018 at 10:18 pmawesome!
Kim says
December 24, 2018 at 5:13 pmI made the version of this from your cookbook tonight. The broth is so good! Will definitely be making it again. I loved it, and my husband loved it as well. We had it without chickpeas but added cooked soba noodles instead. I also used arugula rather than spinach because I had that on hand in the fridge. I am looking forward to making more of your recipes.
Kristen says
January 2, 2019 at 1:50 pmThis is my FAVORITE vegetable soup 🙌!!!
Richa says
January 2, 2019 at 6:05 pmawesome!
Amber says
January 8, 2019 at 12:56 pmWe already had everything on hand for this so it was fast to whip up. _ Well aside from the white pepper, must add that to my pantry list!
It’s a bit overcast today so this soup was perfect! My BF said it was reminiscent of Hot & Sour soup. Will be making again for sure! Thanks Richa!
Richa says
January 8, 2019 at 1:15 pmawesome!
Zsuzsanna says
April 23, 2019 at 7:13 pmI was a bit hesitant to use some of the ingredients as I was not sure if I would like it, but after reading the comments, I did. This soup is magical! I used Portabello mushrooms for stronger flavour and broccoli leaves from my garden, worked wonderfully well. Thank you Richa for sharing this recipe and everyone else for your comments.
Richa says
April 23, 2019 at 7:17 pmawesome!!
Cho says
June 2, 2019 at 4:41 amHi. Can the rice vinegar be substituted with anything else?
Richa says
June 2, 2019 at 11:04 amapple cider or white vinegar or lime juice
cho says
June 3, 2019 at 1:58 amThanks Richa.
Can’t wait to try this one!
Miesha says
November 6, 2019 at 10:59 amThis was so good. I used Tuscan kale instead of spinach, added a few extra veggies, and added quinoa. Perfect!
Richa says
November 6, 2019 at 12:34 pmAwesome!