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bowl of garbanzo bean soup with floating garlic croutons
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4 from 7 votes

Easy Garbanzo Bean Soup

This delicious garbanzo bean soup uses just 5 ingredients. One of them, a bit of chopped fresh mint, brings a unique subtle flavor to this super-easy vegan recipe.
Prep Time15 minutes
Cook Time20 minutes
Total Time35 minutes
Course: Soup
Cuisine: Mexican
Keyword: chickpeas, garbanzo beans, vegan
Servings: 6 servings.
Calories: 196kcal

Ingredients

Soup:

  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 cup finely chopped white onion , about ½ medium onion (see note)
  • 1 garlic clove , minced
  • 1 tablespoon fresh mint leaves , finely chopped (see note about oregano substitute)
  • cups cooked garbanzo beans, aka chickpeas * set aside 1 cup for second blending (see notes)
  • 3 ½ cups bean cooking broth or vegetable broth * set aside 1 cup for second blending
  • ¾ teaspoon fine sea salt
  • ¾ teaspoon ground red chile (see note)

Garlic toasts:

  • 1 baguette , sliced ¼-inch thick, about 12 slices
  • Olive oil , as needed
  • 1 garlic clove , cut in half crosswise

Instructions

For the soup:

  • In a heavy 4- or 5-quart saucepan over medium flame, heat the oil and sauté the onion about 10 minutes. When the onion is translucent and slightly brown, add the garlic and mint. Cook and stir another 5 minutes.
  • Meanwhile, in a blender whir the first 2 ½ cups of beans with the first 2 ½ cups of broth until very smooth. Stir the puree into the onion mixture.
  • Pulse the remaining beans with the remaining liquid until the beans are coarsely chopped. Stir into the soup. Season with the salt and chile, adding more to your taste. (How much salt will depend on how salty your broth is. I usually add another 1/4 teaspoon of both salt and ground chile powder.)
  • Reduce the heat to low. Cover and cook 15 to 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
  • Serve with 2 garlic toasts floating on top.

Garlic toasts:

  • Lightly brush both sides of the baguette slices with olive oil. Toast the slices until they are just golden around the edges. (I used my toaster oven.) Holding one half of the garlic clove with your fingers, swipe the cut edge across each toast.

Notes

  • As a rule, Mexican cooks use white onions. Feel free to substitute yellow onions or even red onion.
  • If you don't have fresh mint, substitute 1 teaspoon dried oregano for the tablespoon of fresh mint.
  • Be sure to use pure chile powder. Chili powder, chili spelled with an "i" is a spice blend—not the same at all. Susanna’s recipe calls for white pepper—so use that if pure chile powder is not available.
  • Given the choice and time, I cook garbanzos from scratch. See my recipe for how to cook garbanzo beans quickly in a pressure cooker.

Nutrition

Calories: 196kcal | Carbohydrates: 31g | Protein: 9g | Fat: 5g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 750mg | Potassium: 324mg | Fiber: 8g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 354IU | Vitamin C: 4mg | Calcium: 56mg | Iron: 3mg