Lemon Chickpea Orzo Soup (Vegan Avgolemono)
Lemon Chickpea Orzo Soup (aka Greek vegan avgolemono soup) features soothing citrus, chickpeas, orzo, refreshing dill, and fresh baby greens with tahini for added creaminess!
Wrap your hands around a bowl of this hearty, Greek-inspired Lemon Chickpea Orzo Soup!
Why We Love This Recipe!
Brimming with chickpeas, orzo, carrots, kale (or spinach), lemon, and dill and made creamy with tahini, this is my vegan version of Greek avgolemono soup and it’s so delicious! Plus, it’s healthy, super easy to make, and ready in 30 minutes!
One of my favorite parts about this soup is the freshly squeezed lemon juice. The lemon brightens up the soup, adding pure comfort in a bowl with a hint of refreshing, lemony broth. This is a hearty and satisfying soup that I know you’re going to love!
Without further ado, let’s make a pot of delicious, healthy soup!
Ingredients You’ll Need
In this recipe, onion, carrots, and garlic are sauteed, then simmered with orzo, chickpeas, spinach, veg broth, and tahini, creating a bright and flavorful, creamy vegan soup perfect for a healthy lunch, dinner, or weekly meal prep.
Here is everything you will need:
- olive oil – use water for oil-free
- onion
- carrots
- garlic
- vegetable broth – or a combo of water and veg broth
- orzo – whole wheat pref
- chickpeas – aka garbanzo beans
- tahini – store-bought or make homemade Tahini
- lemon juice (about 3 – 4 large lemons)
- baby kale or spinach
- dill – use fresh, as much as you like
- salt + pepper – lemon-pepper would be great too!
Top Tips
The tahini adds a delicious buttery creaminess. If you don’t have tahini on hand, this soup will still be fantastic without it! The inspiration for using tahini comes from the Greek soup called avgolemono, which adds eggs stirred in at the end of cooking to thicken the soup. The tahini does this well, making a vegan version of this classic Mediterranean recipe. Soup thickens upon standing.
For the broth, I prefer to use a combo of half broth and half water. To keep the sodium to a minimum, source out low-sodium vegetable broth. I almost always use this vegetable broth concentrate, and for this recipe, I would add about 1 teaspoon to 4 cups of water, along with 3 – 4 cups of plain water. It works well without losing out on too much flavor.
The herbs can be changed up to suit your taste. If you don’t care for dill, try using rosemary or oregano.
Replace the orzo with white rice for a gluten-free soup, using the same measurements and cooking as directed, adding 10 – 15 minutes to the cooking time or until the rice is tender.
How To Make Chickpea Orzo Soup
Making Chickpea Orzo Soup is easy as can be!
(Note – The full printable recipe is at the bottom of this post)
- Saute. Saute the onion and carrot, saute for about 5 – 7 minutes, add the garlic, and saute for 1 minute more.
- Simmer with chickpeas and orzo. Add the broth or water, bring to a boil, add the orzo and chickpeas, reduce heat to medium-low, and cook at a gentle boil for 7 – 8 minutes.
- Add brightness + creaminess. Once done, turn the heat off and stir in the tahini and lemon juice.
- Add leafy greens. Add the baby kale or spinach, and give a good stir, greens will soften and wilt within a few minutes.
- Stir in herbs + season. Add as much dill as you like, and season well with salt & pepper.
How To Store Leftovers
- Refrigerator: Leftovers will keep for 5 – 6 days in the refrigerator, stored in a covered container.
- Freezer: This chickpea orzo soup is freezer friendly and freezes well for up to 2 – 3 months. To freeze, let cool completely and store in freezer safe containers (affiliate link), leaving 1/2 inch head space for expansion. You can also freeze larger portions in large ziplock bags (remove as much air as possible before zip locking). Let thaw before reheating.
- Reheat: Simply re-warm on the stovetop over low heat until warmed through. Alternatively, reheat in the microwave using 30 – 60 second intervals, stirring after each, until warm.
- Meal prep: It makes a great meal prep idea for the week with homemade Naan or Artisan Bread on the side for soaking up the juices.
Serving Suggestions
- Bread: Serve in individual bowls with your favorite crusty artisan bread or Vegan Naan for soaking up the wonderful juices.
- Salad: Serve with a simple leafy green salad with Creamy Ranch Hemp Dressing, Vegan Ranch or Healthy Flax + Evo Balsamic Vinaigrette. Would also be nice with this Green Salad + Lemon Tahini Dressing.
More Easy Soup Recipes!
Get cozy with these other flavorful vegan soup recipes. They’re great all year round!
- Vegetable Quinoa Soup
- Lemony Kale, Leek & White Bean Soup
- A Very Good Split Pea Soup
- Spicy Thai Curry Corn Soup
- Creamy Broccoli & Red Lentil Soup
- Hearty Chickpea Noodle Soup
- West African Peanut Stew
- Easy Lemon Rosemary White Bean Soup
- Vegan Minestrone Soup
If you try this vegan avgolemono recipe, please let us know! Leave a comment and rate it below. I love to hear what you think, or any changes you make.
PrintLEMON CHICKPEA ORZO SOUP
This Greek inspired lemon orzo soup recipe (aka vegan avgolemono) with chickpeas and dill is super easy to make and will be ready in 30 minutes!
- Prep Time: 10 min
- Cook Time: 20 min
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: Serves 4
- Category: Soup, Entree
- Method: simmer
- Cuisine: Greek, Mediterranean
- Diet: Vegan
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil or 1/4 cup water (for water saute)
- 1/2 onion, diced
- 3 carrots, peeled and diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 7 – 8 cups vegetable broth or water (or combo)
- 1 cup whole wheat orzo
- 2 cans (15oz.) chickpeas (garbanzo beans), drained and rinsed
- 1/4 cup tahini
- 1/4 – 1/2 cup lemon juice (about 2 – 4 large lemons)
- a large handful fresh baby kale or spinach
- chopped fresh dill, to taste
- mineral salt, to taste
- fresh cracked pepper or lemon-pepper, to taste
Instructions
Heat oil or water over medium heat, add onion and carrot, saute for about 5 – 7 minutes, add the garlic and saute for 1 minute more.
Add the broth or water, bring to a boil, add the orzo and chickpeas, reduce heat to medium-low and cook at a gentle boil for 8- 9 minutes, orzo should be tender.
Remove from heat, add tahini and lemon juice (start with the smaller amount of juice, adding more to taste), stir well. Add the baby kale or spinach, give a good stir, greens will soften and wilt within a few minutes. Add as much dill as you like, and season well with salt & pepper. Soup will thicken upon standing, add more liquids as needed.
Serve in individual bowl with your favorite crusty artisan bread for soaking up the wonderful juices.
Serves 4
Notes
The tahini adds a delicious buttery creaminess. If you don’t have tahini on hand, this soup will still be fantastic! Replace the tahini with 100% cashew butter, as it will be free from additives such a sugar, salt, and/or flavorings.
For the broth, I prefer to use a combo, usually half broth and half water. To keep the sodium to a minimum, source out low-sodium vegetable broth. I almost always use this organic vegetable broth concentrate – for this recipe I would add about 1 heaping teaspoon to 4 cups of water, and then use 3 – 4 cups of plain water. It works well, without losing out on too much flavor.
The herbs can be changed up to suit your taste. If you don’t care for dill, try using rosemary or oregano.
To make this soup gluten-free, replace the orzo with white rice, using the same measurements and cooking as directed, adding 10 – 15 minutes to the cooking time or until the rice is tender.
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First recipe I made from this website and it was delicious. Super quick and easy to make, can’t wait to cook more!
I made it using brown rice instead of orzo, and it was DELICIOUS! Even my anti-vegan father loved it. Thanks for posting such a great recipe.
This soup is absolutely lovely. My mom made when I came to visit at holidays, and I just had to have the recipe too! I prefer eating plant based as much as possible and this is a great vegan recipe. I did not have whole wheat orzo so used regular. Pacifica low sodium veggie broth worked well with lots of flavor and beautiful color. Otherwise, followed exactly and added lots of fresh dill at the end which my husband and I loved. HIGHLY recommend – like all other readers :)
I made this for my family and it was a big hit! I definitely recommend it!
This soup is the food dreams are made of. I made it hoping it would be good. To my surprise it is even better. It’s divinely delicious. It’s creamy, it’s rich, it’s flavorful and all without dairy. In a small household I had leftovers of course. The soup froze well and next time I heated it up it tasted just as fresh as it did on the day I had first cooked it. I am very thankful to the Simple Veganista for sharing her gift by publishing this recipe and recommend to everyone to give it a try. You won’t be disappointed.
Just made it again, it keeps getting better and better. I used a handful of arugula this time because its what I have in my fridge. Can not get enough of this soup.
This recipe is amazing. Super fast, delicious and healthy. Thank you!
Flavors here were so perfect! The proportions were spot on and the tahini-lemon collab was heavenly. Someone commented to peel the chick peas and it was worth every second.
I am making it again tonight. I’ve lost count how many times I’ve made it at this point. I keep going back. Do I need counseling for this recipe addiction?
I am so glad you’re loving this soup, it’s one my favorites too! And at least it’s a healthy addiction. Thanks for sharing, Lauren!
Fresh and flavorful!