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Home Soups

Lamb Shawarma Chickpea Soup

By:Nagi
Published:6 Dec '17Updated:31 Jan '22
197 Comments
Recipe v Video v Dozer v

No bland chickpea soup in my world! Exploding with flavour, this tastes like your favourite Chicken Shawarma – except it’s in soup form with lamb and chickpeas. Filling, nutritious and quick to make!

A chickpea soup exploding with flavour! Tastes like Chicken Shawarma in soup form with lamb, quick to make, nutritious and filling. recipetineats.com

Chickpea soup with flavour explosion!

I had every intention of making a wholesome, chickpea and vegetable soup.

I really, really tried to get excited about it.

It is possible to make a great meat-free chickpea soup (I promise I will share mine one day!). But, but, but…. I wanted kapow flavours. Actually, I was really tempted to do the long haul drive for a good laksa fix. I felt like I deserved it. (But then, I always feel I deserve it….)

So I compromised. Chickpeas. Veggie loaded – there’s a whole bunch of spinach in this, plus carrots plus onion (yes that counts towards your daily veggie intake, I checked!). Lamb for protein, cooked with my Chicken Shawarma spice mix – wait until you smell this part!!!! It’s SO GOOD!

A chickpea soup exploding with flavour! Tastes like Chicken Shawarma in soup form with lamb, quick to make, nutritious and filling. recipetineats.com

Shawarma Spice Mix

This is the same shawarma spice mix I use for Chicken Shawarma, a long standing reader favourite. The combination of spices in this is intoxicating!

A chickpea soup exploding with flavour! Tastes like Chicken Shawarma in soup form with lamb, quick to make, nutritious and filling. recipetineats.com

English Spinach for Middle Eastern Lamb, Chickpea and Spinach Soup recipetineats.com

Oh boy. If you like kapow flavours, or if you are dubious about chickpea soups having been scarred by bland ones in the past, this Lamb Shawarma Chickpea Soup is for you!! It’s really fragrant, the soup itself is quite intense from both the spices and also the lamb. It’s hearty, almost stew-like. Actually, I didn’t know whether to call this a stew or soup.

A chickpea soup exploding with flavour! Tastes like Chicken Shawarma in soup form with lamb, quick to make, nutritious and filling. recipetineats.com

A chickpea soup exploding with flavour! Tastes like Chicken Shawarma in soup form with lamb, quick to make, nutritious and filling. recipetineats.com

Because the soup flavouring is from the Shawarma Spice Mix, there’s no need to simmer this for ages. Just long enough for the carrot to become tender. Oh, also, I use canned chickpeas here. Speedy, unplanned meal. 🙂

But if you do have the foresight to plan and want to take it over the top, add a side of homemade flatbreads (simple, no yeast!) or make this mind blowingly easy crusty Artisan bread.

Update: I recently created a similar but different variation of this soup in the form of Beef & Lentil Soup. This was has more Moroccan-inspired flavours. Give it a try too!

– Nagi x


Watch how to make it

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A chickpea soup exploding with flavour! Tastes like Chicken Shawarma in soup form with lamb, quick to make, nutritious and filling. recipetineats.com

Chickpea Lamb Shawarma Soup

Author: Nagi
Prep: 10 mins
Cook: 20 mins
Total: 30 mins
Main
Middle Eastern
5 from 74 votes
Servings4 - 5 people
Tap or hover to scale
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No such thing as bland chickpea soups in my world! Exploding with the flavours of your favourite Chicken Shawarma, except it’s in SOUP form with lamb and chickpeas! This is not spicy, the small amount of cayenne pepper gives it a tiny warm hum, so if you want it spicier, just add more at the end. Deceptively veggie loaded and is quick to make! Recipe VIDEO below.

Ingredients

Spices:

  • 2 tsp EACH cumin powder, coriander, paprika
  • 1 tsp cardamon powder (can omit if you don’t have)
  • ¼ tsp cinnamon powder
  • ½ tsp cayenne pepper (adjust to taste)
  • 1/2 tsp black pepper
  • 1 tsp salt

Soup:

  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 2 garlic cloves , minced
  • 1 onion , finely chopped
  • 500 g / 1 lb lamb mince (ground lamb, or beef) (Note 1)
  • 2 tbsp tomato paste
  • 2 carrots , peeled and chopped (about size of chickpeas)
  • 600 g / 21 oz canned chickpeas , drained and rinsed (1.5 standard cans, Note 2)
  • 400 g / 14 oz can crushed tomato
  • 3 cups / 750 ml chicken broth / stock
  • 1 bunch spinach , roughly chopped (about 4 packed cups) (wilts a lot)

Garnishes (highly recommended):

  • Plain yoghurt (or sour cream)
  • Chopped fresh coriander / cilantro

Instructions

  • Heat oil in a large pot over high heat. Add garlic and onion, cook for 1 minute until starting to turn translucent.
  • Add lamb and cook, breaking it up as you go. When it has mostly turned from pink to light brown, add spices.
  • Cook for 1 minute, then add tomato paste and cook for another 1 minute. (It smells amazing!)
  • Add carrots, chickpeas, tomato and broth. Stir and bring to simmer.
  • Cover with lid, lower heat so it is bubbling energetically but not crazy rapidly. Cook for 10 minutes until carrot is tender but not super soft – I like it to have a bit of bite still, if you want super soft, keep cooking.
  • Stir through spinach. Once wilted, adjust salt, pepper and spiciness (cayenne) to taste, and water if you want more liquid.
  • Ladle into bowls, add a dollop of yoghurt and a generous sprinkling of coriander. Enjoy!

Recipe Notes:

1. Beef is the next best sub. Chicken, turkey and veal an also be used. Not sure about pork.
2. CHICKPEAS - The net drained weight of canned chickpeas is only about 220g/7oz per can. I only use 1 ½ cans because I think that’s enough chickpeas for 4 to 5 servings, but you should feel free to toss the rest in. I just used the rest in a salad the next day.
3. Nutrition per serving, assuming 5 servings. It's quite filling! The lamb accounts for about 295 calories of the total cal per serving shown. If you substituted lamb with 4 - 5 cups of chopped vegetables like zucchini, mushrooms so the soup volume per serve is still the same, then it would be 215 calories per serving. I will share a vegetarian version one day!

Nutrition Information:

Serving: 474gCalories: 458cal (23%)
Did you make this recipe?I love hearing how you went with my recipes! Tag me on Instagram at @RecipeTinEats.

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Hi, I'm Nagi!

I believe you can make great food with everyday ingredients even if you’re short on time and cost conscious. You just need to cook clever and get creative!

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197 Comments

  1. Kilee says

    October 10, 2022 at 1:23 pm

    I made this for dinner tonight and instead of using yogurt we used Labne. Labne is a staple in our house, my husband’s family is Lebanese and Labne goes so well with lamb and these spices. Here in the states find it in whole foods type stores. This soup is so delicious!!!

    Reply
  2. Margie says

    October 3, 2022 at 11:12 am

    5 stars
    I saw this on your instagram earlier this week and thought this would be perfect for today (a rainy Sunday). It was! Very comforting dish for a chilly, grey, rainy day.

    Reply
  3. Allison says

    September 26, 2022 at 9:58 am

    5 stars
    Made this tonight and it was a hit! I treated it as a stew and served it over rice. So delicious. My kids asked me to make it again already. Another RecipeTin success! Thanks, Nagi!

    Reply
  4. Terra says

    September 21, 2022 at 3:10 pm

    5 stars
    This recipe is amazing…such great flavor! I make this probably once a month. Everyone loves it.

    Reply
  5. Saskia says

    September 9, 2022 at 5:06 am

    This soup is on high rotation at our house. I make a double batch for freezing. It’s perfect as is, but we occasionally swap the proteins. Most recently used turkey mince and replaced the chickpeas with canned cannellini beans. Yum!

    Reply
  6. Brittany says

    July 6, 2022 at 1:21 pm

    5 stars
    I’ve made this twice now. First a double batch for “Souper Tuesday” at work and once just for myself. It’s amazing!! Only changes I made were to use frozen chopped spinach as it cost less than 1/5th of the cost of fresh and rice make a single batch I used a whole litre of stock and only one can of chickpeas but I also probably used a little extra carrot and spinach. I didn’t want half empty or not quite finished bottles or cans of stuff in the fridge. Delicious!

    Reply
  7. Rennie says

    June 28, 2022 at 4:18 am

    I found the chickpeas to be dry for some reason so I made it the second time with lentils and OMGosh is it good. Try half a pound of dry lentils. The flavors are amazing but the texture is fabulous!

    Reply
  8. Rakel says

    June 18, 2022 at 7:49 pm

    5 stars
    Where are you Nagi? I miss you and Dozer, hope you are both well. I did make this soup a couple of days ago and oh man was this not only packed with flavour but so filling too, my partner had 3 bowls of it and he took some in a flask to work the morning after, the poor thing was sweating his a**e off because it was nearly 30 degrees here in Manchester, but who cares when the food tastes this nice. Take care Nagi. X

    Reply
  9. JoJo says

    June 12, 2022 at 11:55 am

    5 stars
    OMG! This was Amazing! Beautiful Flavours. Protein Packed! Will be on rotation frequently during Winter.

    Reply
  10. Jenni Chambers says

    May 29, 2022 at 1:45 pm

    5 stars
    oh me oh my!!!

    Reply
    • Nagi says

      May 30, 2022 at 2:16 pm

      I know right?? It’s a flavour bomb!! N x

      Reply
  11. jennifer Najjar says

    March 29, 2022 at 7:51 pm

    could l cook this soup and then freeze for later use,,,,cheers Jennifer

    Reply
    • Bella says

      July 20, 2022 at 6:02 pm

      I usually freeze half for later use and it freezes perfectly.

      Reply
  12. Katrina says

    March 6, 2022 at 10:32 am

    5 stars
    The flavour is gorgeous
    Perfectly spiced.
    I added the lime juice as other reviews suggested and it was perfect

    Reply
    • Nagi says

      March 6, 2022 at 2:41 pm

      I am happy that you enjoyed it Katrina! N x

      Reply
  13. Rennie says

    February 23, 2022 at 2:23 am

    Delicious – I probably needed less cayenne and needed to strain more fat from the pan but the soup is crave worthy! I highly recommend using Lamb, the flavor with the spices was so good!

    Reply
  14. Rennie says

    February 23, 2022 at 2:22 am

    Delicious – I probably needed less cayenne and needed to strain more fat from the pan but the soup is crave worthy! I highly recommend using Lamb, the flavor with the spices was so good!

    Reply
  15. Jerry says

    January 27, 2022 at 5:25 pm

    Used left over lamb roast. Delicious

    Reply
  16. Susan says

    January 21, 2022 at 8:28 am

    5 stars
    Squeezed lime on our portions which elevated this into the put-on-the-always-when-we-have-lamb list! Thank you!

    Reply
  17. Tracey says

    January 20, 2022 at 2:01 pm

    5 stars
    Another fantastic recipe that tastes great and is super quick to make. Never mind saving it for a cold winters night (I’ll be doing that too) we had it on a hot night after a 41c day and it was delicious. I reduced the cayenne down to 1/8 tspn and served with mint as well as coriander. Cant wait for the leftovers tonight YUMMM!! Thanks again Nagi x

    Reply
    • Nagi says

      January 20, 2022 at 9:09 pm

      I am glad you enjoyed it Tracey! N x

      Reply
    • JoJo says

      May 15, 2022 at 12:13 pm

      5 stars
      I’d call it a stoup! 🤣
      This was fabulous and so comforting. It’s a Keeper!
      Which type of paprika though? (Not specified) I used smoked paprika. Lovely smokiness.

      Reply
      • Nagi says

        May 15, 2022 at 5:29 pm

        You can use regular sweet paprika or smoked if you prefer the smokier flavour! N x

        Reply
  18. Jane says

    January 14, 2022 at 10:02 am

    Made this today for work lunches for the next few days. So, so tasty that I’m looking forward to work to eat it 😂😂

    Reply
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I believe you can make great food with everyday ingredients even if you’re short on time and cost conscious. You just need to cook clever and get creative! Read More

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