Bowls, Salads & Soups, Gluten-Free, Mains & Sides, Vegan & Dairy-Free, Vegetarian

Creamy Chickpea & Rice Soup (vegan | gluten-free)

by Radiate Food Vibes


Long, long ago, when I was a tot, creamy Chicken & Wild Rice Soup was one of my absolute faves. Decadent, comforting and delicious, this is my idea of the perfect soup. But we all know that I try to keep animal products out of my diet as often as I can, so I decided to make a version of this soup that’s just as hearty and tasty, but also vegan.
In my version, chickpeas replace chicken and simple cashew cream replaces the flour/butter/milk combination (aka a bechamel sauce). Carrots, onion, celery and garlic add veggie goodness. Dried thyme, bay leaf and poultry seasoning give this soup the same flavor vibes as it’s chicken-filled counterpart. The end result is creamy, dreamy perfection.


For this recipe I use a brown rice/wild rice blend. Mainly because that’s what I had in my pantry, but also because wild rice is on the expensive side. But this recipe works just the same with all brown rice or all wild rice. The choice is yours!

Another choice you have here is between canned or dry chickpeas. Use two cans of drained and rinsed chickpeas or cook up 1.5 cups dry chickpeas. I prefer the taste of freshly cooked beans, however I’m also a fan of the canned convenience factor. See notes below recipe for more information on cooking your own beans instead of using canned.



Creamy Chickpea & Rice Soup
vegan | gluten-free | clean eating
Serves: 4-5 Start to Finish: 1 hour

Ingredients

2 large carrots, peeled & diced
2 ribs celery, diced
1 large onion, diced
sea salt, fine grain
4-5 cloves garlic, peeled & minced
4 cups vegetable stock (low-sodium preferred)
1 cup wild rice, brown rice or wild rice/brown rice blend
3 cups cooked Chickpeas, 2 cans drained/rinsed or 1.5 cups dry chickpeas, cooked (see notes)
3-4 teaspoons poultry seasoning
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 dried bay leaf
1.5 cups simple cashew cream (see notes)
black pepper, to taste

To Make

Heat 3 tablespoons olive oil over medium to medium-high heat. Add carrots, celery, onion and 1 teaspoon salt. Cook for about 6-8 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add garlic, cook for an additional 2-3 minutes, being careful to not let garlic burn.

Add rice, stock, chickpeas, poultry seasoning, thyme, bay leaf, 2 cups water and 2 teaspoons salt. Bring to boil, cover and simmer until rice is full cooked. Stir occasionally and add more water if needed.

When rice is cooked, add cashew cream (or bechamel) and stir to combine. Season with additional salt and black pepper to taste, 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon. Simmer for a few more minutes to fully incorporate cream.

This soup is great for making ahead. When reheating, you may need to add a splash of water or stock, as the soup thickens a lot after cooling.

Notes

Using Dry Beans: technically, you’re supposed to soak dry beans before cooking, however, when working at a produce-forward restaurant in NYC, we always cooked chickpeas from dry, skipping the soaking step. Make sure to cover beans with lots of water, then bring to boil, reduce to simmer and partially cover pot, simmering until beans are tender. Check water level from time to time.

If soaking, I use the quick soak (aka hot soak) method just about every time I cook with dry beans – soaking the beans overnight is too much planning and too much of a commitment for me – to quick/hot soak, add dry beans to a pot with a tablespoon of salt and enough water to cover the beans by a few inches – bring to boil – boil for 2 minutes – turn off heat – cover with lid – let beans soak for 1 hour – drain off the old water. To cook soaked beans, add fresh water and soaked beans back into pot. Bring to boil and simmer until cooked, about 1 hour.

If you can plan ahead, use the slow soak (aka cold soak) method. Soak beans in cold/room temp water for 8 hours or overnight, covered and in the fridge. Discard soaking liquid and continue with cooking step.

Poultry Seasoning: this traditional seasoning blend is a mix of dried sage and thyme, plus other herbs/spices like marjoram, black pepper and rosemary. Don’t save this seasoning blend for poultry, it adds savory flavor to all kinds of dishes, including vegetarian.

Making Cashew Cream: Chicken & Wild Rice Soup is traditionally creamy using a basic roux of butter, flour and milk. I adapted the classic recipe to be meat-free, dairy-free and gluten-free using a simple cashew cream. To make cashew cream, blend 1 cup soaked raw cashews with 3/4 cup water and 3/4 teaspoon fine-grain sea salt in a high-speed blender. Voila – dairy-free cream perfect for soups and stews!

Soaking Cashews for Cashew Cream: submerge cashews completely in water and allow to sit at room temperature for 2-3 hours or in the fridge over night. You can also hot soak the cashews by adding nearly boiling water to raw cashews and letting them sit for 15-30 minutes. Drain off the soaking liquid and blend with 3/4 cup fresh water and 3/4 teaspoon fine-grain sea salt.

Using a Bechamel Instead: if you’d prefer making this soup a bit more traditional, add a simple bechamel sauce to the soup instead of the cashew cream. Check out this recipe from Epicurious. The 1 cup yield of this recipe should be enough.

40 thoughts on “Creamy Chickpea & Rice Soup (vegan | gluten-free)”

  1. Looks mighty tasty. I’m not a vegan, so I’d likely add chicken but the base recipe is lovely, and very similar to how I make my own creamy chicken and rice soup. I love the addition of the chickpeas and think I might even keep them with the chicken and rice. Thanks for sharing this perfect meal for a chilly autumn evening.

    Like

    Reply

  6. This is absolutely delicious! Added mushrooms and 1 more stalk of celery. Thank you for making 1 of my favorites.
    You don’t need to ad the oil for sauté. It’s extra fat that isn’t needed at all.

    Like

    Reply
  7. Pingback: Finding Balance: Food, Eating & Diet – Radiate Food Vibes

    1. Hi Lisa! I don’t cook with slow cookers so I’m not sure on the exact method but I’m sure it could be easily adapted if your more familiar with using them to make soups. Let me know how it goes if you end up giving it a try. Xx

      Like

      Reply

  12. Made this tonight and it was delicious! I changed up the cashew cream, adding in nutritional yeast, apple cider vinegar and miso.

    Wish I could show you a picture. Thank you for this amazing recipe 😋

    Like

    Reply
  13. Pingback: Best of the Best: Soup Season (vegan | plant-based) – Radiate Food Vibes

  15. This is delicious! I subbed cannellini beans and added 1 teaspoon of Aleppo pepper. Super excited to have it for lunch tomorrow!

    Like

    Reply

  16. Sooo delicious! Added and had to make a few adjustmentsa. Used tastefully simple chicken chicken seasoning, added turmeric, didn’t have thyme so used marjoram, nutritional yeast and didn’t get a chance to make the cashew cream so used coconut milk ( 1/2can). Also added chopped frozen broccoli. My husband told me to save this one because it is a major keeper! Thank you for helping me change up our meals for our vegan lifestyle and somethingnmy toddler devoured !

    Like

    Reply

  17. Husband made this today, so good!! We are not vegan but we follow an anti inflammatory diet where we avoid processed food, gluten and too much dairy. It’s been amazing learning things like cashew cream, dressings that don’t require dairy etc. I keep sharing this website with friends.

    Like

    Reply
  18. Pingback: Stuffed Bell Pepper Soup (plant-based | vegan) – Radiate Food Vibes
  19. Pingback: Weekly Meal Plan | May 20th – Radiate Food Vibes
  20. Pingback: Weekly Meal Plan | May 27th | Summer Vibes – Radiate Food Vibes

  21. Would it be possible to use a different type of rice? I want to use this recipe to clean out my fridge and pantry because I have everything at hand but I only have regular short grain white rice and basmati at home. Would these work with this recipe?

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

Leave a comment