Bowl of Chickpea and Tomato Soup
(click to enlarge)

Chickpea & Tomato Soup


Burma
Serves:
Effort:
Sched:
DoAhead:  		 6 soup
**
1-1/4 hrs
Yes		 A substantial and flavorful vegetarian soup, easy to make. The photo example is my usual version, but it can be made mercilessly rustic using Kala Chana (see Photo), or more refined (see Comments).

1
1/2
1
2
1/3
2
1/8
3
2
2
1
----
3
c
T
#

in
oz
t
c
T
t
T
---
T
Chickpeas (1)
Salt
Tomatoes ripe
Lemongrass (2)
Ginger Root
Shallots
Turmeric
Water
Shallot Oil (3)
Salt
Lime Juice
-- Garnish
Cilantro
Do-Ahead   -   (10 hrs - 10 min work)
  1. Soak CHICKPEAS in plenty of water and 1/2 T Salt (yes, salt) 8 hours or overnight.
  2. Drain and rinse Chickpeas. Place in a saucepan with plenty of water and bring to a boil uncovered. Cover and simmer for about 1-1/2 hours or until tender. If using Kala Chana maybe about 2 hours. Drain.
Prep   -   (35 min)
  1. Smash cooked Chickpeas - most well smashed, some medium and a few lightly smashed. It is permissible to use a processor for the well smashed ones.
  2. Scald TOMATOES one minute in boiling water, quench in cold water. Peel and chop small.
  3. Peel off toughest outer leaves of LEMONGRASS. Cut off the hard root end. Smash the bottom 6 inches lightly with your kitchen mallet. Cut both into 3 2-inch lengths.
  4. Slice GINGER crosswise medium. Mix with Lemongrass.
  5. Cut SHALLOTS in half lengthwise and peel. Chop small. Mix in 1/8 t Turmeric.
  6. Squeeze LIME JUICE.
  7. Chop CILANTRO for Garnish.
Run   -   (40 min)
  1. In a large saucepan mix Water and smashed Chickpeas. Mix in Lemongrass mix and bring to a boil. Cover and simmer about 20 minutes.
  2. Meanwhile: In a sauté pan, heat Shallot Oil and fry Shallot mix stirring until Shallots are softened. Stir in Tomatoes and continue to fry until well softened.
  3. Stir Tomatoes and Salt into Beans. Simmer another 5 minutes.
  4. Check liquid (it should be fairly soupy) and seasoning. Stir in Lime Juice and take off the heat.
  5. Garnish with Cilantro and serve with Jasmine Rice (see Serving). This recipe reheats well
NOTES:

  1. Chickpeas:

      Make sure dried Chickpeas are fresh. If a year or more old they will not become tender. For a more refined soup use regular large beige chickpeas (Kabuli Chana). For a more rustic soup use Indian chickpeas (Kala Chana). For details see our pages Chickpeas (Kabul Type) and Chickpeas (Desi Type).

  2. Lemon Grass:

      An essential for Southeast Asian cuisines, these tough grass stems are now widely available in North American markets that serve a Southeast Asian community. I've even seen them in some Korean markets. For details see our Lemon Grass page.

  3. Shallot Oil:

      This is a pantry staple in Southeast Asia. It can be easily made by our recipe Fried Shallots / Shallot Oil. If you don't have time, use another oil such as Pure Olive Oil (not virgin).

  4. Serving:

      In Southeast Asia, soups are usually ladled onto the rice. For Western service I find it much more convenient to serve the soup in individual bowls and provide a bowl of Jasmine rice on the table with a spoon so diners can spoon some into their soup bowl to mix as they wish. For buffet service, I just stir in the Cilantro. There will always be a rice cooker full of Jasmine Rice on the table.

  5. Comments:

      I have made this two ways: a fairly refined version using regular beige Chickpeas (Kabuli Chana) and peeled Tomatoes for general serving, and a very rustic version using Indian Kala Chana and unpeeled Tomatoes (chopped fine). That one has plenty of fragments of thick bean skins and tomato skins in it, but is quite tasty. You can make an even more refined version by peeling the Tomatoes and using Chana Dal (skipping the overnight soak). Chana Dal is peeled and split Kala Chana.
  6. U.S. measure: t=teaspoon, T=Tablespoon, c=cup, qt=quart, oz=ounce, #=pound, cl=clove in=inch, ar=as required tt=to taste
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