Name: Vegan Chickpea Noodle Soup
Total time: 1 h
Ingredients: 2 tablespoons vegetable oil; 1 onion , chopped fine; 3 carrots , peeled and sliced ¼ inch thick; 2 celery ribs , sliced ¼ inch thick; Salt and pepper; 3 tablespoons nutritional yeast; 2 teaspoons minced fresh thyme or ¾ teaspoon dried; 2 bay leaves; 6 cups vegetable broth; 2 (15-ounce) cans chickpeas , rinsed; 2 ounces (½ cup) ditalini pasta; 2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley

Why This Recipe Works

Veganizing this classic sounded like a fruitless task—the best chicken soups have a deeply savory broth—but we actually found this one-pot dish flavorful and fast to make with a pantry-friendly combination of broth and noodles. To replace the chicken, we chose chickpeas; we liked the creamy texture, neutral flavor, and heartiness they added to the soup—and the fun phonetic similarity between the two ingredients certainly wasn't lost on us. To start, we sautéed onion, carrots, and celery to infuse our soup with flavor, but this broth still lacked the soul-satisfying comfort of chicken noodle. In efforts to capture the missed “meatiness,” we tested various go-to vegan-friendly flavor enhancers ranging from miso paste to porcini powder before settling on a unanimous favorite, umami-packed nutritional yeast, a naturally occurring yeast that's heated to deactivate the leavening power that baker's yeast has. This seasoning is like savory magic dust: It has a deep nutty and almost tangy flavor that turned our soup from ordinary to one that reminded us of Grandma's soup. Simmering the chickpeas, sautéed aromatics, and broth together before adding the noodles fully developed the soup's flavor while also creating a creamy texture in the chickpeas. Lastly, in place of traditional egg noodles, we opted for ditalini pasta, a great choice for its spoon-friendly slurp-ability.

Before You Begin

We strongly prefer our favorite vegetable broths, Orrington Farms Vegan Chicken Broth or our homemade Vegetable Broth Base.

Instructions

Heat oil in Dutch oven over medium heat until shimmering. Add onion, carrots, celery, and ¼ teaspoon pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, 5 to 7 minutes. Stir in nutritional yeast, thyme, and bay leaves and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.

Stir in broth and chickpeas and bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, partially covered, until flavors meld, about 10 minutes.

Stir in pasta, increase heat to medium-high, and boil until just tender, about 10 minutes. Off heat, discard bay leaves and stir in parsley. Season with salt and pepper to taste, and serve.