Meet your new favorite chickpea tomato soup — a hearty, Italian-inspired bowl made with garbanzo beans and packed with umami flavor.
The secret is using chickpea cooking liquid as a rich, umami-packed natural broth — so nothing goes to waste.
Japanese fermented seasoning shio koji adds depth and richness, while rosemary, garlic, and chili bring everything together with an Italian-inspired twist.
A gentle kick of heat makes this Italian garbanzo bean soup a perfect way to shake off the winter chill and welcome early spring 🍃🌸
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🧺 Why You'll Love This Recipe
- Zero-waste chickpea broth: Chickpea cooking liquid doubles as a rich, umami-packed stock
- Italian-inspired flavor: Shio koji, garlic, rosemary, and chili give this chickpea Italian soup its bold, aromatic character
- Oil-free: Chickpeas and shio koji create a rich, satisfying soup — no oil needed
- Flexible like a minestrone: Use whatever vegetables you have on hand
- Vegan & vegetarian: 100% plant-based, a wholesome, nourishing bowl from start to finish
🌿 Ingredients
● Canned chickpeas (garbanzo beans):
I use homemade pressure-cooked chickpeas here, cooking liquid and all. If you're using store-bought, just look for a no-salt-added variety — it makes seasoning with shio koji much easier.
🌿 The chickpea liquid is also used in my Vegan Minestrone (Pork & Beans Style) — another great way to use it up.
● Vegetables: This recipe is a great fridge clean-out soup. For this batch, I used turnip, napa cabbage, carrot, potato, and frozen cherry tomatoes (Aiko variety). Sweet cherry tomatoes are ideal, but canned tomatoes or regular tomatoes work well too. If the tomatoes lack sweetness, add a small pinch of sugar at the end to balance the flavor.
● Herbs & aromatics: Garlic, rosemary, and deseeded chili give the soup an Italian character.
● Shio koji: Homemade or store-bought, shio koji adds umami, sweetness, and complexity.
🌿 Have leftover shio koji? Try it in other recipes — I have plenty of ideas on my shio koji recipe page.
👇 Exact quantities are listed in the recipe card at the bottom of this page.
📖 How to Make
Just chop, add everything to a pot, and simmer.
- Prep
- Cut the vegetables into bite-sized pieces and place them in a pot.
- Add the minced garlic, deseeded chili, rosemary, and chickpeas along with their cooking liquid.
🌿 The pot may look low on liquid at first, but the vegetables will release plenty as they cook — no need to worry.
- Simmer
- Bring to a boil over medium heat.
- Once boiling, reduce the heat to low and simmer until the vegetables are tender.
- Add shio koji to taste and adjust seasoning before serving.
🫙 Storage
- This soup tastes even better the next day.
- Store in the refrigerator for up to a few days
- To freeze, leave out the potatoes — or remove them before storing. Potatoes in soup tend to get mushy once frozen and thawed.
📚 FAQ
Yes — the liquid from canned chickpeas works just as well as homemade cooking liquid. If your canned chickpeas are salted, start with less shio koji and adjust to taste. Choosing a no-salt-added variety makes it easier to control the seasoning.
Absolutely. To reduce the heat, remove the seeds from the chili and use just a small piece. For a completely mild soup, simply leave the chili out — the rosemary and garlic will still give the soup plenty of flavor and aroma.
Yes — this soup is very flexible. Vegetables with high water content, like tomatoes or napa cabbage, will naturally create more broth.
If you feel like whispering a thought, asking a question, or simply saying hello — the comment section is always open 📮
🫘 More Recipes with Chickpeas
More vegan recipes using cooked chickpeas :
🍽️ Vegan Pasta Recipes
From Italian-style to Japanese-inspired:
🌼 Vegan Soup Recipes
More vegan soup recipes you might enjoy:
✏️ Recipe Card
Chickpea Tomato Soup (Italian-Inspired, Vegan & Oil-Free)
Equipment
- pot
- Knife and cutting board
- Spatula
Ingredients
- 75 g cooked chickpeas (garbanzo beans)
- 500 ml chickpea cooking liquid
- 150 g cherry tomatoes (frozen works; canned or regular tomatoes also fine)
- 1 turnip
- 2 leaves napa cabbage
- ½ carrot
- 1 potato
- 1 clove garlic (3–4 g, minced)
- 1 chili (deseeded)
- 1 sprig rosemary (about 10 cm)
- 1 tablespoon shio koji (or more, to taste)
Instructions
Prep
- Cut the vegetables into bite-sized pieces and place them in a pot.If using frozen cherry tomatoes, add them whole. Once softened, crush them with a spatula.150 g cherry tomatoes1 turnip2 leaves napa cabbage½ carrot1 potato
- Add the minced garlic, deseeded chili, rosemary, chickpeas, and cooking liquid.75 g cooked chickpeas1 clove garlic1 chili1 sprig rosemary500 ml chickpea cooking liquid
Simmer
- Bring to a boil over medium heat, then reduce to low and simmer until the vegetables are tender.
- Add shio koji to taste and adjust seasoning before serving.1 tablespoon shio koji
Notes
- If the tomatoes lack sweetness, add a small pinch of sugar at the end to balance the sweetness.
- To reduce the heat, use less chili — or leave it out entirely.
- If using salted canned chickpeas, start with less shio koji and adjust gradually.
If this recipe made its way into your kitchen, and you'd like to share that moment, feel free to tag @veginveganvegun or use #vegin_vegan_vegun.
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