Have you ever thought about making a soup with a yogurt base? The magic of this special soup, called fatteh, lies in the combination of soft, tender chickpeas and the tanginess of velvety yogurt.
In this recipe, it's very important to use goat yogurt—not only because I find it tastier, but mainly because it's the only type that doesn’t break apart during cooking.
Fatteh with Yogurt and Chickpeas
Recipe by: Orly Peli-Bronshtein, Walla Food
20 minutes prep time | 120 minutes total time | Easy to make | Serves 6
Ingredients
For the soup:
1 cup chickpeas
½ cup medium or coarse bulgur, soaked for 15 minutes in hot water and drained
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 liter goat yogurt
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 tablespoon dried mint
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 green chili pepper, chopped
1 teaspoon sumac
For serving:
2 pita breads, halved and cut into triangles
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon za'atar, oregano, or dried mint
Coarse salt
Preparation - How to make fatteh – warm yogurt soup?
1. Soak the chickpeas in plenty of water with baking soda for 12 hours. Change the water two to three times during this period. Drain and rub the chickpeas with your hands and/or a towel to remove the skins.
2. Place the chickpeas in a pot with plenty of water and cook for 1.5 to 2 hours until very soft.
3. Meanwhile, prepare the pita chips: Preheat the oven to 180°C (356°F). Mix the oil with the spices, brush the pita triangles with the mixture, and bake for 10 minutes until golden.
4. Prepare the soup: Heat the yogurt with garlic, mint, salt, and pepper in a small pot over low heat. The yogurt should not boil too much, just warm up. Add the bulgur, stir, taste, and adjust seasoning if needed.
5. Heat the chickpeas in a hot pan with olive oil and season with salt, pepper, sumac, and chili.
6. Pour the warm yogurt into bowls and top with two tablespoons of warm chickpeas. Serve immediately with the toasted pita chips.
Tip 1: If using cow’s milk yogurt, thicken it with 2 tablespoons of cornstarch diluted in water while cooking to prevent it from breaking apart.
Tip 2: It’s a good idea to keep a pantry stocked with soaked and cooked legumes (beans, chickpeas, fava beans) in the freezer for convenient use. It’s much more economical to buy them dried rather than canned or frozen.
Orly Peli-Bronshtein, in collaboration with Sugat