Andalusian Easter soup (chickpea, spinach and cod soup)

Following the tradition, this is a meatless Easter soup. Its main ingredients are chickpeas, spinach, cod and hard-boiled egg. This recipe should be on our menu all year long, since in addition to being delicious, it is low in calories and satiating, as well as being an excellent source of protein.

The process consists of 6 simple steps, some of which are carried out simultaneously.

Step 1: Start by leaving the chickpeas to soak the day before. Take care to place them in a sufficiently large container, since these legumes can double their size when hydrated. Add a little salt, baking soda, or baking powder to the water. This will allow the chickpeas to become more tender.

Step 2: The next day, first prepare a fish stock. To do this, use pieces of fish (fins, head, bones, etc.) with available vegetables (onion, garlic, carrot, celery, etc.). Cover with water and bring to a boil. Remove any impurities that appear on the surface. Boil over moderate heat for about 20 minutes.

We will need approximately 3 parts of stock for the amount of available chickpeas.

Step 3: Drain the chickpeas and rinse them in cold water. Add them to a large pot together with the stock and cook over moderate heat, taking care that the chickpeas are always covered during cooking, and that the temperature of the liquid does not drop.

Step 4: Prepare a sofrito: heat a little extra virgin olive oil in a saucepan and stir-fry the onion and garlic over moderate heat. Add the tomato (peeled and crushed) and paprika. Stir from time to time, to prevent that the sofrito sticks to the pan or burns. When the vegetables have taken color, mash them (additionally strain them, if you want a more velvety soup with no lumps) and add them to the cooking broth.

Step 5: Boil the eggs separately for 10 minutes. When they have tempered, peel and reserve.

Step 6: Wash the spinach and crumble the cod. When the chickpeas are done (depending on the type and quality it can take up to two hours) add the spinach and cod. Boil for an additional minute, turn off the heat, and let stand with the lid on. The residual heat will finish cooking the fish.

Season with salt and pepper and serve with a little chopped egg on top (or cut into halves, as in the photo).

Tips and tricks:

1. The recipe reaches its maximum flavor when using fish fumet. If you don’t have any, cook the chickpeas in warm water and add some vegetables to the broth, in order to flavor it.
2. It’s very important to observe some rules for the correct cooking of the chickpeas: discard the soaking water, cook them with warm and not cold water, take care that they are always covered during cooking and if you need to add more water, boil it beforehand. When the cooking liquid drops in temperature, the chickpeas “get stuck” (that is, they harden and there will be no way for them to remain tender).
3. For a vegan version, simply skip the fish and egg and use vegetable broth. The stew is equally delicious. In this way, however, the recipe loses a good part of its protein contribution.
4. The amount of spinach may seem excessive, but keep in mind that it will reduce reduced when cooked.
5. Any part of the cod can be used (you may want to reserve the fillets for another recipe). It is desirable above all that the fish is added without skin to the soup.
6. It’s not a “traditional” advice, but on occasions when I didn’t have cod at home, I’ve used prawns and the result was excellent.