Swiss Chard and Potato Soup with Chickpeas

Finding nourishment and comfort in a warm delicious bowl of soup is a feeling as old as time. This budget friendly and easy recipe for Swiss Chard and Potato Soup with Chickpeas certainly elicits all those warm and fuzzy, feel good emotions!

My Swiss Chard and Potato Soup with Chickpeas is actually very similar to the traditional -Portuguese Sausage and Kale Soup, but with a plant based twist.

I was inspired to use Swiss Chard on a recent visit to our local organic farm, The Hickories. My friend Grace invited me on a trip with her to collaborate on a meal together using farm fresh ingredients. Now Grace isn’t just ANY friend, she is a fellow foodie, who co-founded with her husband Ed the company PIY. PIY stands for “pizza it yourself”, and they have created a flexible subscription based pizza delivery service that allows you to turn your own home into an actual pizzeria, by providing you with all the ready to go ingredients and tools needed to make fresh and delicious pizzas at home! It’s brilliant and I love their pizzas, so of course I jumped at the chance to get my hands on one of their slices!

She and I went to the farm together, and we made a little video about the trip! I can’t wait to share, it’s in the editing phase at the moment! While we were there we shopped and put together a menu for a beautiful al fresco dinner on a crisp, clear autumn evening. She collected fresh organic tomatoes for a Caprese Pizza and I was keen on using the hearty, fresh harvest of white and red Swiss Chard, small potatoes, garlic, onion, and a small chili pepper.

I used my Instant Pot, once again, to make this recipe- but you could certainly make it on the stovetop or in a crock pot if that better suited you. I will provide the recipe adjustments for the below in the printable recipe card at the bottom of the page. What I love the most about using an Instant Pot when cooking with dried beans or legumes is that there is NO PRESOAKING required! My friends, that’s huge! It cuts hours of waiting out the the process and gives you the allowance to be a little spontaneous!

To make this Swiss Chard and Potato Soup with Chick Peas, I sauteed diced cubes of pancetta in the Instant Pot to render the flavorful fat and brown the meat. Then I deglazed the pot with a splash of white wine, being sure to scrape the brown bits from the bottom. Adding this small amount of meat and wine, really adds another dimension of flavor to the broth, I do recommend- however if you are vegetarian or vegan, feel free to omit to suit your personal dietary needs.

Next turn the saute’ feature off, add all remaining ingredients: chopped onion, garlic cloves, prepared Swiss chard, diced potatoes, rinsed chick peas, chicken stock, water, green chili, salt and pepper. Secure lid, seal vent, and press “Soup” button which will auto set the soup to cook for 32 minutes on high pressure. So simple. When timer went off, I let it naturally release because I wasn’t in a rush to serve. But if YOU were pressed for time, manually releasing the pressure would be fine too. Follow the safety instructions when doing so!

As I mentioned before, Grace and I enjoyed this lovely soup and pizza dinner with a couple of glasses of an organic Verdejo and it was heaven!

Swiss Chard and Potato Soup with Chick Peas

Brenda Lanzilli

Finding nourishment and comfort in a warm delicious bowl of soup is a feeling as old as time. This budget friendly and easy recipe for Swiss Chard and Potato Soup with Chickpeas certainly elicits all those warm and fuzzy, feel good emotions!

5 from 2 votes

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Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 32 minutes mins

Course Soup

Servings 8 people

Calories 262 kcal

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• 4 oz pancetta small diced
• ½ cup white wine dry
• 2 bunches Swiss Chard stems removed, rinsed and roughly chopped or torn
• 1 cup dried chickpeas rinsed
• 1 yellow onion diced
• 3 cloves garlic minced
• 1 lb yukon gold or red potatoes scrubbed and diced
• 1 hot pepper, small seeded and diced
• 4 cups chicken stock or vegetable stock
• 2 cups water
• 1 tsp salt
• ½ tsp black pepper

Instructions

 

• Saute diced pancetta with 1 tsp of olive oil in Instant Pot for about 5 mintues until pancetta is crunchy and brown. Deglaze with ½ cup of dry white wine, using non-metal spoon to scrape bottom of pan and remove all the brown bits.
• Turn saute off and add all remaining ingredients. Seal lid and set to "Soup" which is 32 minutes on high pressure.
• Let naturally release or quick manual release.
• Serve with salt and pepper to taste, a drizzle of EVOO, and fresh grated parmesan cheese.

Notes

• Nutrition Facts are estimates

Adjustments if not using Instant Pot:

For Crock Pot: Saute’ pancetta in skillet separately, deglaze with white wine removing brown bits from bottom, add to crock pot.  You will need to use 1 cup presoaked (overnight) dried chickpeas OR 1 can of chickpeas. Place all ingredients in crock pot and set on low for 5-6 hours or high for 3 hours. 

For Stove Top: Saute’ pancetta, deglaze with wine. Saute’ onions, pepper, and garlic. Add , Swiss chard, potatoes, salt and pepper, 1 can of chickpeas or  1 cup presoaked (overnight) dried chickpeas, and chicken stock + water. Bring to boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 1.5 hours. 

Nutrition

Serving: 6ozCalories: 262kcalCarbohydrates: 32gProtein: 13gFat: 9gSaturated Fat: 2gCholesterol: 13mgSodium: 733mgPotassium: 945mgFiber: 7gSugar: 6gVitamin A: 4657IUVitamin C: 40mgCalcium: 94mgIron: 5mg

Keyword budget friendly meals, chickpeas, crock pot recipes, fall recipes, family friendly, instant pot, pancetta, potatoes, soup, swiss chard, swiss chard potato chick pea soup, weeknight dinner, weeknight meals, winter recipes

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If you like this recipe try my : INSTANT POT SPLIT PEA SOUP WITH FARRO GRAINS or THE COZIEST CHICKEN NOODLE SOUP