Chorba Beida (Chicken and Chickpea Soup)

By Nargisse Benkabbou

Updated March 17, 2026

  • Armando Rafael for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Cyd Raftus McDowell.
Media 1 of 1
Ready In
1 hr
Rating
5(83)
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Across North Africa, chorba simply means soup; a comforting broth built from meat or poultry, legumes and warm spices. This version, chorba beida (literally “white soup” in Arabic), comes from Algiers, Algeria, and stands out for its delicate balance of flavors. A mix of egg yolk and lemon juice stirred in at the end gives the broth its soft, tangy character and pale, creamy color. It’s a simple combination of chicken, onion, chickpeas and a touch of cinnamon, but it tastes like much more than the sum of its parts. Light yet deeply satisfying, it’s the kind of soup that brings comfort any time of year, especially with bread or dates on the side to round out the meal.

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Ingredients

Yield:4 to 6 servings

  • 2 tablespoons olive oil

  • 1 ½ tablespoons unsalted butter

  • 1 large yellow onion, chopped

  • ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon

  • ¾ teaspoon fine sea salt, plus more to taste

  • ½ teaspoon ground black pepper

  • 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs or breasts

  • 4 cups chicken or vegetable stock

  • 1 (14-ounce) can chickpeas, rinsed and drained

  • 2 ounces dried spaghetti, broken into 2-inch pieces, or vermicelli (about ¾ cup)

  • 3 tablespoons lemon juice

  • 3 tablespoons finely chopped flat-leaf parsley, plus extra for garnish 

  • 1 egg yolk

Ingredient Substitution Guide

Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Heat the olive oil and butter in a large pot over medium-low heat. Add the onions, cover the pan and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft and translucent, about 10 minutes. Add the cinnamon, salt and pepper, and cook until fragrant, about 2 minutes more. 

    1. Step 2

      Add the chicken and mix to coat with the onions and spices. Add the stock and 1 cup water, and bring to a boil over high heat. Cover the pot, reduce the heat to medium-low and leave to simmer gently until the chicken is cooked through, 17 to 23 minutes, depending on the thickness of your chicken pieces.

    1. Step 3

      Use tongs or a slotted spoon to remove the chicken from the pot and transfer to a cutting board; set aside. Bring the stock back to a boil over medium-high heat, add the chickpeas and pasta, and cook for 10 to 12 minutes, or according to the pasta package instructions, until pasta is tender.

    1. Step 4

      Meanwhile, use two forks to shred the cooled chicken into bite-size pieces, or slice with a knife. 

    1. Step 5

      In a medium bowl, combine the lemon juice, parsley and egg yolk, and mix with a fork until blended. Scoop about ½ cup of the hot broth from the pot and slowly drizzle it into the egg yolk mixture while whisking vigorously. Set aside. 

    1. Step 6

      When the pasta is cooked, pour the egg yolk mixture into the pot and stir immediately to combine. Do not boil once the egg mixture is added; just stir gently to warm through.

    1. Step 7

      Return the chicken to the pot. Taste and adjust the seasoning, adding more salt and lemon juice if necessary. Serve the soup immediately, garnished with parsley.

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Ratings

5 out of 5
83 user ratings
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Comments

Kate88

I left out the cinnamon and swapped spinach for the pasta. Super delicious and I can see messing around with it in the next times

Anna NYC

Perfect as is, but also adaptable to your taste buds and what is in your pantry. Spaghetti is ideal, but I had elbows, and it was fine. I prefer nutmeg and cinnamon, which also works! The avgolemono touch was perfect, but I doubled the lemon juice. I'm Greek and we love our lemons. Also used rotisserie chicken with a heaping tablespoon of Chicken Better than Bouillon. Again, easily adaptable and excellent. Thank you Nargisse!

Sarah

Very tasty, although the chickpeas were a bit dominant. I added more lemon juice for tang, but wish I'd added even more.

Teresa

Did anyone else have all the liquid disappear when they went to reheat leftovers? I know it wasn’t a ton of liquid in the first place, but my soup suddenly became spaghetti! Should I add flavored chicken broth or such to the next reheat?

Ellie

Tasty soup that the whole family liked, and perfect for autumn. I didn’t have parsley so used spring onions, and also reduced the chickpeas and added cauliflower as another reviewer suggested. It all worked well. Next time I’ll add a bit more cinnamon as that flavour was a bit too subtle for me.

Karen

Very nice. I reduces salt to 1.25 tsp; it was plenty. Used gluten-free chickpea pasta. Nice balance of flavors for such an easy soup. Husband and his caregiver both give it a thumbs up. I might play with it in future: fennel? spinach? Why not!

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