Lablabi
A Tunisian chickpea soup with real working-class, market-stall roots, its name likely borrowed from the Turkish 'leblebi' during the Ottoman era. The dish is built entirely around using up stale, day-old bread — torn into a bowl and soaked with the hot cumin-and-garlic chickpea broth — which is the actual heart of the dish, not a garnish. Serving the chickpeas as a standalone soup without the bread-soaking step is a common but inauthentic shortcut.
Vegetarian-optional
⚠ Contains: Egg, Gluten, Fish. Always check your own ingredients — this isn't a guarantee for severe allergies.
Ingredients
- 2 cups dried chickpeas, soaked overnight (or 2 cans chickpeas)
- 4 cloves garlic
- 1 tbsp ground cumin
- Stale, day-old crusty bread
- 2 tbsp harissa paste
- Olive oil
- 4 eggs
- Capers, black olives, canned tuna (optional)
- Lemon, salt
Steps
- Simmer the soaked chickpeas in water with garlic and cumin for 1-1.5 hours until tender (or heat canned chickpeas in their broth).
- Tear the stale bread into serving bowls.
- Ladle the hot chickpeas and broth over the bread to soften it.
- Top each bowl with a poached or soft-boiled egg, a spoonful of harissa, and a drizzle of olive oil.
- Finish with capers, olives, or tuna if using, and a squeeze of lemon.