Revithada Express
Ρεβιθάδα·(reh-vee-thah-dah)
Nistisima (The Fasting Table)
The secret to revithada is the starch. On a Saturday night in Sifnos, you will see grandmothers walking to the village bakery carrying unglazed clay pots sealed with dough. Inside is Revithada—a humble, slow-baked braise of chickpeas, mountains of onions, and olive oil. By Sunday morning, the beans yield a thick broth that coats the back of a wooden spoon. But you live in an American suburb, it is Tuesday, and you do not have a village oven. This express version uses two cans of chickpeas and a heavy Dutch oven to cheat time, yielding that exact same rich, lemon-laced broth. The oil pools at the edges of the bowl, and the bread takes care of the rest.
Before you start
Soak the chickpeas in saltwater overnight.
Dissolve the kosher salt in plenty of cold water, cover the dried chickpeas by at least three inches, and let them sit for 10 to 12 hours. Skip the baking soda—salt tenderizes the skins perfectly without destroying the vitamins or making them taste like chemicals.
Rub the skins off the chickpeas.
Drain the soaked beans, place them on a clean kitchen towel, and rub them vigorously back and forth. Rinse in a bowl of water, skimming off and discarding the loose, translucent skins that float to the top so the natural starches can thicken the broth.
Ingredients
- dried chickpeas1 lb
- kosher salt1 tbsp
- extra virgin olive oil1/2 cup
- yellow onions3 med
- bay leaves3 med
- dried oregano1 tsp
- water6 cup
- lemons2 large
- black pepper1 tsp
Method
- 01
Build the flavor base in your pressure cooker.
Set the cooker to sauté, add two tablespoons of the olive oil and the chopped onions, and cook until translucent and sweet. Add the peeled chickpeas, bay leaves, oregano, a pinch of pepper, and the water.
- 02
Cook under high pressure.
Lock the lid and cook on high pressure for 35 minutes, then let the pressure release naturally.
- 03
Execute the blender hack.
Open the pot and discard the bay leaves. Scoop out two ladles of the cooked chickpeas and broth, toss them into a blender with the lemon juice and three tablespoons of raw olive oil, and blend until completely smooth and creamy.
- 04
Emulsify and season.
Pour the golden puree back into the main pot and stir gently, watching the watery broth instantly transform into a rich, velvety stew. Taste, aggressively adjust the salt and pepper, and serve in deep bowls with an extra drizzle of good oil.
Notes
Do not skimp on the olive oil.
This is a ladero (an oil-cooked dish). The generous pour of extra virgin olive oil is not a garnish; it is a structural ingredient that emulsifies with the chickpea starch to create the soup's signature body.
Stovetop alternative.
If you do not have a pressure cooker, boil the stew in a standard pot for ten minutes, skim the foam, cover, and simmer on low for one and a half to two hours until the chickpeas are meltingly tender, then proceed with the blender hack.
From Cook Greek in America.