Turkish Yoghurt Soup with Chicken, Chickpeas and Rice

Ingredients:
250ml water
125ml basmati rice
1 L chicken stock or canned low-sodium broth
500g skinless, boneless chicken thighs, cut into 1-inch pieces
250ml full-fat plain yogurt
1 large egg yolk
30ml all-purpose flour
One 410g can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
15ml extra-virgin olive oil
Salt and freshly ground pepper
30gunsalted butter
10ml minced garlic
10ml sweet paprika
2.5ml ground cumin
1ml cayenne pepper
50ml finely chopped mint
Lemon wedges, for serving

Method:

Bring the water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Add the rice, cover and cook over low heat until barely tender, about 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan, bring the stock to a simmer over moderately high heat. Add the chicken and simmer until cooked through, about 10 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the chicken to a plate. Skim any fat from the surface of the stock.

In a large saucepan, whisk the yoghurt with the egg yolk and flour. Whisk in the stock and bring to a simmer over low heat, whisking occasionally. 

Using a stick blender, purée some of the chickpeas, rice and chicken. Stir this purée into the stock and yoghurt mixture until thoroughly blended, then stir in the rest of the chickpeas, rice and reserved chicken. Season with salt and pepper and keep warm over low heat. Do not boil!

Melt the butter in a small skillet. Add the garlic, paprika, ground cumin and cayenne and cook for about 2 minutes over moderate heat until fragrant. Ladle the soup into bowls and swirl in the garlic spice butter. Sprinkle with chopped mint and serve with lemon wedges.