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Party Recipe: Spicy Oven-Roasted Chickpeas

2008_02_22-Chickpeas.jpg

Did you know that a can of chickpeas and a little salt and spice can make a crunchy, terribly addictive snack? It's so easy! Here's how...

 
 

When you roast chickpeas they shrivel up just a little into dry and crunchy globes. They're like wasabi peas - tiny, easy to eat, and addictive. We shake salt and garam masala over ours.

We just discovered this little technique, but it's quite popular - you can find many recipes on the internet for roasted and fried chickpeas. Here's how we do it. Have you ever tried this, and how do you make them?

Spicy Oven-Roasted Chickpeas
about 2 cups

1 15 ounce can organic chickpeas
1 tablespoon of olive oil
1 tablespoon chunky sea salt
2 teaspoons spice like garam masala

Heat the oven 400°F. Pour the chickpeas into a colander and drain and rinse very well under running water. Pat dry.

Toss the chickpeas with the olive oil and spread out on a large cookie sheet. Roast for 30-40 minutes or until brown and crispy. Turn and stir every ten minutes so they don't burn.

Take out and toss to taste with salt and spices.

Tags

Rice & Grains, Hors d'oeuvres, Healthy, Vegetarian, Middle Eastern, Vegan, snack, chickpeas

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Comments (23)

oh, thank you! i had these at a restaurant in SF recently, and loved them - definitely want to make them at home now.

posted by bokeh on February 23rd 2008 at 11:42am
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what size can of chickpeas?

posted by sillyLN on February 23rd 2008 at 12:07pm
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That looks wonderful--reminds me of kale chips, another vaguely healthy alternative to store-bought junk food, even with the salt and oil. I think I know what I'm making for our next movie night.

posted by Leslie in Portland on February 23rd 2008 at 12:29pm
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I saw this on Martha Stewart's site today. :)

posted by Marbargarbo on February 23rd 2008 at 4:36pm
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ooh my goodness, these looks delicious! i will def. have to try to make these tomorrow. hopefully i can find garam masala here at a local international food/grocery store.

posted by aspw on February 23rd 2008 at 5:23pm
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Nice looking recipe but take care, there is a recall going on for botulism in canned garbonzo beans.


http://www.fda.gov/oc/opacom/hottopics/newera.html

posted by listener on February 24th 2008 at 6:43am
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Just a 15-ounce can - updated the recipe. Thanks.

posted by faith on February 24th 2008 at 7:40am
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You can buy something similar from Middle Eastern stores.

posted by kaanswfm on February 24th 2008 at 3:25pm
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Listener, I don't think that most of us are using the 6 pound cans so no worries about the recall.

posted by sally599 on February 25th 2008 at 7:16am
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I make these with a little salt, pepper, olive oil and nutritional yeast. Friends got my husband and I into nutritional yeast as a great topping for popcorn... with a little butter too, if you please. The yeast gives it a slight cheesy flavor, that really works well with the chickpeas. I buy the Red Star brand of nutritional yeast from a local health food store, and I think bigger stores like Whole Foods sell it too.

posted by thesamanthafiles on February 25th 2008 at 11:15am
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just curious...why do you toss with spices after roasting as opposed to before? wouldn't pre-spicing lead to a deeper flavor?

posted by carignane on February 26th 2008 at 10:42am
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carignane, it depends on the spices, I suppose. This is a long roasting time - I would be concerned that the spices would burn.

I make my garam masala with spices that I toast deeply first, before grinding, so it's already a dark flavor.

Try it both ways, though, and tell us how it turns out!

posted by faith on February 26th 2008 at 10:50am
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This is really good! My mom makes this, but hers is a spicier version...being Indian and all, we can't eat anything that isn't spiced to the max! We also do this with daal (lentils), it's all really addictive.

posted by rehreh_13 on February 28th 2008 at 5:53am
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Mine did not work out :(. I was so excited to try them. i was trying to get the dark popped look in the pic and it took me almost 2 hrs baking at 350 degrees toward the end i put the oven at 400! They were still soft inside but i just didn't love them. I did use a differnt spice blend but i still thought it would be ok as i have seen differnt spice mixes out there. I don't think i will try this again.

posted by luv2cook on March 2nd 2008 at 3:23pm
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I just tried these and the problem I had was that after roasting, the salt and spices (mostly the kosher salt) didn't really stick. It just ended up in the bottom of the bowl. I think I'd do that salt with the oil at the start of roasting and only the spice at the end.

I roasted for 40 mins at 400° F and the outside was sort of crunchy, while the inside was still soft. Quite snacky and moreish, but not what I expected from the description.

Also, one can doesn't make very much. A tiny bowl at most I'd do at least 2 cans (if not 4) if you're having people over.

posted by angorian on March 21st 2008 at 7:36am
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Can you use dry chickpeas that have soaked over night? I'm trying to just use up what I have, and so I did put some on to soak last night. I tried to find some at the store, but I think they hide them on me!

posted by Melissa A. on March 29th 2008 at 11:06am
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Question:

I cannot tolerate verrrry spicy stuff and i'm not sure how available garam masala is in my area- so what do you think would be a good substitute? thanks

posted by bmorre on March 30th 2008 at 10:18am
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For those who are getting soft chickpeas, be sure to dry the peas very well. If they're soft in the center, moisture is getting trapped inside. It also helps to rub off some of the translucent shells. I rinse, drain, put them on a paper towel, rub them, put them in a bowl then rub them with another paper towel. I remove the shells as they come off.

This will result in crunchy chickpeas when roasted at 400 degrees for about 40 minutes, though I think it works better with a metal cookie sheet. I used ceramic, but covered it with foil. They came out very crunchy.

posted by Orchid64 on December 14th 2008 at 7:00am
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luv2cook, try the higher temp. the higher temp is essential to the crispy chickpea, as well as crispy roast cauliflower. if it would work at a lower temp, the recipe would say so. I have found the best results to be roasting at 425, but this may vary by oven. I also recommend roasting with the salt instead of adding later. Garlic infused olive oil is my favorite way to flavor them!

posted by mouserkt on February 23rd 2009 at 5:54pm
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bmorre: you can blend your own garam masala in a combo you like. The ones I've had have no chile and aren't spicy at all. I would include at least black pepper, cinnamon, corriander, fennel (or anise) and a little cloves, although many spices may be included.

http://allrecipes.com/HowTo/Garam-Masala/detail.aspx

posted by whytephoenix on May 4th 2009 at 10:11am
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I was looking for a good snack, and a way to eat Chick Peas, thank you!!! These are quite tasty and now I can eat chick peas too, my mom will be so proud, lol.

posted by MiseInPlaceGirl on May 4th 2009 at 5:33pm
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I made mine using the oven setting on my toaster oven. 1 can fit perfectly on the tray.

posted by thescientist on June 7th 2009 at 8:02pm
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i ran the rinsed chickpeas through the salad spinner a few times to get them nice and dry. i also added the olive oil and ground, untoasted garam masala before putting the chickpeas in the oven. i compared this recipe with martha stewart's. she makes her chickpeas in the microwave and says they come out very crispy.

posted by pedalpowered on October 19th 2009 at 11:16am
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