Originally published June 1, 2012. Updated on 6/22/2022
As usual, this requires some serious planning.
As I'm currently working on two cookbooks - neither one of which are particularly healthy - I need to weed through the recipes, decide what CAN fit in with the next month's diet.
We decide on a meal plan, go grocery shopping, and plan for things like "What's a healthy alternative when I am seriously craving sugar?" (Dried fruit, btw).
Roasted Chickpeas
As we tend to get "snacky" in the evening, we have a few healthy snack options that we go to:
Easy Smooth Hummus
Kale Chips / Roasted Beet Green Chips
Tart Cherry & Apple Cider Vinegar Gummies
.... and this crunchy roasted chickpeas recipe.
As salty snack options go, the kale takes the place of potato chips, and we look at the roasted chickpeas as a substitute for popcorn.
Not only is this a really tasty snack, these crispy chickpeas have a really great nutrition profile: Fairly low calorie, has some protein and fiber, and the only fat comes from the olive oil.
It's also quite filling, which goes a long way to taking the edge off hunger. We love this - and will polish off a whole batch of seasoned chickpeas without missing a beat - even when not dieting!
Ingredients
This recipe uses very basic ingredients, that you can get at any grocery store:
- Canned Chickpeas / Garbanzo Beans
- Olive Oil
- Salt (Kosher salt, a little sea salt, whatever)
- Seasonings
Canned chick peas are a great source of plant protein, cheap, and really easy to work with.
Theoretically, you could soak and cook dried chickpeas, but that’s way more work than I’d be willing to put into this, when canned is so accessible!
This is kind of a non-recipe recipe, and your serving size is going to vary based on your own tastes.
For us, we’ll usually consider a can - an entire batch - “2 servings”. That said, we’ll ALSO usually put on 2 cans of chickpeas at a time, and they all mysteriously disappear in a few minutes.
If you’re using this recipe as a salad topper, a can will make more like 4-6 servings.
Flavouring Your Roasted Garbanzo Beans
This is a very simple recipe - all you *really* need are the canned chickpeas, oil, and salt... but there are so many delicious ways to flavour them up!
Olive Oil
This recipe works really well with flavored/ Infused Olive Oils, which are an easy way to up the flavour in your roasted chickpeas.
Our favourite flavours are:
Garlic Infused Olive Oil
Basil Infused Olive Oil
Chili Infused Olive Oil
... and we’ll use them as a base, adding additional seasonings to the chickpeas.
Seasonings
Mix it up a bit by using other herbs and/or spices, alone or in combination. In addition to salt, here are a few ideas for different ways to season it:
Curry Powder is great, alone or with Chili Powder, Turmeric Powder, Ground Ginger, and/or Cayenne Pepper.
Go southwest with some Ground Cumin and Chili Powder or Hatch Chile Powder.
Cardamom, Fennel Seeds, Ground Cinnamon, Garlic Powder, and Chili Powder work together for a Moroccan type flair.
Our lazy go-to is Smoked Paprika, Garlic Powder, and Onion Powder. For spicy roasted chickpeas, we’ll add some Smoked Serrano Powder to the mix.
Try Taco Seasoning, Cayenne Pepper , Smoked Paprika, Smoked Serrano Powder, Smoked Sea Salt, Dill Weed, Dried Basil, Dried Oregano, Everything Bagel Seasoning, Italian Seasoning … anything you’d like!
Even Dried Lemon Zest or Lime Zest can be fantastic, alone or in combo with herbs and spices.
How to Make Roasted Chickpeas
This is a pictorial overview, see the recipe card at the end of this post for amounts and nutritional information.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F, Line a baking sheet with parchment paper
Drain a can of chickpeas well – shake the strainer a few times to get rid of any extra water.
I like to use a layer of paper towels - or a clean kitchen towel - to roll that beans around on the pan, removing as much moisture as possible – this will result in a crispier final product.
You can also do this in a medium bowl - just manhandle them a bit, then pick out the loose skins. I don’t usually bother, personally!
Drizzle a bit of olive oil over the chickpeas – I use about 1 Tbsp. You can use a bit of cooking spray, if you prefer.
Sprinkle salt and pepper, and whatever seasonings you'd like over it all.
Stir it up a bit, to evenly coat the beans with olive oil and seasonings.
Spread the seasoned beans out in a single layer, ideally with a bit of space between them.
Remove from oven, stir well.
Return pan to the oven to roast for another 15-20 minutes, or until beans are as crunchy as you want them. Serve hot!
Leftovers
IF you have leftovers (we don’t unless we’re making a huge triple batch), you can let them cool to room temperature and store them in an airtight container in the fridge.
They’re best reheated - a few minutes in an air fryer, and they taste freshly roasted!
More Snacky Recipes
Looking for something fun to munch on? I've got some fantastic recipes for you!
Cactus Cut Potatoes & Dip
Canadian Popcorn Seasonings
Clodhoppers
Dill Pickle Cream Cheese Dip
Dill Pickle Gummy Worms
Dill Pickle Waffle Fries
"Everything" Honey Glazed Cashews
Game Day Fruity Glazed Popcorn
Ginger Wasabi Dip
Honey Jeow Glazed Cashews
Hot Cheeseburger Dip
Jalapeno Beer Peanut Brittle
Maple White Cheddar Popcorn
Moroccan Twist Salted Caramel Popcorn
Porter House Guacamole
Porter's Epic Popcorn
Queso Dip from Scratch
Smoked French Fries
Sweet Heat Salted Caramel Popcorn
Share the Love!
Before you chow down, be sure to take some pics of your handiwork for social media! If you Instagram it, be sure to tag me - @CelebrationGenerationCA - or post it to My Facebook Page - so I can cheer you on!
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Finally, if you love this recipe, please consider leaving a star rating and/or a comment below!
Roasted Chickpeas
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 Large Can Chickpeas / Garbanzo Beans
- Olive Oil
- Salt
- Pepper
- Seasonings Garlic Powder, Onion Powder, Smoked Paprika, etc
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 F, Line a baking sheet with parchment paper
- Drain chickpeas well – shake the strainer a few times to get rid of any extra water.
- Transfer chickpeas to a clean baking sheet. I like to use a few sheets of paper towel to roll that beans around on the pan, removing as much remaining surface moisture as possible – this will result in a crispier final product.
- Drizzle a bit of olive oil over the chickpeas – I use about 1 Tbsp.
- Sprinkle salt and pepper, and whatever seasonings you'd like* over it all.
- Stir it up a bit, to evenly coat the beans with olive oil and seasonings.
- Roast for about 15 minutes. Remove from oven, stir well. Return pan to the oven to roast for another 15-20 minutes, or until beans are as crunchy as you want them. Serve hot!
NailaJ
I am SO going to try this! Maybe even this weekend!!