How to cook chickpeas | Good Food

You can buy chickpeas both dried and pre-cooked in cans. Dried chickpeas are available in different sizes and can be variable in quality while large castellano garbanzos are grown in Southern Spain. Garbanzo de Fuentesauco, also from Spain, carry a PGI status (Protected Geographical Indication).

Canned or jarred chickpeas just need to be reheated if you are eating them in a hot dish, or can be used straight from the can for a recipe like hummus. Like dried chickpeas, they vary in quality and size, as do some of the jarred varieties from Spain.

Buying canned chickpeas will also give you aqua faba, or chickpea water, which can be used to make vegan meringues. Like other pulses, chickpeas can also be a budget food, especially if you buy them dried and cook them yourself. Home-cooked chickpeas can be frozen for later use.

How to cook dried chickpeas

Dried chickpeas generally need to be soaked before cooking as they are very hard. Depending on where you buy your chickpeas from, you may need to sort through them first and remove any stones or discoloured ones.

Slow soaking dried chickpeas

Tip them into a bowl and cover with cold water, and use plenty of water as they will swell as they soak. Leave overnight or for 8-12 hours to absorb water and swell. Adding bicarbonate of soda can help the soaking process, especially if you live in a hard water area. It will soften the skins and, if you are making hummus, give a lighter, smoother result. Use 1 tbsp per 500g dried chickpeas.

Quick soaking dried chickpeas

Tip your chickpeas into a saucepan and cover them with lots of cold water, bring to a boil (again add bicarbonate of soda, if you like) and then boil for 1 minute. Turn off the heat and leave to soak for 1 hour.

Stove top cooking dried chickpeas

How long your chickpeas will take to cook will depend on how long they have been dried and stored for.

Drain your soaked chickpeas and tip them into a pan.
Add cold water until you have twice the volume of the chickpeas.
Bring the water to a boil, then turn the heat down and simmer the chickpeas for 45 mins (if you are going to cook them further in another dish) or up to 1 hour. Taste to see if they are tender. If not, continue cooking, checking the tenderness every 10 mins. Drain.

If you want to cook a whole bag at a time and freeze them in batches then cool them first. They will freeze for up to a month or keep in the fridge for up to three days.

Instant pot or pressure-cooking dried chickpeas

Chickpeas can be cooked from dry or pre-soaked in a pressure cooker. If you soak them for 12 hours, then they will cook in minutes, but you can also skip the soaking altogether. Chickpeas can be pressure-cooked from dry in 40 minutes, plus the time it takes for the pressure to rise and fall.

Spinach falafel bowl with hummus and veg

Dried chickpeas recipe

Depending on their final use, you can add flavour to the cooking water such as garlic, bay leaves, cinnamon sticks and chilli.

500g dried chickpeas
1 tbsp bicarbonate of soda (optional)

Tip the chickpeas into a bowl and sort through them. Throw away any discoloured ones.
Cover with cold water, add the bicarbonate of soda, if using, and leave to soak for 8-12 hrs.
Drain the chickpeas and tip into a saucepan.
Add cold water to come to about 8-10 cm above the chickpeas and bring to a boil.
Turn down the heat and simmer for 45 mins – 1 hr, or until the chickpeas are tender. Drain well.

Canned chickpeas recipe

1 tbsp olive oil
1 garlic clove, crushed
400g can chickpeas, drained
chopped parsley, optional

Heat the oil in a pan and add the garlic.
Cook for 1 min, then stir in the chickpeas.
Season well and heat gently, stirring, until all the chickpeas are hot.
Stir in the chopped parsley, if you like.

Cooking dried chickpeas vs canned chickpeas

Cooking dried chickpeas takes longer than pre-cooked however you will have more control over the cooking process, flavour and texture of your chickpeas. You can buy dried chickpeas in bulk and they will last indefinitely if kept in a sealed container, however tinned chickpeas are easier if you want something quick on the go as they don’t need any additional cooking. Tinned chickpeas may have added salt and preservatives, so make sure to read the label.

What to do with cooked chickpeas

Oven cooking

You can roast pre-cooked chickpeas in the oven to make a crisp snack or to sprinkle over a salad or other savoury dish like these crispy chickpeas.

Skin the chickpeas to make super silky hummus

If you have ever eaten a very smooth hummus, then it’s likely that the cooked chickpeas were skinned. Chickpeas have a thin skin that can easily be slipped off if you have the time or inclination.