How To Make CHICKPEAS Taste AMAZING (6 methods)

Canned chickpeas are one of the greatest modern convenience foods. They're inexpensive, filling, and super nutritious. There is just one problem though. If you serve them straight out of the can, they're actually very, very boring. So today I'm sharing 6 essential techniques that will make canned chickpeas taste 10 times better, no matter what recipe you're making. And we're going to get started with roasting. Switching from plain canned chickpeas to roasted chickpeas is one of the easiest ways to upgrade your salads and grain bowls. While the chickpeas roast, you can prepare the salad or bowl fixings, which makes it really efficient for weeknight meals. As with all of the recipes in today's video, we'll want to start off by draining and rinsing the chickpeas. Now, this part is really important. You want to make sure you dry off the chickpeas really well so that they can crisp up in the oven. You can either pat them dry with a clean dish towel, just don't smush them. Or to get them really dry, take them for a ride in your salad spinner a few times. Then just spread them out on a rimmed sheet pan and toss them with a bit of olive oil. 2-3 teaspoons for one can is good. Oh boy, not that much oil. Let's try that again. Season them with salt and a few rounds of black pepper and into the oven they go at 425 degrees Fahrenheit or 220 Celsius and put them in the top third of your oven. After 20 minutes, give the pan a shake to move them all around and roast for another 5-10 minutes until they've crisped up and are golden brown. I really love these as a crunchy, salty topper for a salad, but you can use them in lots of different ways. For an even crunchier option, you can follow this exact same formula with one change. After draining, rinsing, and drying the chickpeas, pulse them a few times in your food processor until most of them are in small crumbles. By turning them into small crumbles, you're increasing the surface area so the chickpeas get even crispier. Otherwise, the steps are pretty much the same. Olive oil, salt, pepper, roast for 20 minutes, toss them around, and roast for another 10 minutes or so until they're golden and crisp. These crumbles are even a little crunchier than the whole roasted chickpeas, and I love using them on salads as a protein-rich alternative to croutons. Just shower them all on top and you get a little crunch in every bite. The next method I love to use for canned chickpeas is to pan fry them. This improves both their flavor and their texture, and it takes like 10 minutes from start to finish. Adding wet chickpeas to a hot pan is a recipe for a messy kitchen, so make sure you dry them off as much as possible to prevent any oil splatter. Heat up a saute pan or frying pan over medium-high heat. I like to use a stainless steel pan because the chickpeas brown really well, but you can also do this in a nonstick pan. Add in a tablespoon or so of olive oil, and once that's hot and shimmering, add your chickpeas and try to spread them out in a single layer. You will be tempted to stir these, but as the good book advises, do not give in to temptation. Instead, let these cook for at least 90 seconds or 2 minutes before you toss them. This is going to let them get nicely browned and even start to char in spots. We're not just warming up the chickpeas here, we're also changing the texture. After another 5 minutes or so of occasional stirring, these should be nicely golden brown and even blistered in spots. If you're using a nonstick pan, it will take longer for the chickpeas to get to this stage, so pay attention to how the chickpeas look, rather than the cook time suggested by your favorite YouTuber. We also need to add some flavor, so I'm going to season the chickpeas with some kosher salt and a few spices. Today, I'm using a mix of za'atar, onion powder, and garlic powder, but feel free to experiment and use your favorite spice blend. Toss the chickpeas to make sure they're well coated in the spices, and stir constantly for about 30 seconds to make sure the spices don't burn. These are so much better than plain canned chickpeas. They're rich and savory, and they took just 10 minutes to throw together. You can use them in a lot of different ways, I really like them in tacos and in pasta salad, and they make a fabulous topper for a hummus bowl. But don't you dare use store-bought hummus. It is easily the worst kind of hummus. The best hummus is made with dried chickpeas cooked from scratch, and I have a whole video on this topic. Hummus made with canned chickpeas may not be quite as good as that, but it is still 10 times better than the grocery store stuff. Canned chickpeas, however, are a bit too firm, so if you really want that smooth, luxurious texture in your hummus, simmer the chickpeas with a little bit of baking soda and some water for 20 minutes, or until the chickpeas are really soft and almost falling apart. Once drained, add them to a food processor and blend until you have a thick, smooth puree, scraping down the sides as you go. Now we need just a few more ingredients for our hummus, most importantly, tahini, which is a sesame seed paste used commonly throughout the Middle East. I like hummus with a lot of tahini, so it is very important that you choose a high-quality brand. If you use a cheap brand that tastes bitter, your hummus will, well, it'll taste cheap and bitter, so don't do that, trust me. Add in a generous amount of freshly squeezed lemon juice to help balance some of the bitterness of the tahini, and some garlic, chop it up first if you don't want big chunks of garlic in your hummus, a little bit of ground cumin, plus salt and pepper to season. Get your food processor going to start combining everything, and to make the hummus ultra-dreamy and creamy and smooth, we need one more ingredient, ice water. The exact amount will depend on how thick or loose you want your hummus to be. I like to add one tablespoon at a time until I get just the right consistency. Give everything a taste and see if it needs any more lemon juice, salt, garlic, or cumin. This batch needs a few more squeezes of lemon and a bit more salt. Once you're satisfied with the hummus, transfer it to a plate and make some very cool swirls in there, and top it off with a good quality olive oil, some Aleppo pepper or paprika, and some of those pan-fried za'atar chickpeas. This is so much better than store-bought hummus. It makes an amazing sharing plate if you have friends or family coming over, or if you just want a treat for yourself. Now I can say I like hummus. The next method I like to use to level up canned chickpeas is to marinate them. It is so simple and perfect for quick lunches. To start, I've got one shallot, which I'm finely chopping, and a couple of garlic cloves. Mince those finely or just use a grater like this. We're going to add some lovely flavor to the chickpeas with a handful of chopped fresh herbs. Today I'm using a mix of basil, mint, and flat-leaf parsley, but any soft herb you like will work. Add in a can of rinsed and dried chickpeas. And now to start our dressing, I'm adding in some pomegranate molasses. This is simply boiled down pomegranate juice, and it has the most amazing tart, slightly sweet flavor, and a really lovely syrupy consistency. If you don't have it, use your best quality vinegar, although it won't be the exact same. I like to also add some Aleppo pepper for a mild heat, and of course, some salt and black pepper. Now at this stage, you could just add some good quality olive oil and some lemon zest, and this would be tasty, but I'm going to show you how to take it to the next level with an infused olive oil that takes just a couple minutes. Start by lightly crushing some coriander seeds. If you have a mortar and pestle, use that, or you can MacGyver it like I am and just use the back of a sturdy mug or a rolling pin. Heat a bit of olive oil in a small frying pan over medium heat, and toast the coriander seeds for just 60-90 seconds until they're a few shades darker. Now lower the heat and add the zest of one lemon for an additional citrusy brightness, and just let that sizzle for 10-15 seconds. Pour this amazing-smelling infused oil over your chickpea mix, and squeeze in 2 tablespoons of juice from that zested lemon and those chopped herbs. Let this marinate at room temperature for at least 10 minutes, or for an hour or two, it's up to you. It'll stay good in the fridge for a few days, so feel free to double the recipe. I love how fresh and tangy these chickpeas are, a little garlicky, and it took like 10 minutes of active work. It's going to be even quicker if you use just regular olive oil, so definitely add this salad to your meal prep or lunch rotation. Oh, by the way, I was going to share a message with you about my new cookbook, Big Vegan Flavor, which comes out on September 3rd, but I am pretty uncomfortable with self-promotion, so the last time I saw my parents, I asked them to record a message for you instead. Hello, friends. Hello, food lovers all over the world. I am so thrilled and excited beyond imagination about my daughter's biggest book, Bible. Big Vegan Flavor, over 600 pages, more than 150 recipes. You can pre-order. It's going to be in the market from September 3rd. Why are you laughing so much? Just in the market makes me think it's going to be in like the stock market. Order this book as soon as you can. No, no, no. Just say, order, order, pre-order Vegan Cookbook of Nisha Voh. Order, order, pre-order, or I will be upset, so please buy my daughter's book. It will make us very happy. All right, you heard my parents. If you want to make them very happy, you can pre-order your copy of Big Vegan Flavor by going to bigveganflavor.com, and if you pre-order before September 3rd, you will get access to an incredible package of exclusive bonus content, and you will have the unwavering gratitude of the sweetest people I know. All right, let's get back to the video. Next up, we are braising our chickpeas. If you've never braised before, it's a cooking method that involves simmering ingredients in a flavorful liquid. Here the chickpeas will absorb the flavors of a rich, savory broth and get really tender and creamy in the oven. I've got some fresh fennel here, and we're just going to slice the bulb as thinly as possible. Once it cooks down, it's going to add this lovely, sweet, aromatic note that makes this dish a bit more special than if you were to just use an onion. You're also going to slice one large shallot and four cloves of garlic, preferably fat ones because this dish is good with lots of garlic. Heat up a Dutch oven or braising pan over medium heat with a glug of olive oil, and while the fennel and shallots start to get cozy, we'll measure out a few more flavor boosters. A hefty glob of tomato paste, some dried oregano, smoked paprika, and red pepper flakes if you want some heat. You're looking for a little browning on the edges of the fennel. It should take about 4-5 minutes, and that's when you can go ahead and add the garlic, which needs just about a minute. You want to stir the tomato paste and spice mixture constantly for 1-2 minutes, and if it starts to brown really quickly, add in a splash of water. Now you could just deglaze the pan with some vegetable broth, but for extra complexity and, well, deliciousness, I'm using a dry white wine. A third of a cup, maybe a splash more, and let that bubble until the smell of alcohol cooks off, about 3 minutes. Alright, we can kill the heat, and now we have this amazing flavor base for our chickpeas to braise in. It already smells so good. Add in some good quality vegetable broth, a handful of fresh thyme sprigs and two bay leaves, plus a generous amount of pepper and salt, and to bring some richness to our braise, a few tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil. With braising, you don't want the liquid to evaporate too much. You want to keep the chickpeas moist. So cover your pan and pop it in the oven at 375 F, or 190 C, for 40-45 minutes, until the chickpeas are really soft and tender. Needs one more thing, a little vinegar to brighten things up, just a dash. The chickpeas are so soft and tender from being braised in the oven, they're rich from the olive oil, smoked paprika adds the perfect amount of smokiness, it's going to be so delicious scooped up with bread, but you could also have it with rice, or quinoa, or farro. Our next technique is to smash the chickpeas into a chickpea salad sandwich. And it's pretty simple, you make a creamy sauce, smash some chickpeas, and combine the two alongside your favorite sandwich ingredients. There are lots of directions you can go in for the sauce, but I'm making a gorgeous green herb dressing today. The sauce's creaminess comes from raw cashews. We're going to soak them in boiling water for about 10 minutes, and then blitz them up in a high-powered blender, alongside some freshly squeezed lemon juice, a few garlic cloves, and a third of a cup of water. Once it's pretty smooth, it's time for a generous few handfuls of fresh herbs. I've got a mix of dill, basil, parsley, and mint, but any mix of soft herbs you like will work. A lot of chickpea sandwiches are guilty of being a little bland, so I like to kick things up a bit with a jalapeno. Just half of it for now. A few tablespoons of nutritional yeast for a cheesy background flavor, pepper and salt to season, and a bit of olive oil adds a rich silkiness. If you're having trouble blending the sauce because it's too thick, go ahead and add a bit more water to help everything come together. I love it so much. I am going to add the rest of the jalapeno pepper, though, because I want more of a kick, a little more nutritional yeast for a little savoriness, and a little more salt. Yum. This sauce will stay good in your fridge for about a week, and it will make all of your grain bowls and salads so much better. Alright, now onto our smashed chickpeas. A food processor is definitely the fastest way to smash these, but I already have quite a bit of cleanup to do from our first five dishes, so I'm just going to smash these by hand using the tines of a sturdy fork. Don't do that. I'm going to go pick these up and rinse them off, and I'll be back. If you have a potato masher, go ahead and use that, so that doesn't happen to you. Or you can add them to your food processor, but you'll have another dish to clean. This smashed texture is going to allow the chickpeas to absorb more flavor from the dressing, and they're just easier to eat in sandwich form than whole chickpeas. Admittedly, celery is not my favorite vegetable normally, but I really do like the flavor of it in a chickpea salad, and it adds a nice crunch. If you're not a celery person, feel free to use some red onion instead. I'm adding some more fresh herbs to elevate this salad even more. I just tear them by hand to keep things simple, and then we'll add in about a third of a cup of the herb dressing. By the way, I'm making a half batch today because I have so many other chickpea recipes to eat, but if you make the full batch, you will have lunch covered for the whole week. This needs a little more dressing, and you can just add more of that delicious herb sauce, but when I have a chickpea salad sandwich, I really want it to taste like a nostalgic childhood sandwich, and there's only one thing that can add that. A little bit of vegan mayo. Needs a couple more things. Some more salt, some lemon juice to brighten things up, a smidgen of more mayo. Once the chickpea salad tastes just right to you, it's time to make some sandwiches. My 10-second trick for making any sandwich better is to rub a clove of halved garlic across the surface of your toasted bread. Instant flavor. Add your favorite toppers. I've got cucumbers, jalapenos, and pickled onions, and you can serve this open-faced or closed-faced, which is, I guess, the traditional way of eating a sandwich. Very excited about this. This sandwich is phenomenal, and if you want to get all of the recipes from today's video in a free, printable PDF guide, just check out the link in the description box below. And don't forget to make my parents very happy by pre-ordering your copy of my new cookbook, Big Vegan Flavor. Order, order, pre-order, or I will be upset. Bye!