A while back these were raging across Pinterest.
Let me begin by stating I could probably live the rest of my life without ever eating another sweet. While I do enjoy them on occasion, they are not what I crave when I actually crave something. My downfall has always been salty/crunchy. And nothing, I mean absolutely nothing, satisfies that craving better than sitting down with a bowl of freshly popped popcorn drizzled with butter.
As for the Chickpeas, I’ve never been a fan. While they were meaty I also found them too pasty. Their texture was a total turn off to me and every recipe I come across that uses them I substitute a different bean, usually Cannellini. But the more I read the more I discovered that these crunchy little flavored nuggets were satisfying the cravings of my fellow popcorn fanatics, in a healthier way, so I knew I had to try them.
There are a bazillion different ways to flavor them but the main gist is to use 1 tablespoon olive oil plus 1/2 teaspoon salt per can of beans. After that the flavoring possibilities are practically endless.
I did a lot of recipe reading before Mr. Foodie left town and settled on two flavor profiles. I then spent an entire Saturday afternoon and part of Sunday playing around with them. Sriracha with Lime and Wasabi (hoping to find something like Wasabi Peas). I ended up doing six different batches. Straight from the can, from the can but peeling each and every bean (based on one bloggers preference) and marinating overnight. If you have anything close to Carpal Tunnel I DO NOT recommend peeling each and every bean. I don’t have the affliction but by the time I was done peeling an entire can of beans I was definitely ready for a pain pill…or a very stiff drink.
In the end, the Wasabi was a total failure no matter what I did. I was left with a bunch of black, burnt, balls with a bitter flavor that was totally inedible. As for peeling, the peas shrunk to about half their size and while they may have been a tad bit crunchier there was no noticeable difference in flavor. Save your wrists and finger tips. Peeling is unnecessary in my opinion. The same with marinating overnight. No noticeable difference in flavor, at least as far as the Sriracha is concerned. If you want some roasted chickpeas just open a can, drain them, rinse them, rub off any existing loose skins so the don’t burn, season and roast.
Period.
For the Sriracha flavored with Lime…
adapted from Tasty Kitchen
- 1 can Chickpeas
- 1 Tablespoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 1-½ teaspoon Sriracha Sauce
- 1 teaspoon Lime Juice
- ½ teaspoons Sea Salt
- 1 teaspoon Grated Lime Zest
Preheat oven to 400°.
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Zest the lime and set aside.
Rinse and drain chickpeas. With a paper towel, pat dry and rub chickpeas to get off any loose skins.
In a large bowl, whisk together olive oil, Sriracha sauce, lime juice and sea salt. Add chickpeas to the sauce and toss to coat.
Dump the chickpeas evenly on the pan.
Place in the oven and roast for 35 to 40 minutes, stirring halfway through, until crunchy.
Remove from baking sheet to a bowl and sprinkle with reserved lime zest. Toss to coat and allow to cool.
Once cool, store in a jar with a tight fitting lid.
So here’s my honest opinion.
My popcorn addiction runs too deep. It is firmly imbedded in my DNA at this point. I’m not sure anything will ever come close to satiating that craving.
With that said, these are quite the tasty little buggers.
Not Blow My Mind, Over The Top
but they are crunchy and quite tasty and I love the fact that I’m getting a little protein from them.
They are good for when you need a handful of something crunchy or as a salad topping in place of starchy croutons. I also wouldn’t hesitate to throw a bowl of these out at my next party.
I’ll do them again and will continue to experiment with different flavor profiles.
If you’re not sure where to get started on Roasted Chickpeas here’s a link that offers some options. Like I said, the possibilities are nearly endless.
TheKitchn – 15 More Ways to Flavor Roasted Chickpeas
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You were definitely a woman on a mission with these chickpeas. I think I’m with you in the popcorn w/butter & salt camp though. I’m not sure that I’d ever have a burning desire to make these. But tell us, how are you doing down there w/the hurricane? Are you in the middle of it?
Thanks, Diane. I’m on the east coast. We’ve been under clouds for a few days with slow steady rain for the past 24 hours, about 3″ worth. Got a little break now but there’s more on the way. Was up past midnight last night because there was a tornado on the ground for almost 30 minutes just a little to my west so I stayed up watching the track in case the dogs and I had to head to the bathroom. West coast is flooding pretty bad, cars are getting swamped in the streets and elderly people are being evacuated by boat in some cases. Governor declared a state of emergency earlier today. Gonna be like this at least until Wednesday they say. I said a while back I thought we were gonna have an active season. Sure starting off with a bang! :O
Huh, did you get part of my message? Don’t know what happened but it just went “poof”. Anyway, in case you didn’t, I was saying how I get mixed up which side you’re on, but that it looked like you were getting some kinda weather no matter what. Tornadoes – don’t want to mess with those suckers – could end up in Kansas!
OMG! I can NOT believe you peeled every one of those silly little beans! My fingers hurt for you! LOL!
LOLOL!!! Yeah and not one but TWO cans!! Mr. Foodie walked by and saw this huge pile of “husks” on the counter and asked “WTH are you doing?!” When I told him he rolled his eyes and walked away.
Ive tried to make some twice now, but both times ended up with burnt awful little pellets. Maybe I should give it another go, this time I wont walk away and forget them.
That’s exactly how the Wasabi ones came out. Totally burnt and totally AWFUL! I think it really depends on what you put on them. I also tried cooking at different temperatures if I remember correctly. Of course walking away and forgetting them could also pose an issue, lol!
I can’t remember what I was putting on them now, but it might have involved honey or something. But the biggest problem was me walking away both times, Im sure. You probably shouldnt use the smoke alarm as a timer, eh?
I have never heard of these before, I mean the roasted chickpeas. I have heard of chickpeas before.
Might have to try those – maybe for our next family get together. My mom dislikes chickpeas – any idea if you can do this with other beans?
Once they’re roasted they don’t taste anything like regular chickpeas…they’re more of a carrier for the flavorings you put on them, maybe with a little starchy kind of background taste if that makes sense. I don’t know about other beans. I never came across anything while I was reading up on these.
Roasted Chickpeas are a great option for a healthy snack. I posted back in March about them, and they are so tasty! http://reinidays.wordpress.com/2012/03/30/roasted-chickpeas-three-ways/
Yours look gorgeous! I love that there is so many different ways to flavor them!