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Crunchy, crispy, well seasoned chickpeas (garbanzo beans) aka “channa” is a common snack in the Caribbean, and it’s one that I still make and enjoy to this day. The only difference is that in the Caribbean, the grains of chickpeas would be deep fried as opposed to my now preferred method of oven roasting.
💕 Here’s Why You’ll Love This Recipe:
- It’s clean-eating, gluten-free, vegan- and vegetarian-friendly.
- It is easy to make and requires seven simple pantry-staple ingredients.
- It uses chickpeas which is labeled as a superfood.
- It is high in fiber and plant-based protein.
- It is easily customizable and you can adjust the flavors and seasoning to suit your personal preference.
- It can be made in advance and keeps fresh for up to two weeks in an airtight container.
Ingredients Needed
- Chickpeas: To make this we’re going to need one tin of chickpeas. Though not necessary, I opt for organic with sea salt.
- Oil: Opt to use a neutral, light flavored oil that is clean eating and has a high smoke point. Great options are peanut oil, light olive oil or extra light olive oil.
- Salt: I’m using my favorite Himalayan Pink salt but you can also use a sea salt or any salt you prefer.
- Cayenne pepper: Or Chipotle pepper, a little touch of heat really is a great flavor for this treat. If you don’t like the heat, you can also use some Smoked Paprika.
- Red pepper flakes: I love the almost smoky heat these red pepper flakes adds to this crunchy treat.
- Garlic: you can use garlic powder (recommended) or in a pinch, you can use some fresh grated garlic.
- Cilantro: or culantro if preferred. A small touch of this herbaceous flavor works really well with our chickpeas.
You’ll notice that I’m mainly using “dry” spices to flavor my chick peas, this is to ensure that they retain their crunch and crispiness and that they don’t get soggy.
What about Other Flavors??
This recipe is very much open to experimentation! Some other optional flavors you can add in include things like:
Or even premade spice blends such as:
- Bbq rubs
- Taco seasoning
- Cajun or creole seasoning,
- Greek seasoning
- Moroccan Za’atar
- You can use a curry powder blend but if you do I would recommend cooking the curry powder in a little bit of oil first and then tossing the crispy chickpeas into it to coat.
- You can also sweeten things up by tossing your crunchy chickpeas with some finely ground raw cane sugar that contains spices like cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg or pumpkin pie spice, apple pie spice!
Here’s How To Make This Easy Snack
To begin we’re going to wash and drain the chickpeas and then blot as much excess liquid from it as possible. The drier we can get it, the crispier it will be once roasted.
Once the chickpeas are as dry as they will be, we’re going to toss them in the olive oil and evenly spread them onto a baking tray. Into the pre-heated oven it goes for up to 40 minutes where we’ll be checking on them and moving them around a bit every 10-15 minutes. In the image above we can see that the grains are already drying out and beginning to brown at the 15 minute mark.
As they turn a nice golden color we’ll remove them from the oven and test them by dropping one onto the baking tray. It should sound like a pebble being dropped. Finally we’ll toss them in the seasoning while they’re still hot so that the spices stick to the grains before allowing them to cool completely.
The very last step is to enjoy them! You can indulge in them as a snack all by themselves (we promise they’re so addictive!) or you can use them as a substitute for croutons in your soups and salads!
Crunchy Oven Roasted Chickpeas (Channa)
Ingredients
- 15 oz Chickpeas (Garbanzo beans) (1 tin)
- 1 tbsp extra light olive oil
- 1 tsp Himalayan salt (to taste)
- 1/2 tsp Garlic Powder (to taste)
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper (to taste)
- 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes (to taste)
- 1 tsp fresh cilantro (or 1/2 tsp culantro, finely chopped)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375°F
- Drain, rinse, and strain the chickpeas.
- Dry the chickpeas on paper towels to remove as much of the water and moisture as possible. If necessary, change the paper towels and continue to dry them until no moisture can be blotted.
- Once the chickpeas are as dry as they can be, toss them in the olive oil and spread them evenly on a baking sheet.
- Bake for 30-40 minutes until golden brown, being sure to lightly shake the tray or turn the grains every 10-15 minutes so that they attain a deep golden brown evenly on all sides.
- Once the chickpeas are browned, remove them from the oven and toss them in the seasoning to evenly coat each grain with the spices. (It's normal for them to be slightly soft still, though when dropped onto the tray they should sound hard. As it cools it will attain their signature crunch.)
- Cool completely and enjoy. Store any leftovers in an airtight container for up to two weeks.
Notes
- It is not necessary to remove the skins of the chick peas, they crisp up nicely.
- Don't omit oiling the chickpeas before roasting them, the oil helps the skin to "fry" and which leads to a golden color and crisp exterior.
- Be sure to season the chickpeas after they've roasted (ideally as soon as you remove them from the oven) or else the seasoning may burn or extract too much moisture which results in the chickpeas being rock hard instead of crunchy.
- If you find that the seasoning is not adhering to the chickpeas, lightly brush or mist some more oil onto the chick peas (only a few drops!) and toss the chickpeas to coat them with the oil and seasoning.
- If after you've removed them from the oven and they've cooled a bit and are not as crispy as you'd like them, simply pop them back into the oven for a bit longer at a slightly higher temperature for a few more minutes (or if you have a toaster oven, toast them lightly), being sure to keep your eye on them to ensure that they don't burn.