What are your favorite recipes for chickpeas/garbanzo beans?

September 27, 2005 2:05 PM

What are your favorite recipes for chickpeas/garbanzo beans?

Chickpeas/garbanzos are a major staple of mine. I usually eat them curried, as hummus, or in a salad with some greens, but I'm getting a bit tired of those. Do you have any other serving suggestions? I'd prefer vegetarian recipes, but please don't hesitate to post recipes with meat ingredients as well.

posted by vorfeed to Food & Drink (24 answers total)

Channa Masalla over basmati, though NOBODY does it like Rawal Kabob in Chantilly, VA. There are days when I ponder kidnapping one of their employees to torture the recipie out of them.
posted by phearlez at 2:08 PM on September 27, 2005

This. Add to wild rice cooked in moderately salted water, dressed with extra cilantro/coriander and lemon juice.
And make plenty, because you'll want it.
posted by NinjaPirate at 2:11 PM on September 27, 2005

Zuppa di ceci... Italian chickpea soup (there are a lot of recipes out there ripe for the Googling). Some add a tomato-based sofrito, some add bottargo, some like pancetta in theirs, but I go for beans in broth with toasted rosemary and lemon zest. Simple and yummy.

Also a restaurant I worked at did a chickpea salad of cooked 'peas, cubed feta, finely sliced red onion and chopped flat leaf parsley in lemon juice and olive oil. Very simple, nice on braised endive I think.
posted by methylsalicylate at 2:23 PM on September 27, 2005

I rinse and dry a can of garbanzos, spread them out on a rimmed cookie sheet, and roast them in the oven at 350 degrees for 45-50 minutes until they brown and rattle around on the pan when shaken. When cool, I eat them like roasted nuts. Sometimes I shake a little garlic salt over them before roasting. This idea came from the South Beach Diet (either the main book or the cookbook, I can't remember which).
posted by Joleta at 2:25 PM on September 27, 2005 [2 favorites]

Nobody mentioned hummus? Chick peas (drained), olive oil, garlic, tahini - all zoomed in food processor. Served with pita bread. Yummy!
posted by ObscureReferenceMan at 2:30 PM on September 27, 2005

Non-Vegetarian:

Mash canned chick peas up and then mix them with ground turkey (or lamb) and garlic.

Then you roll them into balls and deep fry them.

Then you eat them in a pita pocket with some sort of yogurt sauce (like mint and garlic, or dill).

It's pretty good.
posted by small_ruminant at 2:33 PM on September 27, 2005

Best answer: Falafel. Mmmm! That's the Moosewood Cookbook recipe and it's very yummy. I like them with tzatziki (shredded cucumber mixed into thick plain yogurt with garlic and herbs). You can put the patties in a pita or not, whatever.

Chickpea salad (my best friend showed me this and it is heavenly): chickpeas, chopped tomato, green onions, and cucumber, with red wine or balsamic vinegar or a mix of both, black pepper, chopped fresh basil, and feta crumbles. Stir it up and let it marinate in the fridge a bit before digging in.

Also, my quickie lunch (actually had this today!): mash up a can of drained chickpeas with mayo (or sour cream, or yogurt, or a combo - whatever I have on hand and feel like), mix in some chopped veggies (celery, cucumber, sweet red pepper) or not, some salt and pepper and other things (mustard, or fresh parsley, or green apple bits - this can really go so many ways), then spoon it over romaine or spread it on a sandwich. If you use just mayo and celery bits (and maybe some sweet pickle relish) it's kind of like a fake tuna salad.
posted by Melinika at 2:51 PM on September 27, 2005 [2 favorites]

Pasta and ceci. Italian comfort food.
posted by fixedgear at 2:51 PM on September 27, 2005

Yup- it's basically falafel with some meat thrown in. If you use Melinika's recipe and then add turkey I bet it would turn out really good.
posted by small_ruminant at 3:02 PM on September 27, 2005

I love chick peas. I make a sandwich filling of mashed chick peas (use a masher for a coarse mash rather than a food processor which makes it too liquidly) with lots of lemon juice, garlic and dill. I also add tomato and capers and serve on bread with lettuce. I know it sounds like humus, but it tastes nothing like it (no tahini or olive oil). It is nice and fresh tasting and makes a fantastic sandwich.
posted by necessitas at 3:03 PM on September 27, 2005 [2 favorites]

Got this from Cooking Light - basically Melinika's recipe with the addition of couscous and a slightly different dressing. It's great; tasty and very filling.

Dressing:
1/3 cup fresh lime juice
1 1/2 tablespoons extravirgin olive oil
2 teaspoons grated peeled fresh ginger
3/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 garlic clove, minced

Salad:
2 cups water
1 1/2 cups uncooked couscous
1/2 cup raisins
1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
1 cup chopped tomato
1 cup chopped peeled cucumber
1 cup (4 ounces) crumbled feta cheese
1/4 cup thinly sliced green onions
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh mint
1 (15 1/2-ounce) can chickpeas (garbanzo beans), rinsed and drained

To prepare dressing, combine first 8 ingredients, stirring with a whisk.
To prepare salad, bring 2 cups water to a boil in a medium saucepan, and gradually stir in couscous, raisins, and turmeric. Remove from heat; cover and let stand 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork. Place couscous mixture in a large bowl. Add tomato and remaining ingredients. Drizzle with dressing; stir well to coat. Cover and chill at least 1 hour.
posted by SashaPT at 3:13 PM on September 27, 2005

I saw this post on plastic.com a year or two ago and tried it. (The first recipe in the post.) I think it's an excellent recipe and make a slightly modified variation at least once a week. He doesn't mention what to do with the ginger - I add it with the garlic.

In fact, I've been meaning to email that guy one of these days and tell him I've probably prepared this dish at least hundred times now...
posted by mragreeable at 3:29 PM on September 27, 2005

My girlfriend makes a couscous salad with finely chopped red onion, couscous, red & yellow peppers (which she just buys frozen and pre-cut), crumbled feta, fat-free italian dressing and chick peas. It may be an adaptation of the cooking light recipe SashaPT posted.
posted by phearlez at 3:30 PM on September 27, 2005

The ultimate in simplicity: room temperature chickpeas, salt, pepper, and a squeeze of lemon juice. No more, no less, and you'll come back for more. But please don't smack your mother.
posted by leapingsheep at 3:44 PM on September 27, 2005

chickpeas are great on bread as a fake tuna/chicken salad sandwich. mayo, onion, salt, pepper, pickle relish to taste. smush with a fork or a coarse chopping food processor. almost like the real thing, if not only just as a vehicle for mayonnaise consumption.
posted by c at 4:28 PM on September 27, 2005

i mash 'em and put em in a quesedilla w/ tomatoes, cheese and guac.
posted by Hackworth at 4:53 PM on September 27, 2005 [1 favorite]

Best answer: I really, really love the chick pea chili verde on this page. I add an extra jalapeno and it has a great bite. I usually also puree some chickpeas with the chiles to make it a little thicker.

Chickpeas also make a good addition to potato pancakes. Here's the recipe I use. It's good with the pear salsa, as suggested, and I also like it with vegetarian chili to boost the bean consumption.
posted by Bella Sebastian at 4:55 PM on September 27, 2005

I use them in stir-fry with mushrooms, carrots, green pepper and whatever other veggies I have around, plus soy sauce, lemon juice, curry powder, cumin, etc. The recipe changes a little every time I make it - sometimes I add vinegar, sometimes I add other spices, etc. I like the combination of chickpeas+curry+lemon.
posted by srah at 5:33 PM on September 27, 2005

See the original Moosewood Cookbook for recipe for tabouli. Get brand called 'Fantastic' , if available, at your grocery. Follow directions, and add cucumbers, dried mint, tomatoes, water, garlic, parsley, olive oil, lemon juice, scallions, feta cheese, if you like. add chickpeas. delicious.
posted by madstop1 at 5:49 PM on September 27, 2005

It's really simple but really good:

can of chickpeas
1/2 - 1 onion (red, white, whatever you like), chopped
some minced garlic
salt, pepper, thyme for seasoning

all sauteed in olive oil (onions first, then the rest). It takes less than 5 minutes to heat up and is very tasty. I either serve it plain or with cous cous or some other grain. Add feta if you want. It's even good as a cold leftover!
posted by jetskiaccidents at 6:01 PM on September 27, 2005 [1 favorite]

Bender's Chickpea and Leek Soup, from Jamie Oliver.
posted by obiwanwasabi at 7:44 PM on September 27, 2005

I just made this for dinner:

(Adapted from Madhur Jaffrey)

brown onion, finely chopped
3 T olive oil

cook in a big frying pan until onions are translucent

2-4 garlic cloves, minced or pressed
1" cube fresh ginger, minced

add to onions, stir, cook a minute

1.5 tsp ground cumin
1.5 tsp ground coriander

add, stir

0.5 c plain yoghurt

add, 1 T at a time, stirring, until it becomes one with the onion mixture

1 14oz can chopped plum tomatoes, drained well

stir well, let boil a minute

3 c cooked chickpeas in cooking water
salt
garam masala (or just black pepper)
dash cayenne

let boil, then simmer while you make your salad or whatever else you're having.

Yum.
posted by Methylviolet at 8:04 PM on September 27, 2005

One of my very favorite restaurants, Periyali in NYC, offers the appetizer Gigandes Skordalia, which is an almond-garlic dip (skordalia) for giant garbanzos. Here's the recipe, which is a bit of work, but it's really delicious.

Here's a simpler version (plus a recipe for cooking the beans), which sounds good too.
posted by rob511 at 3:26 AM on September 28, 2005

I made this flourless chocolate cake and everyone loved it. (I didn't tell them until after dinner that the secret ingredient was chickpeas.) Just be sure to blend the chickpeas until they're creamy. It's delicious with strawberries & whipped cream.
posted by belladonna at 5:50 PM on September 28, 2005