Cooking Perfect Chickpeas/Beans aka ditch the can

Cooking Perfect ChickpeasIf you follow this site, you probably know, I am a huge fan of beans, lentils and that includes chickpeas. I do all kinds of good things with them, check out this collection of recipes to start. Now to get good results with your beans and chickpeas you need to cook them right. This basically means, ditch the can. Following the general process outlined here you will get perfect chickpeas.

As I often tell my students, imagine sitting in a can loaded with salt and preservatives for a long long time. Chances are your skin will feel wrinkly and you will not feel all that good. Well, the same holds true for beans.

OK, so I am being a little factitious, but with a little planning your will save a lot of money, have much healthier and flavorful options at your disposal. Dried beans are easier to store and for what it’s worth more eco-friendly. It helps not dealing with all that packaging.

The process I am talking about works for chickpeas, black beans, red kidney beans, and pretty much any other bean in your pantry. These are the steps to ensure perfectly cooked beans every time. And, let us also talk about storing them when you need them.

Giving Dried Chickpeas or Beans a good soak

Soaking them for a few hours or overnight,

  • Softens the beans and ensures even cooking.
  • Also dissolves some of the complex sugars that can be found in beans and chickpeas.
  • Of course, ensures quicker cooking times.

Channa Masala

Quick Soaking

  • This is when you do not have time on hand to soak the beans for several hours. Do a soak for about an hour in very hot water. This is not ideal but better than nothing.

Do Beans have to be pre-cooked?

  • Actually no, for a lot of recipes you want the flavor that builds from slowly cooking the beans, another strike against canned beans.

Cooking Perfect Chickpeas

What if I need them in a hurry?

  • You can store cooked chickpeas in the freezer for up to 3 months, this will still yield better flavor than canned options.
  • This is perfect for making hummus or a salad on short notice.

How do you cook the chickpeas

  • A pressure cooker or instant pot saves a lot of time and makes this effortless, but you can cook this on the stove top as well. Eventually your chickpeas will get cooked and deliver outstanding flavor.

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Cooking Perfect Chickpeas/Beans

Prep Time: 6 hours

Cook Time: 35 minutes

Total Time: 6 hours, 35 minutes

Cooking Perfect Chickpeas/Beans

How to cook perfect chickpeas from the scratch.

Ingredients

  • 1 cup dried chickpeas (this is about 2 and 1/2 cups of finished chickpeas)
  • 1 teaspoon salt to taste
  • 1 bay leaf (optional)
  • water for soaking and cooking

Instructions

  1. Soak the chickpeas overnight, or refer to the post for a quick soak option.
  2. Rinse the chickpeas.
  3. Add the chickpeas to the electric pressure cooker/instant pot. Add the salt, bay leaf and 3 cups of water.
  4. Set to 25 minutes of pressure and allow a natural release.
  5. Use as needed in your recipes. If you need water in what you are cooking use the broth, it will offer great flavor.
  6. If you do not have a pressure cooker, do this in a dutch oven or another heavy bottomed pot. Allow about an hour of cooking time, stirring occasionally, until the chickpeas are tender.
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