If Garbanzos Had an Online Dating Profile: “Adaptable, Cheery, Low Maintenance, Filled with Vitality, Reliable”
“Vegetarian and frugal it may be, but the chickpea is one of the most versatile ingredients you could keep in your cupboards.” – Yotam Ottolenghi
What do you call them?... the humble protein-packed Cicer arietinum. I rotate between calling them chickpeas and calling them garbanzos, or garbanzo beans, exactly 50-50, I’d say. Is there any other vegetable that slips so fluidly between identities? The name chickpea is of French descent, while garbanzo is of Spanish descent. But they are variously known as ceci beans, grams, Bengal grams, pois chiches, and Indian or Egyptian peas. Perhaps the ease of multiple names for this smiley-face-emoji-shaped legume reflects its versatility on our plates and in our pans.
“Vegetarian and frugal it may be, but the chickpea is one of the most versatile ingredients you could keep in your cupboards,” says Israeli-born chef and food writer Yotam Ottolenghi. There are several varieties of chickpeas, and perhaps a kazillion uses for them. Hummus is possibly the most widely recognized chickpea dish in the U.S., with falafel and chana masala as close seconds.
Chickpeas have been around forever. The wild uncultivated variety (Cicer reticulatum) grows only in southeast Turkey. And evidence of chickpeas as one of the earliest cultivated legumes shows up in the Middle East as early as 9,500 years ago. That means humans have been cultivating chickpeas since before they could produce pottery.
Chickpeas have been around forever in my kitchen, too. I definitely take chickpeas for granted. They are always there in my cupboard, canned or dry. And you know the funny thing? It took some 52 years and my 12-year-old daughter to ask, “Mom, what does a chickpea plant look like?” for me to realize—I don’t know. I’ve never stopped—ever—to ask myself this question. I was stumped.
I’ve never seen a chickpea field. I’ve never seen a chickpea fresh in its pod. I didn’t even realize they grew in pods (embarrassing, I know). And guess what! They grow right next door to us. Garbanzo and other legumes are grown in great quantities in the Walla Walla and Columbia counties as well as in California. Much of Washington's chickpeas go into hummus, some are canned, and some are sold dry. While most people are familiar with dry chickpeas, they can apparently also be eaten fresh straight out of their pod.
They make a fantastic rotation crop because as a "nitrogen fixer” they put nutrients back into the soil. According to Google and photos—since I have yet to see one with my own eyes—the plant grows some 8 to 20 inches high. It has small feathery leaves on either side of the stems and white flowers with blue, violet, or pink veins. Strangely, “see garbanzo bean plant IRL” is now on my bucket list.
Two main chickpea varieties are the larger smooth-coated light-colored kabuli type, common in the U.S., and the smaller green irregularly-shaped desi variety common in India. India produces the most chickpeas worldwide—up to 75% of world production is the smaller green desi type. I’ll have to keep my eye out for those as well, I’m not sure I’ve ever seen them in U.S. grocery stores. Chickpeas vary from green when picked early to pale yellow or beige, to dark brown to the uncommon black Ceci neri, grown only in southern Italy.
In Morocco as a child, I have vivid memories of holding a warm cone made of newspaper, filled with roasted salty oily crunchy garbanzo beans, scooped from the spinning open roaster of a street vendor. And of hands in friends’ kitchens sifting the dried beans for stones—before the chickpeas were cooked and added to harira, the soup eaten to break Ramadan fast each sundown.
As a busy hungry adult, a quick summer go-to for me is a can of cold garbanzos—open, rinse, dump in bowl. Coat with olive oil, pinch of salt. Find spoon. Find shady spot. Eat. Rest. Feel sated.
Feel grateful for chickpeas’ low-maintenance adaptability. Always reliable.
Sarah Stoner grew up in Uganda, Morocco, Belgium, and Thailand and lived in the U.S for the first time at age 18. Along with her family, Sarah planted herself in the Skagit Valley area where she’s made—or purchased—hummus more times than she can count. sarahjstoner@hotmail.com
Did You Know?
The leaves of the chickpea plant can be eaten as a leaf vegetable in salads or stir fries.
Hummus is the Arabic word for chickpeas. The cooked and ground chickpea paste mixed with tahini, a sesame seed paste, is called hummus bi tahina. The Latin name for chickpeas, Cicer arietinum, is where the famous orator Cicero got his name, since his family grew chickpeas.
The name chickpea is derived from the Latin word cicer, and led to “pois chiche” in French, which was then lifted from across the English Channel and changed to “chiche-pease.” Pease, in Old Middle English, was both singular and plural, like “wheat” or “corn.”
The chickpea liquid, either from canned beans or from cooking the bean, works well as a flavorless, odorless egg replacer in recipes. Don’t throw it out! The liquid, called aquafaba, contains a mix of starch and trace amounts of protein, with emulsifying, binding, and thickening properties. 1 tablespoon aquafaba = 1 egg yolk; 2 tablespoons = 1 egg white; 3 tablespoons = 1 whole egg. Aquafaba can also be whipped to replace the eggs in meringues or mayonnaise.
Unlike many canned vegetables, canned chickpeas retain much of their nutritional value and remain comparable to dried, cooked versions.
Legumes are a class of vegetables that includes beans, peas, and lentils. Legume plants produce edible seeds, called pulses. Edible seeds!
Chickpeas are nutrient-dense, providing more than 20% daily value of protein, dietary fiber, folate, and minerals like iron and phosphorous in a mere 3.5-ounce serving. Cooked chickpeas are high in amino acids.
Around the World
In the Philippines, chickpeas persevered in syrup are eaten as sweets and in desserts such as halo-halo.
In Sicily, panelle (little bread) is a popular chickpea fritter snack.
In Tuscany, chickpea flour (farina di ceci) is used to make an oven-baked pancake.
In India, unripe chickpeas are often picked out of the pod and eaten as a raw snack.
Chickpea flour is known as gram flour or besan in South Asia and is used frequently in South Asian cuisine. Besan is used as a batter to coat vegetables before deep frying to make pakoras.
Chickpea flour is used to make the Mediterranean flatbread socca and is called panisse in Provence, southern France.
Guasanas or garbanza is a Mexican chickpea street snack. The beans, while still green, are cooked in water and salt, kept in a steamer, and served in a plastic bag.
Chickpea Kale and Fire Roasted Tomato Soup
Chickpea Kale and Fire Roasted Tomato Soup
8 servings | prep time 10 min | cook time 30 min | total 40 min (recipe by Tori Avey)
Hearty, healthy one-pot meal inspired by Italian wedding soup. The lovely fennel flavor works well with chickpeas. Smoked paprika for depth and complexity, as well as turmeric and black pepper for an extra boost of anti-inflammatory nutrition. Great with a crusty slice of bread, or enjoyed on its own– it’s quite filling.
Ingredients
2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 large onion, diced
1 bulb fennel, diced (bulb only)
1 leek, rinsed and diced
1 ½ tsp salt
3 ½ cups chickpeas (soaked and cooked, or canned, drained & rinsed)
1 ¾ cups fire roasted, diced tomatoes (home cooked or canned)
1 ¼ cups water
2 cups vegetable stock
4 tsp smoked paprika
2 tsp granulated garlic
2 tsp turmeric
1 tsp dried oregano
½ tsp crushed red pepper - add a bit more if you like spice
¼ tsp black pepper
1 bunch kale, de-stemmed and chopped or torn into bite-sized pieces
Directions
Heat the olive oil in a large saucepot over medium-high heat. Add onion, fennel, leek and salt. Cook until soft and translucent.
Add remaining ingredients, except kale. Bring to boil, then reduce heat to a simmer and cook for 15-20 minutes, uncovered, until the soup reduces and thickens and the flavor is more pronounced.
Stir in kale. Once it is wilted and warm the soup is ready to serve. Taste and adjust seasonings as desired.
Chicken Chickpea Stew
Chicken Chickpea Stew
4 servings | prep time 15 min | cook time 1 hour 15 min | total 1 hour 30 min (recipe by Tori Avey)
Embrace the schmaltz. Similar to savory chicken tagine! Serve it over cooked quinoa, couscous, or brown rice for a hearty late-fall meal.
Ingredients
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
4 chicken thighs, bone-in, skin on
1 onion, peeled and diced
2 carrots, peeled and sliced into rounds
3-4 garlic cloves, crushed
1 cup chicken broth, or more if needed
14 oz diced tomatoes (or 1 ¾ cups ripe diced tomatoes) (1 can)
14 oz chickpeas, drained and rinsed (or 1 ¾ cups cooked chickpeas) (1 can)
1 roasted red bell pepper, skinned and sliced
1 tsp smoked paprika
½ tsp cumin
¼ tsp turmeric
Pinch cayenne (or more to taste—1/4 tsp gives a nice spicy kick)
1/3 cup chopped cilantro (or substitute flat leaf parsley), divided
Salt and pepper
Directions
Sprinkle chicken thighs lightly with salt and pepper. Heat olive oil in a sauté pan with high walls over medium heat till hot. Place the chicken thighs into the hot oil, skin side down, and turn the heat to medium-high. Brown the thighs for about 10 minutes, flipping once halfway through, till the thighs are browned on both sides and the skin is golden and crisp. Remove the thighs from the pan. Do not drain the fat or juices from the pan.
Add the diced onion to the pan and cook for 5-8 minutes till softened.
Add the carrots and cook them for 5 more minutes till the onion starts to caramelize. Add the garlic and cook for 2 minutes more till fragrant, stirring and scraping up the brown bits from the bottom of the pan as the mixture cooks.
Add the chicken broth, diced tomatoes, chickpeas, roasted bell pepper, smoked paprika, cumin, turmeric, cayenne, and 3 Tbsp of the chopped cilantro or parsley. Add a pinch to ¼ tsp cayenne.
Stir the mixture and bring to a boil. Add salt and pepper to taste (add about ½ tsp of salt or less depending on how salty your chicken broth is). Reduce heat to a simmer. Put chicken thighs back in the sauté pan and ladle sauce over them. Cover the pot, vented on one side, and let the stew simmer for 45 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Uncover the pot. Continue to simmer for 15 more minutes till the liquid reduces and the sauce starts to thicken.
Remove cooked chicken thighs from the sauce. Remove the skin and discard. Cut meat from the bones in small shreds. Discard bones and any excess fat.
Return the chicken shreds to the sauté pan and stir to combine. Simmer till heated through, or until the sauce is thickened to desired consistency. If the stew seems too dry, add a little chicken broth to rehydrate.
Remove from heat and sprinkle with remaining 2 tbsp chopped cilantro. Serve Chicken Chickpea Stew over cooked quinoa, couscous or brown rice.