    
Chickpeas
 Dried Chickpeas
© Denzil Green
Chickpeas are very closely related to Chana Dal.
Cooking Tips
Chickpeas have one of the longest cooking times of all beans, 3 hours (right up there with Red Kidney Beans and Soya Beans), about 1/3 to 1/2 that time if pre-soaked. Place in a pot, with 4 cups (2 pints / 1 litre) of water per 1 cup (7 oz / 200g) of beans. Bring to a boil, cover and let simmer.
To cook in a pressure cooker, pre-soak for 12 hours, then cook for 20 to 25 minutes.
If you come across a recipe that suggests adding baking soda to the cooking water, this is no longer necessary. It was thought to soften the varieties of Chickpeas on the market at the time.
Nutrition
1 cup (240g) cooked (boiled): 280 calories, 12g protein, 55g carbohydrate, 2.5g fat, 160 mcg folate. Good source of lecithin and potassium. Rich in calcium, iron, fibre, low in sodium.
They have a higher fat content than most other beans, which helps to make Hummos so yummy.
Equivalents
1/2 cup dried = 3.5 oz / 100g dried = 1 cup boiled = 8.5 oz / 240 g boiled.
1 15oz / 420g can, drained = 2 cups boiled
Storage
Canned Chickpeas can last up to 5 years (unless advised otherwise by dates on tin). When you cook dried Chickpeas, they can be kept in fridge covered for several days, or freeze them. Dried can be kept for up to a year.
History
Chickpeas are thought to be native to the Orient. Chickpeas were eaten in the Mid-East as early as 4000 BC. The ancient Egyptians grew them.
They were well liked and heavily used by the Romans. The famous Roman orator, Cicero, had an ancestor that had a wart on his face that looked like a chickpea. The Latin word for chickpea is "Cicer", hence the family name of Cicero. You could buy Chickpeas as street food in Rome mixed with lupin seeds and sold hot. At festivals, Chickpeas were frequently thrown at and caught by the crowds.
Literature & Lore
Homer in the Iliad compares futile arrows bouncing off Menelaos's breastplate to beans and Chickpeas. Garbanzo, the alternative word we use in English, comes from Spanish.
Language Notes
Chickpeas belong to what Indians in India call the "kabuli" group of Cicer arietinum. This is an allusion to Kabul, capital of Afghanistan, through which Chickpeas arrived in India in the late 1700s.
Also called:  Garbanzo Beans Cicer arietinum (Scientific Name) Pois Chiche (French) Kichererbsen (German) Ceci (Italian) Garbanzos (Spanish) Cicero (Roman)
See Also
Chana Dal
Other entries for Beans
Adzuki Beans, Anasazi Beans, Apache Beans, Appaloosa Beans, Aramis Beans, Aunt Emma's Beans, Baccicia Beans, Baked Beans, Bayo Beans (Louisiana), Black Beans, Black Nightfall Beans, Bleu du Lac St-Jean Beans, Broad Beans, Brown Rice Beans, Bush Beans, Canary Beans, Chana Dal, Chickashaw Beans, Chickpeas, Chinese Long Bean, Cow-Itch Beans, Cowpeas, Cranberry Beans, Crochu de Savoie Beans, Dainagon Beans, Dolico Veneto Beans, Dragon Tongue Beans, Dry Beans, European Soldier Beans, Falcon Rice Beans, Flageolet Beans, Flor de Junio Beans, Flor de Mayo Beans, Fortin Family Beans, Fradinho Beans, French Fillet Beans, Garboncito Beans, Garrofo Beans, Good Mother Stallard Beans, Great Northern Beans, Green Beans, Green Flageolet Beans, Green Rice Beans, Hopi Black Pinto Beans, Jackson Wonder Beans, Kahnawake Mohawk Beans, Kunde Beans, Lablab Beans, Lima Beans, Lupini Beans, Madeira Beans, Magpie Beans, Mexican Bayo Beans, Moth Beans, Mung Beans, Navy Beans, Nodak Beans, Pebble Beans, Peruano Beans, Pigeon Peas, Pink Beans, Pinto Beans, Pole Beans, Rattlesnake Beans, Red Ball Beans, Red Kidney Beans, Red Nightfall Beans, Refugee Beans, Rice Beans (Asian), Rice Beans, Rio Zappe Beans, Romano Beans, Runner Beans, Sangre de Toros Beans, Sator Beans, Seluga Beans, Shelling Beans, Soybeans, Tarahumara Canario Beans, Tepary Beans, Tiger's Eye Beans, Tolosana Beans, Toscanelli Beans, Trout Beans, Tweed Wonder Beans, Vallarta Beans, Wax Beans, Wild Goose Beans, Winged Beans, Witkiem Beans, Zolfino Pratomagno Beans
Other entries for Legumes
Lentils, Peas
Related Recipes
Anne Bancroft's Chickpea Stew, Chickpea and Broccoli Pasta, Chickpea and Broccoli Spaghetti, Chickpea and Celery Soup, Chickpea Crumble, Chickpea with Red Pepper Burgers, Chickpeas and Tuna, Curried Chickpeas, Funeral Beans, Squash and Bean Curry, Tuna and Chickpea Salad, Veggie Burgers
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