Spiced Roasted Chickpeas
My brother practically lives at the gym and is forever asking what he can eat that is not another protein shake, and this is what I keep telling him. A couple of tins of chickpeas, some spice and forty minutes in a hot oven gets you something crunchy and savoury for about thirty pence a portion.
The one thing that genuinely matters is how dry you get them. Tip the drained chickpeas onto a clean tea towel and rub them about a bit, which takes off the loose skins and most of the moisture at the same time. Damp chickpeas steam in the oven and never crisp up properly.
The spices go on after roasting rather than before. Paprika and cumin both catch and turn bitter at that temperature, so tossing them through while the chickpeas are still hot gets you the flavour without any burnt edge. The cayenne is there for a bit of a kick.
They are at their best about ten minutes out of the oven, once they have cooled just enough to crunch properly. They do soften overnight in a tub, so this is not really a make-ahead job. If it happens anyway, five minutes back in a hot oven brings them round.
Spiced Roasted Chickpeas
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 35 minutes
Total Time: 45 minutes
Serves: 4 people
Serving size: 134g
Calories per serving: 247
Fat per serving: 11.5g
Ingredients
- 2 x 400g tins chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 2 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1/2 tsp salt
- Squeeze of lemon to serve
Method
- Heat the oven to 200C. Tip the drained chickpeas onto a clean tea towel and rub them about, discarding any loose skins that come away.
- Spread the dried chickpeas over a large baking tray in a single layer, toss them with the olive oil and roast for 25 minutes, giving the tray a shake halfway through.
- While they roast, mix the smoked paprika, cumin, cayenne pepper and salt together in a small bowl.
- The chickpeas should be golden and rattling around the tray by now. Give them another 5-8 minutes if any still feel soft in the middle.
- Tip the hot chickpeas into a bowl, scatter over the spice mix and toss until evenly coated. Add a squeeze of lemon and leave to cool for 10 minutes before eating.
Nutrition
| Nutrition information | Per serving (134g) |
|---|---|
| Energy | 1033kJ / 247kcal |
| Fat | 11.5g |
| of which saturates | 1.4g |
| Carbohydrate | 29.4g |
| of which sugars | 5.2g |
| Fibre | 8.9g |
| Protein | 9.1g |
| Salt | 1.4g |
Calculated from USDA FoodData Central for the ingredients as listed. Salt excludes seasoning added to taste. Values not shown could not be calculated reliably.
