Got garbanzo beans? Check out these easy chickpea recipes! With hummus, salads, curries, and more, you’re sure to find something you love.

I love chickpea recipes so much that I almost named this blog “Chickpea Chick.” In retrospect, I’m glad I went in a different direction, but chickpeas are still one of my all-time favorite foods. For starters, they’re healthy, delicious, and packed with plant-based protein, but they’re versatile, too. They can blend into creamy, lemony hummus, bake into crispy, herb-flecked falafel, add protein to a salad, crunch to a grain bowl, and so much more!

Below, you’ll find some of my favorite chickpea recipes. They include garbanzo bean basics like roasted chickpeas and hummus, inventive entrées, and everything in between. Because I always have chickpeas in my pantry, these are some of the recipes I cook most often at home. Whether you’re already a chickpea fanatic or are cooking them for the first time, I hope that a few of these recipes make it into your regular rotation too!

Essential Chickpea Recipes

Crispy Roasted Chickpeas

They’re salty, they’re crunchy, and they’re so darn easy to make! Sprinkle them over a salad, top them onto a bowl, or eat them straight off the sheet pan as a protein-packed snack.

Roasted chickpeas make a great protein-packed vegan snack! Enjoy them on their own, or add them to your favorite healthy dishes for a crispy texture.

Roasted Chickpeas

It’s no secret I’m a fan of chickpeas – they’re a great addition to soups, stews, salads, sandwiches, you name it. Not only are they a good vegetarian protein source, but they can also bump up the texture in a dish. If you’ve been reading the blog for a while, though, you know that I’m not a fan of mushy food. Sometimes I’m craving something crispy in a salad, and chickpeas’ soft texture won’t satisfy me.

Enter: roasted chickpeas. They still have all the protein and heartiness of regular chickpeas, but they’ve become an irresistible salty, crunchy ingredient. Even better, they’re a great healthy vegan snack on their own!

How do I make roasted chickpeas?

Roasting chickpeas is simple! Start with three basic ingredients: cooked or canned chickpeas, extra-virgin olive oil, and salt. Then…

1. Preheat the oven to 400 and drain and rinse your chickpeas.
2. Spread the chickpeas on a kitchen towel and gently pat them dry. It’s essential to make sure they’re totally dry before you toss them with the olive oil – damp chickpeas won’t crisp up in the oven. Discard any loose skins from the outside of the chickpeas.
3. Transfer the chickpeas to a parchment-lined baking sheet and toss them with a drizzle of olive oil and generous pinches of sea salt. Spread evenly on the baking sheet.
4. Transfer the baking sheet to your preheated oven and roast for 20 minutes, or until crispy.
5. Remove from the oven and, while the chickpeas are still warm, toss with pinches of your favorite spices.

So simple! Your roasted chickpeas are ready to eat.

• Eat them fast! Roasted chickpeas are the best day-of, and they lose their crispiness as time goes on. I aim to finish up a batch by the second day for the best texture and flavor.
• Store them at room temperature. Don’t refrigerate these guys. They become chewy quickly! I recommend leaving them in a bowl or jar on the counter, loosely covered with a piece of foil.
• Some brands are better than others. I’ve found that different brands of canned chickpeas are more tightly packed in their skins than others, making them easier to prep for roasting. My favorite brand is ALDI’s Dakota’s Pride.
• Spice them up! I like to toss my chickpeas with spices right as they come out of the oven. Try using a dash of paprika or your favorite spice mix. Chili, curry, or shawarma spices would all be great here.

Hummus

No list of chickpea recipes could be complete without hummus. You only need 7 ingredients and 5 minutes to make it, so pass the pita chips, please!

Learn how to make homemade hummus with this easy, 7-ingredient hummus recipe! It comes together in minutes, and it’s SUPER creamy, smooth & fresh.

Is there anything better than creamy, nutty, velvety homemade hummus?

While I’ve posted many hummus variations here on the blog and even more in my first cookbook, I’ve recently gotten requests for my go-to classic homemade hummus recipe. Even though I think it’s fun to mix veggies into all kinds of chickpea dips (see below for many of those options), this is the hummus recipe I make when I’m craving that classic tahini-forward, ultra-creamy, smooth dip, just like the kind I enjoy at a good Middle Eastern restaurant. It’s simple to make – with just 5 minutes of prep, 7 basic ingredients transform into delicious homemade hummus. It’s lusciously smooth, with a bright lemon flavor and a little kick from garlic. Whether you enjoy it with fresh veggies, slather it on a sandwich, or scoop it up with wedges of pita, I hope you love it as much as I do!

Homemade Hummus Ingredients

You only need 7 basic ingredients to make this easy homemade hummus recipe!

• Cooked chickpeas. Though I cook dried chickpeas on occasion, I typically use store-bought canned chickpeas in my homemade hummus, and it always comes out great. If you cook your chickpeas yourself, make sure to soak them ahead of time, and let them boil for a bit longer than you normally would, until they become mushy, soft & creamy.
• Tahini. A good amount of good-quality tahini is the key to smooth hummus. I use 1/3 cup in my recipe, and I choose a brand with a smooth texture and a mild, nutty flavor that’s not bitter. My favorites are Cedar’s (available at most grocery stores), Seed & Mill (the best ever), and Soom.
• Extra-virgin olive oil. I blend 2 tablespoons of olive oil into the dip, and I love to serve it with an extra drizzle of oil on top!
• Fresh lemon juice. Squeeze it yourself for the best bright, zingy flavor.
• Garlic. I use one fresh garlic clove in my basic recipe, but you could also swap in 2 roasted garlic cloves for a caramelized taste.
• Water. I start with 5 tablespoons and add more, as needed, to give it a delectable light, fluffy texture!
• Sea salt. I use 1/2 teaspoon to heighten the bright, nutty flavors in this homemade hummus recipe.

How to Make Hummus

Once you assemble your ingredients, you can make this recipe in one easy step! Just add the chickpeas, tahini, lemon juice, olive oil, water, garlic, and salt to a high-speed blender, and process until smooth. That’s it!

As you blend, add more water, as needed, to reach your desired consistency. If your blender has a baton, you may want to use it to help get things going.

If you don’t have a high-speed blender, you can use a food processor to make this recipe. However, a blender will make a smoother dip faster, so if you use a food processor, know that you may have to let it run for a few minutes to get super creamy hummus.

Hummus Recipe Variations

If you go to the hummus section of a grocery store, you’ll find tons of ideas for seasoning it! Feel free to try experimenting with different flavors at home. I love it the traditional way, but if I’m in the mood for something different, I usually turn to one of these variations:

• Spice it up! 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin and/or coriander adds an extra layer of flavor.
• Add roasted red peppers. For a nutty, romesco-style dip, blend in 1 roasted red pepper, 1/4 cup toasted almonds, and 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika.
• Blend in pesto. Add spoonfuls of pesto, to taste, to make an extra-lemony, herbaceous dip.
• Go green. Blend in 1/2 cup fresh parsley, cilantro, or basil, or up to 1 cup spinach.
• Turn it pink! Find my beet hummus recipe here.
• Make it sweet & smoky. Add 1/2 baked sweet potato, 2 teaspoons maple syrup, a big pinch of chili powder, and more water as needed, to the blender along with the other hummus ingredients.
• Give it an autumn harvest twist. Add cumin, coriander, cayenne, and roasted butternut squash to the traditional dip for a delicious autumn variation!

Let me know what variations you try!

Hummus Serving Suggestions

Once you have hummus on hand in the fridge, you’ll find a thousand ways to use it. Here are a few suggestions:

• Enjoy it with veggies or crackers (or straight off a spoon) as a quick snack.
• Slather it onto cute crostini to serve as an appetizer.
• Put it at the center of your next crudité board, or serve it as part of a Mediterranean mezze platter with tzatziki, baba ganoush, Greek salad, and tabbouleh!
• Add it to your next sandwich or wrap! I love it on these chickpea shawarma wraps, these veggie wraps, or this “club” sandwich.
• Stir in water to thin it to a drizzle-able consistency. Then, use it as a salad dressing for your favorite fresh and roasted veggies!

Of course, it’s also good on its own with lots of pita. If I’m serving a big plate of hummus, I like to garnish it with a generous drizzle of olive oil, finely chopped parsley, sumac, and a simple Israeli salad. Sesame seeds, pine nuts, fresh mint leaves, or even smoked paprika would be good too.

Salad and Bowl Chickpea Recipes

Mediterranean Chickpea Salad

Medjool dates and honey goat cheese add sweet notes to this mix of roasted red peppers, fresh veggies, herbs, and chickpeas. A cumin-spiced dressing ties it all together.

Chickpea salad has been one of my go-to lunches for years. With the back-to-school season right around the corner, I thought I’d share my favorite chickpea salad recipe with all of you! Because of the protein from the chickpeas, it’s hearty enough to be a meal on its own, but it can also double as a healthy side dish. The garbanzo beans hold up well in the fridge, so you can easily make it ahead for parties and lunches. And with a mix of beans, herbs, and fresh vegetables all cut to a similar size, you get a delicious blend of flavors in every bite.

I’ve made many chickpea salad variations, but this quick and easy recipe takes the cake. The star of the show is a light, creamy fresh milk honey goat cheese from Roth. I’m picky about my goat cheese, but I’ve been loving this one and their plain goat cheese on salads, pasta, zucchini noodles, and more. It’s fresh and tangy, with a touch of sweetness from the honey. In my opinion, the new Roth Chèvre varieties (try the wild blueberry on your next cheese board!) are the perfect cheeses for summer entertaining.

In this recipe, I played off the cheese’s sweetness, adding toasted cumin seeds and Medjool dates to give the salad an aromatic, sweet & savory flavor. We really love this one, and I hope you do too, whether you serve it with dinner, pack it up for lunch, or bring it to your Labor Day gatherings!

Chickpea Salad Recipe Ingredients

This chickpea salad starts with a bright, spiced dressing made from lemon juice & zest, garlic, extra-virgin olive oil, and toasted cumin seeds. I whisk it together in the bottom of a big bowl and then toss in the chickpeas, as well as these components:

• Goat cheese. In this recipe, we use Roth Honey Chèvre, which is a fresh milk goat cheese with a delightful, creamy texture and a lightly sweet, mellow flavor.
• Medjool dates. Soft & chewy, they contrast perfectly with the earthy goat cheese and the cumin-spiced dressing.
• Persian cucumbers. They’re essential for a crisp, fresh crunch. I especially like to use Persian cucumbers because of their small size. Cut into little half-moons, they’re perfect for pairing with garbanzos.
• Cherry tomatoes. They add juicy, bursty texture.
• Roasted red peppers. I love the hint of char and nice sweetness they add to the salad. If you don’t have roasted red peppers, diced red bell pepper would be fine in its place.
• Chopped fresh parsley. Sprinkle it in for fresh flavor and flecks of green.
• Roasted chickpeas. These guys add a great crunch. If you don’t feel like roasting chickpeas, a handful of toasted almonds would be good too.
• Basil or mint. I like to top my salad with leaves of fresh herbs for a light, herbal finish.

Aside from the pan for toasting the cumin seeds, this bean salad comes together in one bowl! Just toast the seeds for 30 seconds or so until fragrant, crush them lightly with a mortar & pestle, and whisk them together with the other dressing ingredients.

Add the veggies, dates, chickpeas, and parsley, and toss. Then, dot on the cheese, remaining herbs, and roasted chickpeas, and serve!

Chickpea Salad Recipe Tips

• Taste and adjust. The key to making a great salad is tasting and adjusting until you have a balance of flavors you love. You might need an extra pinch of salt or squeeze of lemon. Don’t be afraid to try your chickpea salad before serving!
• Cut everything to a similar size. The best bites of chickpea salad happen when you get a little of everything – fresh herbs, creamy cheese, sweet dates, juicy veggies, etc. Cut your cucumbers, dates, and tomatoes into a small, even dice so you can scoop them up along with the chickpeas.
• Save some herbs and/or cheese for garnish. If you make this salad ahead of time, I recommend saving the mint leaves to add at the last minute. If you’re packing it for lunch, dot a few leaves on the top of the packed salad before you head out the door in the morning. The same could go for the goat cheese, depending on your preferences. Over time, the goat cheese starts to blend into the salad, creating a creamy coating. If you prefer it in chunks, add it at the same time you add the mint.

There are many more salads you may have chickpeas with:

Caesar salad with chickpeas

There’s so much to love about this lightened-up Caesar salad recipe! Along with the Caesar salad essentials – romaine lettuce, Parmesan, and plenty of croutons – it features a creamy Greek yogurt dressing, crisp radishes, and roasted chickpeas for extra crunch.

Best Chickpea Salad

rate this recipe:5 from 2 votes

Prep Time: 20 minsTotal Time: 2 mins

Serves 4 to 6

This Mediterranean chickpea salad is one of our favorite chickpea recipes!

Ingredients

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 tablespoon lemon zest

2 tablespoons lemon juice

3/4 teaspoon sea salt

Freshly ground black pepper

1 ½ teaspoon cumin seeds*

2 cups cooked chickpeas, drained and rinsed

1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved

4 Medjool dates, pitted and diced

3 Persian cucumbers, sliced into thin half-moons

⅓ cup chopped roasted red peppers

¼ cup finely chopped parsley

3 ounces goat cheese

¼ cup fresh mint

⅓ cup roasted chickpeas, optional

Instructions

In a large bowl, combine the olive oil, garlic, lemon zest, lemon juice, salt, and several grinds of pepper.

In a small skillet over medium-low heat, toast the cumin seeds until aromatic, about 30 seconds. Remove from the heat and crush them a bit (a mortar & pestle is easiest for this). Add them to the bowl and stir.

Add the chickpeas, tomatoes, dates, cucumbers, red pepper, and parsley to the bowl and toss. Transfer to a serving platter and dollop with the goat cheese, sprinkle with mint, and top with the extra roasted chickpeas, if desired. Season to taste and serve.

Notes

*if using ground cumin, use a heaping 1/2 teaspoon and add it directly to the mixing bowl, no need to toast.

Easy Pasta Salad

Toasted pine nuts, feta cheese, and chickpeas make this picnic-perfect pasta salad hearty enough to pass as a main or side dish. If you make it ahead of time, save a handful of fresh basil to add at the last minute.

The list can go on and on;

• Kale Salad with Carrot Ginger Dressing

• Grain bowl with garbanzo beans

• Roasted Veggie Grain Bowl

• Sweet potato garbanzo bean bowl

• Simple Sweet Potato Quinoa Bowl

• Sandwiches, Wraps, and Veggie Burgers

• Shawarma spiced chickpea wraps

• Chickpea Shawarma Wraps

• Chickpea Salad Sandwich

• Chickpea Salad Sandwiches

Jack kindly dubbed this hearty vegan sandwich a pan bag-not. It has everything that makes a classic pan bagnat so crave-able – soft baguette, briny flavor, and lots of crisp veggies – but a creamy, no-mayo chickpea salad steps in for the tuna.

Falafel

Crispy Baked Falafel

Crispy, rich, and packed with fresh herbs, this homemade falafel is just as good as any you’d find at a Middle Eastern restaurant.

Serve it with pita, veggies, tahini sauce, and pickled red onions to take it over the top. Note: Of all the chickpeas recipes on the blog, this is the only one that requires dried – NOT canned – chickpeas. Do not make this recipe with canned chickpeas, or your falafel will be mushy.

Falafel was the food that first convinced me that a vegetarian diet could be filled with bold, exciting flavors. It’s crispy, rich, and satisfying, packed with fresh herbs and aromatic spices. Stuffed into pita bread with veggies, tahini sauce, and a pop of pickled onions, it’s insanely flavorful, making it one of my all-time favorite foods.

I included a recipe for red lentil falafel in Love and Lemons Every Day (one of my favorites in the book!), but never before have I shared a classic chickpea-based falafel recipe. Without a doubt, it was worth the wait. I’m picky about my falafel, but these little guys check all the boxes: they’re crunchy on the outside, soft in the middle, and loaded with herbs and spices.

What is Falafel?

If you’re thinking, “Wait. What is falafel?”, you’re in for a treat. A traditional Middle Eastern dish, falafel are fried balls of ground chickpeas, which often include parsley, cilantro, and spices such as cumin and coriander. It’s a popular street food throughout the Middle East and Europe (if you’re ever in Paris, make a stop at L’As du Fallafel), where you can find it stuffed into pitas brimming with fresh veggies, herbs, sauces, and pickles.

I’m not a fan of working with a big vat of hot oil at home, so instead of deep-frying my falafel, I bake it. It comes out deliciously crisp just the same, and it’s a little lighter than the traditional version. This one is my favorite falafel recipe to date, and I hope you fall for it too!

My Falafel Recipe Ingredients

To make my baked falafel recipe, you need these key ingredients:

• Uncooked dried chickpeas. I use soaked dried chickpeas, not canned chickpeas, in this recipe. Soak your dried chickpeas overnight before beginning the recipe, and then blend the soaked chickpeas into the herby falafel mixture.
• Shallot and garlic. Together, they add a delicious bite! You can also use yellow onion in place of the shallot.
• Lemon zest. It’s not traditional, but I love the lemon’s zesty brightness in these patties.
• Cumin, coriander, and cayenne. This spice blend is warm and aromatic, and the cayenne adds a little heat.
• Sea salt. It punches up the rich flavor of the herbs and spices.
• Baking powder. Just a pinch makes these balls nice and puffy in the oven.
• Cilantro and parsley. I use a good amount to make my falafel bright green and flavorful. There’s no need to toss the herb stems for this recipe – blend them straight into the falafel mixture along with the leaves!
• Extra-virgin olive oil. I add a tablespoon to the chickpea mixture for richness. In addition, I drizzle the patties with oil before baking so they become nice and crisp in the oven.

How to Make Falafel

Once you’ve soaked your chickpeas, this recipe is easy to make! Here’s what you need to do:

1. Blend the ingredients. Add the falafel ingredients to a food processor, and pulse until well combined, but not pureed.
2. Form the falafel balls. Use a 2-tablespoon cookie scoop and your hands to gently form the mixture into 12 to 15 thick patties.
3. Bake! Drizzle the little cakes with olive oil, and bake, flipping halfway, until they’re golden brown and crisp.
4. Serve, and enjoy! Stuff the cooked falafel into pitas with your favorite fixings, top them onto a salad, or serve them over a bowl. Then, dig in!

Best Baked Falafel Tips

1. Used dried, NOT canned chickpeas. The perfect cakey, crumbly texture comes from dried chickpeas that have been soaked, but not cooked, before being blended into patties. Make sure to soak dried chickpeas ahead of time to make this recipe. Substituting cooked, canned chickpeas does not work here – your falafel will turn out wet and mushy.
2. Drizzle the patties generously with oil before baking. Because this falafel recipe is baked, not fried, it automatically uses much less oil than traditional falafel. In order to get your patties nicely crisp and golden brown in the oven, don’t hesitate give them a generous drizzle of oil before baking. They’ll come out delicious and still be lighter than classic falafel.
3. Don’t pack your patties too tightly. It’s tempting to really pack the patties together tightly, but doing so will make them tough and dense. Form the falafel balls gently, and if your mixture isn’t holding together, pulse it a bit more in the food processor until the mixture sticks together. If it’s still too crumbly, pop it in the fridge to chill for 30 minutes before shaping and baking the patties.
4. Make a double batch, and freeze the extras. These guys keep well in the freezer, so go ahead and make a double batch to have on hand for salads, bowls, or wraps. To reheat frozen falafel, pop them in a 400-degree oven for 10 minutes, until they’re crisp and heated through.

Falafel Serving Suggestions

I love stuffing these into a pita sandwich loaded with chopped tomatoes and cucumbers, fresh herbs, hummus, pickled onions, and generous drizzles of tahini sauce. To customize your pita sandwich, you could easily swap another Middle Eastern sauce like tzatziki or baba ganoush for the hummus, or drizzle it with cilantro lime dressing instead of (or in addition to) the tahini.

If you’re not in the mood for pita, top your patties onto a big salad along with some crispy roasted chickpeas, or serve it over a bed of quinoa, cilantro lime rice, or cauliflower rice with lots of fresh veggies.

And if you’re in the market for a side dish, any of these dishes would be excellent with this baked falafel:

• Greek Salad
• Charred Cherry Tomatoes
• Roasted Cauliflower with Lemon Zest
• Roasted Cherry Tomatoes
• Tart Cherry Tabbouleh
• Eggplant Salad with Roasted Tomatoes

By Jeanine and Jack.

We love to eat, travel, cook, and eat some more! We create & photograph vegetarian recipes from our home in Chicago, while our Shiba pups eat the kale stems that fall on the kitchen floor.