Cooking chickpeas

Adding chickpeas to your diet is a great way to add protein and nutritional value. Chickpeas offer a variety of health benefits and are a rich source of vitamins, minerals and fibre. They can also improve digestion and are an extremely helpful way to manage weight and reduce the risk of various diseases.

1. Soak the chickpeas overnight: The night before you plan to cook (10-14 hours), soak the chickpeas. This reduces the cooking time and helps them cook more evenly. Empty the dry chickpeas in a bowl. Cover them with several centimetres of water and leave. If you are short of time, you can use pre-soaked tinned chickpeas (see below for more information).

2. Drain: The next day, the chickpeas will have absorbed much of the water and nearly doubled in size. Drain and rinse them gently under water.

3. Cook: Transfer the beans to a saucepan, cover with water and bring to boil over a medium heat. Reduce the heat to low and simmer gently for approximately one hour, stirring occasionally. Check to see if they are tender. Depending on their age, size, and variety, chickpeas can take anywhere from one to three hours to cook through. Add water to the pot when necessary to ensure chickpeas stay covered.

4. Cool and store: Cool the beans in their cooking liquid. They can be stored for one week refrigerated or frozen for up to three months.

Hint: Using tinned beans is a quick and easy alternative to cooking raw beans. When buying cooked tinned beans we recommend you use an organic, low salt variety. Wash them well in fresh water before adding them to the recipe.