Miso Roasted Chickpeas
As the daughter of a gastroenterologist and fibre enthusiast, I have long been a fan of the bean, pea, chickpea and lentil. My BFF and I schemed up and wrote a book about them, in fact. (That I may or may not have ever mentioned won a Taste Canada award for best single-subject cookbook that year.) So I’m very excited that the World Health Organization has officially declared it the International Year of the Pulse – which is kind of a big deal. And a great thing for our Alberta pulse growers – did you know they grow in the prairies? In fact, Saskatchewan is the world’s #1 exporter of lentils. It’s true! (I love this Resolution of the General Assembly, with its very sincere and official-sounding words leading into each reason the world should love legumes: Noting, Desiring, Recognizing, Believing.)
Which is why I just got back from a couple days in Toronto – I went to help celebrate the launch yesterday, and catch up with some friends, and visit the Canadian Living Test Kitchen (squee!) and eat plenty of pulses.
The day before I left I coincidentally roasted some chickpeas with miso – I roast chickpeas a lot, but had never done it with miso, a fermented paste made generally out of soybeans that adds an interesting tangy-salty flavour to the crunchy chickpeas. Usually I roast them with oil, chili powder, cumin and salt, or just salt – they’re simple enough to make, but I often hear about people having trouble with theirs, and it’s so disappointing when they wind up with the texture of wet paper towel.
The trick, of course, is oil, and remembering that moisture is the enemy of making anything crispy – that’s why I always pat a chicken dry before oiling and roasting it – so make sure you rinse and drain your chickpeas very well, and pat them with a paper towel if you want extra insurance. Also, if you have a nice dark roasting pan, use it – the dark colour holds on to and conducts heat more efficiently than pale aluminum pans, and are perfect for things like roasted vegetables and oven fries that you want to get nice and dark and crispy.
You really don’t need a recipe to roast chickpeas – add some oil and seasonings and salt and roast them at 425F for about 20 minutes, shaking the pan occasionally, until they’re deep and dark and crisp. But I’ll include one anyway, just so that it finds its way into the proper search boxes.
Miso Roasted Chickpeas
AuthorJulie
Preheat the oven to 425F.
Rinse and drain the chickpeas well - if you like, pat them dry with paper towels - any excess moisture will keep them from getting crispy. In a small dish, stir together the oil and miso; drizzle over the chickpeas and toss to coat. (You can do this in a bowl or right on a rimmed baking sheet.) Spread out in a single layer and sprinkle with salt.
Roast for 20-25 minutes, shaking the pan once or twice, or until they're golden and crisp. Makes about 2 cups.
Ingredients
Directions
Preheat the oven to 425F.
Rinse and drain the chickpeas well - if you like, pat them dry with paper towels - any excess moisture will keep them from getting crispy. In a small dish, stir together the oil and miso; drizzle over the chickpeas and toss to coat. (You can do this in a bowl or right on a rimmed baking sheet.) Spread out in a single layer and sprinkle with salt.
Roast for 20-25 minutes, shaking the pan once or twice, or until they're golden and crisp. Makes about 2 cups.
Love chickpeas but never roasted them. Must try these and soon. Thanks for the recipe! Judy
Really love the new format of your blog. It’s so fresh and modern!
I suppose for the roasted chickpeas one could stir in a bit of sugar to get the sweet-salty thing happening. Have you tried it?
Thanks for talking through the trouble shooting… I’ve made roasted chickpeas at least three times but they’ve had that unappealing soft texture every time. I’m inspired to try again!
I just used a hair dryer to dry them off in the colander (so that they couldn’t fly around everywhere). That seems to have done the trick.
Ha! That is totally brilliant!
I just found your site and am very excited to make your black bean tacos this week! I too love chickpeas. They’re a staple in my house and everyone who comes over loves a version of recipe which I am always making. The difference for me is that I use about 2 tablespoons of flour right after I rinse the chickpeas (right in the colander) and I do this stovetop using about 2T of olive oil. I have the olive oil heated and just drop the flour coated chickpeas, add whatever spices I feel like and in less than 10 minutes I have a delicious snack.
Ooh, great idea! thanks for the tip!!
I too have failed at this yummy dish and can’t seem to get the texture right but will try again. If I don’t have miso can I just omit or should I add extra oil?? Thx and love your blog…I’m here daily for inspiration and just got your Best of Bridge slow cooker book for Christmas!!!
Oh just leave it out! No need to add extra oil!