Foolproof Cooked Chickpeas 4 Ways With Tips!

Do your dried chickpeas cook up too mushy? Or not at all? No problem! This ultimate guide shows how to cook perfect chickpeas every time, whether you use the stovetop, slow cooker, or an electric pressure cooker, such as the Instant Pot.

Included are recommendations for soaking and salting, and solutions to common problems, so that you get a perfectly tender and flavorful bowl of chickpeas at the end.

Jump to:

• 🌱 What are the types of dried chickpeas?
• 🧂 Before Cooking Up A Pot of Beans...
• ⏰ 4 Ways to Cook Dried Chickpeas
• 🧄 Ingredients
• 🔪 Equipment (Stovetop and Oven Methods)
• 📝 Instructions - Stovetop and Oven
• 🌶 Ways to Infuse Flavor Into Chickpeas
• 🤷‍♀️ FAQ
• 📇 Recipes with Chickpeas
• How to Cook Dried Chickpeas (Recipe)
• 🌱 Sign up for my emails, and get my 5 tips for easy vegetarian meals!

First of all, chickpeas are also known as garbanzo beans, and did you know that they're the most popular legume in the world?? They are particularly common in dishes made in the Middle East and around the Mediterranean Sea in general, and throughout India.

This mighty legume is an excellent source of protein for vegan and vegetarian diets, and has many uses ranging from salads, curry, soup, and pasta, to snacks, hummus and recipes that use chickpea flour.

🌱 What are the types of dried chickpeas?

There are are few types of dried chickpeas you may run into. They all carry various names, depending on where in the world you happen to be. But you cook them all the same way.

#1. Kabuli. This is the tan chickpea we most commonly see in markets, restaurants and recipes.

#2. Desi chana. Also called black chickpeas, this chickpea is smaller than kabuli chickpeas, and can be black, green or speckled. They have a subtle smoky flavor, and can be purchased on the Chili Smith website.

#3. Ceci Sultano. Also called the Umbrian Chickpea, this chickpea looks like a miniature kabuli chickpea, and has a slightly nutty flavor. It has a thinner skin, and therefore doesn't need to soak or cook as long as its larger cousin.

🧂 Before Cooking Up A Pot of Beans...

Before you starting cooking your chickpeas, or any other bean, there are decisions to be made. Where's the best place to source your beans? Will you pre-soak the beans? Will you salt the water? Read on...

Where's the Best Place to Buy Chickpeas?

There are good reasons for purchasing heirloom beans. They taste better, are fresher and more digestible. A fresher bean means they cook a little faster, and reduces the chances of getting beans that just won't soften.

There are several potential causes of beans that refuse to soften, and the age of the bean is one of them. I cover more reasons for this problem in the FAQ Section.

Also, there's a much wider variety to choose from when purchasing heirlooms.

I order all my beans from Rancho Gordo and Chili Smith, and can highly recommend both.

Do You Have to Pre-Soak Chickpeas?

It is not absolutely necessary to pre-soak chickpeas before cooking them. But I highly recommend at least a quick soak for 3 reasons:

• Soaking chickpeas in a brine solution improves their flavor by 1000% (seriously). It's night and day.
• Pre-soaking helps to prevent the beans from splitting open while they cook, and generally ensures a better texture.
• Pre-soaking saves as much as 2 hours or more when using the stovetop cook method, and about 20 - 25 minutes with the Instant Pot.

The exception is, I don't usually pre-soak my bean before sliding them into my slow cooker. The beans will cook long enough to infuse flavors into them.

There are a 2 main soaking methods: an Overnight Soak and a Quick Soak.

In addition to speeding up the cooking time, soaking helps prevent beans from splitting during cooking, and greatly improves the flavor.

Unfortunately I don't always remember to do this before heading to bed. Therefore, the below Quick Soak method is the one I generally use.

To Salt or Not to Salt?

Chickpeas (and all legumes) greatly benefit from pre-soaking in a brine solution of 1 tablespoon kosher salt per 1 cup dried chickpeas. The benefits are extended with 1 teaspoon of kosher salt per cup of dried beans during cooking.

Salting improves the flavor, and helps prevent beans from splitting open and slipping from their skins. Some experts say salt toughens their skins and prevents beans from softening, but in the hundreds of pots of beans I've cooked, I've never had that happen.

If your beans aren't softening, it's for a reason other than salt. Check out the FAQ Section for more information on this.

In fact, there are now a number of studies out explaining the chemistry around why salting during soaking and cooking is the best approach. 

⏰ 4 Ways to Cook Dried Chickpeas

There are 4 main ways to cook chickpeas, and each method has its own advantages and negatives. The primary difference between them is the amount of time each method requires.

The estimated cook times below are with heirloom chickpeas purchased from Rancho Gordo. Dried chickpeas at the market will likely take up to 25% longer.

#1. Stovetop

The water needs to stay at a low simmer, and foam should be removed, so there's some hand-holding involved with this method.

(All the details for this cooking method are below.)

#2. Oven

Same timing as Stovetop.

The foam should still be removed in the first 10 minutes on the stove, but this method requires less handholding than the stovetop method once you slide the pot into the oven.

(All the details for this cooking method are below.)

#3. Slow Cooker

No Soak: Cook on HIGH for 3 - 3 ½ hours, or on LOW for 6 - 7 hours.

I generally don't pre-soak chickpeas before cooking them in the slow cooker since I'm using this method because I don't want the chickpeas to cook too quickly. And since they'll be cooking for quite a while, flavors can easily be infused during cooking.

But if you want do an overnight soak, I've been able to cook chickpeas in the slow cooker on HIGH for 2 hours.

This is a great hands-off way to cook any kind of bean while you run errands, go skiing, or go to work.

Read this post on how to cook chickpeas in the slow cooker for more details and tips.

#4. Electric Pressure Cooker

This is the fastest method by far, and is also very hands-off.

Now, let's cook up a pot of chickpeas.

Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links to products and foods I use in my kitchen. This means that at no additional cost to you, I will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase. To view my entire storefront of recommended kitchen tools and equipment, check out my shop on Amazon.

📝 Instructions - Stovetop and Oven

Have you done everything according to the book, and sometimes still end up with hard beans? Or maybe they cooked, but they're a hot mess with the beans splitting out of their skins.

Follow these instructions for your best pot of cooked chickpeas cooked on the stovetop or in the oven. There are details in the recipe card as well.

Step 1

Sort. Spread the dried chickpeas out on a baking sheet. Pick out and discard any seriously damaged legumes and stones.

Step 2

Quick Soak. Follow the instructions in the above section: Do You Have to Pre-Soak Chickpeas? - Quick Soak.

Step 3

Cook the chickpeas. Place the drained beans back into the same pot. Add enough water or broth to cover them by at least 3 inches. Stir in 1 teaspoon kosher salt (½ teaspoon table salt) for every cup of dried chickpeas you started with.

(Soaked chickpeas will be at least twice the size of the original dried chickpeas.)

Add herbs, chiles or mirepoix for infusing flavor, if using. (See below for flavor tips.)

Step 4

Infuse flavors (optional). Add herbs, chiles or mirepoix for infusing flavor, if using. (See below section Ways to Infuse Flavors into Chickpeas for flavor tips.)

Step 5

Remove foam. Bring the pot to a boil, and then reduce to a simmer. Foam may develop in the first 20 minutes of simmering, and sporadically while the beans cook. I find this particularly true for dried chickpeas purchased at my local market, but rarely when I use heirloom beans.

Remove the foam by skimming the top of the water with a large metal spoon.

The foam negatively affects the texture of the cooked chickpea, and promotes splitting.

Tip: Place a small bowl of water next to the stove. After skimming some foam off the top, dip the spoon into the bowl of water. This easily removes the foam from the spoon, readying the spoon for another scoop of foam.

Step 6

Cook. Either continue to simmer on the stovetop until the chickpeas are tender, or cover and slide the pot into a 350˚F preheated oven to continue to cook.

The oven method creates a more even cooking since all surfaces of the pot are evenly heated. But the cooking time will be approximately the same.

The length of cook time will depend on the age of the dried chickpeas, whether they were pre-soaked, the hardness of your water, and type of cooking pot you use. My stovetop is gas, and have not testing them using electric or induction stovetops.

Step 7

Check beans for doneness: Spoon out a bean and cut it in half. It should be firm but tender, and a consistent color and texture through the thickness of the bean. If you bite into it, it should have a little bite to it, similar to al dente pasta, but not hard nor mushy.

Step 7

Final soak (optional). When the chickpeas are done, turn the stove off, cover the pot, and allow the chickpeas to completely cool in the leftover broth. This last soak adds flavor and promotes a creamy texture.

Drain and discard vegetables that were added for flavor.

🌶 Ways to Infuse Flavor Into Chickpeas

Herbs

Most delicate herbs will fall apart during cooking, but a bay leaf is a great addition. If you choose to add more delicate herbs, wrap them in cheesecloth before adding them to the pot. This holds them together better, and makes them easier to remove at the end.

Dried Chiles

Add 1 dried ancho, guajillo or chipotle chile to the cooking water, or a couple arbol dried chiles. I keep all on hand, and like this collection of dried chiles in resealable bags.

Mirepoix

Add ½ cup chopped celery, ½ cup chopped onion, ¼ cup chopped carrot, and 3 large smashed garlic cloves to the stock water you will use for cooking the chickpeas. Sauté the mirepoix before adding to the stock water for added flavor.

I recommend wrapping the mirepoix in cheesecloth before adding it to the pot to make the veggies easier to remove at the end.

🤷‍♀️ FAQ

Want more vegetarian and vegan dish ideas? I can help you. I have three newsletters for different topics: 1) Vegetarian Recipes, 2) Vegetarian Meal Plans, and 3) Vegetarian Tips for helping you to move to a more vegetarian diet. Choose which newsletters are most relevant to your lifestyle and you'll also get my 5 SECRETS TO FUSS-FREE VEGETARIAN DINNERS.

📇 Recipes with Chickpeas

Now that you have a batch of perfectly cooked chickpeas, here are some ways to use them.

BLACK CHANA MASALA

SIMPLE CHICKPEA SALAD WITH OLIVES

SWEET POTATO & CHICKPEA CURRY

MEDITERRANEAN CAULIFLOWER SALAD WITH CRISPY CHICKPEAS

PAN-FRIED CHICKPEA SALAD IN A CURRIED YOGURT DRESSING

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