Spicy Roasted Chickpeas

Spicy Roasted Chickpeas are perfect snacks for game days or movie nights. Flavored with paprika and cumin, these are so addictive! Much healthier than store bought snacks! What's more, these stay crunchy for a long time!

Not only can you use these as delicious movie night or game day snacks, but you can also incorporate them into other recipes. For example, use them as topping on creamy spinach soup or lentil avocado salad. 

Which Chickpeas?

When it comes to cooking chickpeas, especially when making baked chickpeas, there are a couple of options to choose from.

Your first and easiest option, and the one we would recommend most, is to use canned chickpeas (in brine).

These chickpeas are preserved in a brining liquid (which is basically saltwater) to extend their shelf life. This preserving liquid also softens the chickpeas, essentially acting as the "soaking" part.

Once removed from the can, they are already semi-soft.

The second form you can find chickpeas in is dried. This form requires more work before they are ready to be used.

Can You Roast Raw Chickpeas?

To make these spicy roasted chickpeas, we use canned chickpeas which are basically chickpeas that have already been soaked and boiled. They are very soft and ready to use in other recipes.

If you are using dried chickpeas (making cooked chickpeas from scratch), we highly recommend that you soak them before roasting.  

Should You Wash Canned Chickpeas?

You should always wash canned chickpeas! Washing them removes any excess sodium and any foreign particles in the brining liquid and from the can.

The sodium (salt) content is almost halved once rinsed, providing a much healthier snack, especially considering you are adding more salt later.

How To Store

A lot of people have a misconception about how to store spicy roasted chickpeas. You should NOT place the chickpeas in an airtight container or bag. Cooked chickpeas, like all types of cooked legumes, should be allowed to breathe when stored.

When covering the oven-roasted chickpeas, it also causes them to sweat and lose all of their crispiness.

The best way to keep your chickpeas crispy during storage time is to simply place them in a container at room temperature without a lid. You can cover them with a sheet of paper towel or kitchen towel if you like. This allows them to breathe without losing their crispness.

When storing the chickpeas this way, it is highly recommended to consume them within 24 hours, but to be honest, these delicious crunchy chickpeas won’t even last that long!

Another method you can try is to store them in a plastic container or glass jar, and again covering them with a sheet of paper towel, only this time you store them in the refrigerator.

When following this method, the chickpeas will last much longer, about 3-4 days, but will lose their crispness the longer they are stored.

How To Reheat

There are a couple of ways you can reheat these easy baked chickpea snacks.

The easiest and quickest way is to heat them in a microwave. Make sure you use a microwave-safe bowl or plate, and reheat them for roughly 1-2 minutes. They will start to sizzle and pop once they're extremely hot.

The second very easy method is to reheat them on the stovetop. Place the chickpeas in a non-stick frying pan, add a bit of olive oil and allow them to reheat over medium-high heat. Make sure to stir them to prevent them from sticking or burning on one side. Reheating them by pan will take about 5-6 minutes.

The last reheating method will take much longer and make use of the oven. Heat the oven to 350°F (180°C), place the chickpeas into a lined baking tray, and bake them for roughly 10 minutes or until fully heated through.

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