Spicy Crispy Roasted Chickpeas
The secret to making spicy roasted chickpeas that actually stay crispy for DAYS? Making sure to fully dehydrate them in your oven after roasting them! It’s so easy make this healthy, high-fiber, high-protein snack with only 5 minutes of prep and a handful of ingredients.
Crunch crunch crunch nom nom nom. Oh, pardon me, I was just noshing on the most addictive snack ever… Spicy Crispy Chickpeas! These are yummy, spicy, crunchy, and versatile… and they couldn’t be easier (or cheaper!) to make.
Not to mention they are high in fiber, high in protein, and low in fat, which makes them the perfect guilt-free energy boosting midday munchie.
I don’t know about you, I always find it difficult to find healthy snack foods that I actually WANT to eat. Fruit is usually my go-to healthy snack, but sometimes you just want something salty, savory, and crunchy to munch on.
Roasted chickpeas are a healthy substitute for not-so-healthy snacks such as potato chips, and will give you that salty and flavorful crunch you are looking for with completely natural, unprocessed ingredients.
You can eat them on their own, add them to a trail mix, or even use them in place of croutons in a salad (I love using them in this roasted chickpea salad!). They’d be a great addition to a cheese board or charcuterie plate.
And while I used cayenne pepper and cumin to season mine, you can use other spice combinations, both savory and sweet, with this basic roasting method.
How to make CRISPY spicy roasted chickpeas in the oven
If you’ve ever made roasted chickpeas before, perhaps you’ve run into the problem that they are delicious fresh out of the oven, but tend to get a bit soggy after a day or so. Not these! These roasted chickpeas. stay crunchy for DAYS after baking them.
The trick is dehydrating them fully in the oven! Kind of like with oven-dried tomatoes. Here’s how.
- Just drain and rinse some cooked chickpeas, and pat dry with a paper towel.
- Mix in a bowl with just a little bit of olive oil (if you use too much, the chickpeas may “pop” in the oven, or become soggy), salt, pepper, cayenne pepper, and cumin, then spread on a parchment-covered rimmed baking sheet.
- Bake at 400 degrees for 30-40 minutes.
Now, for the top-secret awesome trick. After you are done roasting, turn off the oven, and allow the oven to cool with the chickpeas still inside.
The key to the crunchiest roasted chickpeas is to completely dehydrate them. Food is usually dehydrated at a low temperature for a long amount of time.
By allowing the chickpeas to continue to cook at a low temperature after roasting at a high temperature, you will continue to cook the inside and dehydrate the chickpeas completely without burning them. Leave them in until the oven cools, or even as long as overnight.
Tips and tricks
- Save energy by roasting them in the oven with other things. I made these while I was baking meatloaf, in preparation for snacks for the upcoming week. It’s easy to throw them in the oven with other things you are cooking, since there is so little prep involved, to save time and not waste energy cooking them on their own. I turned off the oven and, while we were eating, I kept the chickpeas in the oven until they were cool. When we cleaned up from dinner, I was able to transfer them to a mason jar to store.
- Make sure you pat the chickpeas as dry as possible after rinsing them off. This will help ensure they crisp up in the oven and not remain waterlogged.
- Store the roasted chickpeas in an airtight container or mason jar. Otherwise, they may become stale.
How long will roasted chickpeas last, and stay crispy, for?
These roasted chickpeas are best consumed within 5 days, and will remain crispy for that long.
Make sure to store them in an airtight container or jar. And they’re fine at room temperature!
Other roasted chickpea recipes
- Cinnamon Sugar Roasted Chickpeas from Sally’s Baking Addiction
- Honey Sesame Roasted Chickpeas from Simply Scratch
- Indian Spiced Roasted Chickpeas from 100 Days of Real Food / A Spicy Perspective
- Parmesan and Herb Baked Chickpeas from The Clever Carrot
- Spicy Roasted Chickpeas with Rosemary and Brown Sugar from Cookin’ Canuck
Other healthy snack recipes
- Peanut Butter and Banana Energy Bars
- Breakfast Cookies
- Easy Classic Hummus
- Rosemary and Honey Roasted Almonds
- No-Bake Granola Bars
Browse all my snack and appetizer recipes here.
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Crispy Spicy Roasted Chickpeas
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Ingredients
- 15 oz. canned chickpeas drained and rinsed
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin
- 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt or to taste
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper or to taste
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F and line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Pat chickpeas dry with a paper towel or clean kitchen towel.
- Mix drained and rinsed chickpeas (15 oz.), olive oil (1 tablespoon), cumin (1/2 teaspoon), cayenne pepper (1/8 teaspoon), kosher salt (1/2 teaspoon), and black pepper (1/4 teaspoon) in a medium bowl until all chickpeas are well-coated.
- Spread chickpeas on prepared baking sheet evenly so they aren't touching.
- Roast for 30 minutes at 400 degrees F.
- Turn heat off, and keep chickpeas in the oven until cool. (I recommend at LEAST an hour). If you have an electric oven, I recommend cracking the door open (see notes for more info about this!).
- Store chickpeas in an airtight container or jar for up to 5 days.
Notes
- You can leave the chickpeas in the cooled oven for hours, or even overnight, if you wish. This is a great option if you need to leave the house. Just don’t forget they’re in there! :-)
- Play around with the spices- you can use this same cooking method with different spice combinations, both savory and sweet.
- This recipe yields only about 1 cup of roasted chickpeas. If you want to make more, simply double, triple, or quadruple the recipe. You may need to use two baking sheets to ensure the chickpeas don’t touch if you more than double it.
- Some readers have commented that the chickpeas come out burned and inedible. One reader commented that it’s likely they are using an electric oven. I wrote these instructions for a gas oven. Gas loses heat more quickly than electric, so with more heat retained in electric, the chickpeas may burn even after turning the oven off. That’s why if you are using an electric oven, it may be a good idea to crack open the oven door to help release the heat faster.
Nutrition
Nutrition Information Disclaimer
The provided nutrition information is my best estimate and reflects one serving of the recipe (total servings indicated at top of recipe card). It does not include any added sodium from seasoning to taste, any optional ingredients, and it does not take brands into account. I use an automatic API to calculate this information. Feel free to calculate it yourself using one of these tools:
This post originally appeared on Bowl of Delicious in March, 2015. It has been republished with new photos, improved recipe instructions, and more pertinent information.
This recipe is was a great find… It smelled so good baking in the oven! I’m adding the chickpeas to our salad for tonight’s dinner
So glad you liked it!
Ignore the oven temperature stated here. Should be way lower.
Please see recipe card note about this. Here, I copied and pasted it below.
Some readers have commented that the chickpeas come out burned and inedible. One reader commented that it’s likely they are using an electric oven. I wrote these instructions for a gas oven. Gas loses heat more quickly than electric, so with more heat retained in electric, the chickpeas may burn even after turning the oven off. That’s why if you are using an electric oven, it may be a good idea to crack open the oven door to help release the heat faster.
Mine burnt after leaving them in the oven so long after baking. Maybe leave the oven door open?
I wonder if your oven runs hot? Or maybe its just reallllly good at containing heat? Leaving the door open might help with that for sure, or even opening it just for a little and then closing it to trap some heat back in.
If you have an electric stove, it holds heat in the coils long after shut off. Gas stoves lose heat fast. I’m going to try cracking my door
GREAT point! I never thought of this! I’m going to add a recipe note about this to the card right now. Thank you so much for bringing this up!
So I added paprika and was worried about them being soggy so I cooked them for 45 minutes; I put the chickpeas in the oven while it heated so the chickpeas would dry even more then a simple pat dry. I thought it was pretty good it was crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside like a sunflower seed. The flavor profile is good and I think smoke paprika would have made for a deeper flavor. Will use this recipe again
Glad you liked it!
Delicious
So glad you liked them!
Thus dud nit work for me at all. They were left in oven after and came out very soggy.
Oh no! Sorry you had a frustrating experience. It’s possible that the chickpeas were too wet when they were added to the oven- next time you make it (or for anyone else reading this comment), be sure to pat them dry very well before adding them to the oven. And keep in mind, they won’t be as crispy as something like potato chips or completely dehydrated chickpeas, but they shouldn’t be soggy either. Hope that helps!
super , good recipe, can’t stop eating
So glad you like it!
They are very spicy, which I don’t mind but if you don’t like intense heat you may want to go lighter. But I followed the recipe exactly: patted them dry after rinsing , exact amount of olive oil, exact cooking time and left in over for an hour after to cool down and still they are not crispy at all. Very soggy, :(
Oh no! So sorry this happened to you. I’m going to add this to my list of recipes to cook again and troubleshoot- hopefully I can come up with some solutions so this doesn’t happen to anyone again. I’ll report back once I figure it out :-)
Do you move them around on the baking sheet while cooking to ensure an even crisp on all sides?
Nope! Just leave them alone and they’ll be fine :-)
I haven’t tasted them yet but at only 15 minutes they started burning..burning to the point where my smoke alarm went off.
Oh no! So sorry that happened. My instinct is telling me that perhaps you forgot the oil? This seems like something that would happen if the chickpeas were too dry. Other than that, maybe your oven rack was placed really close to the top of the oven or something? Or maybe your oven just runs really hot. This has never happened to me when I’ve made these, or anyone else that’s made them, and it’s very similar to many other roasted chickpea recipes out there. If you happen to try it again, whether it’s my recipe or someone else’s, I’d check to ensure that there is definitely oil, and maybe try a lower temperature for your oven. Hope that helps!
Hey! Looks delish! Do you think I could roast and then dehydrate in the dehydrator?? Thanks!
Oooo what a great idea! Probably! I’d love to know how it comes out if you try it :-)
I was searching for a healthy snack when I came across this recipe. My husband said there was no way he was eating chickpeas. He liked the smell when they were cooking. So I was able to get him to try just one. Now I have to increase the amount I make because he’s eating them up on me! Thanks for sharing this recipe!!
So happy you and your husband liked them! They taste so different when they are roasted- glad you got him to try them!
I followed this and they were absolutely crunchy and delicious however they did get soggy even in an airtight contain. Yes, I followed the instructions exactly.
Oh no! They definitely get a little stale after a while but shouldn’t really be soggy. My guess is one of two things may have gone wrong: 1) they need to be completely cool- like 100% cool- before storing them (otherwise the heat as they cool will cause them to be soggy) and 2) maybe they didn’t dry out quite enough (could have happened with your specific oven temp, the liquid amount on the chickpeas before baking, the ventilation in the oven, etc.). Maybe next time try cooking them for a little longer at a lower temperature to dehydrate them a little more. Hope that helps and sorry you had a frustrating experience! So glad they were delicious right out of the oven :-)
Thanks for the recipe, I have been wanting to try these for a while!
Hope you like them! :-)
I have made these before but didn’t quite come out perfect but they were still yummy. I am trying them again but this time I am following the recipe. I will let you know how they came out.
Thanks
This is so good Elizabeth!! Miss y’all :)
Aw thanks Melanie! We miss y’all too :-)
I have been searching for chickpea croutons, and I have to tell you that these ones seem really good. Thanks a lot for the tip about leaving them in the oven.