Crunchy Chickpeas With Sesame, Cumin and Lime

Crunchy Chickpeas With Sesame, Cumin and Lime
Con Poulos for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.
Total Time
45 minutes
Rating
4(302)
Notes
Read community notes

It's a bit more work than just tossing chickpeas, oil and spices together onto a sheet pan, but dry-roasting the beans first, then stirring them into oil that's been infused with spices encourages the seasoning to cling to the bean. Here, nutty sesame seeds are combined with earthy cumin before being tossed with roasted chickpeas and a little lime zest for brightness. They make a nice addition to a charcuterie plate or as a topping for roasted vegetables such as carrots or baby turnips. They also make a great high-protein snack for kids of all ages.

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Ingredients

Yield:About 1 cup
  • 1(15-ounce) can chickpeas, drained and patted very dry
  • teaspoons sesame seeds
  • 2tablespoons olive oil
  • 1teaspoon cumin
  • 2teaspoons lime zest
  • Kosher salt
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)

216 calories; 10 grams fat; 1 gram saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 6 grams monounsaturated fat; 2 grams polyunsaturated fat; 25 grams carbohydrates; 7 grams dietary fiber; 4 grams sugars; 8 grams protein; 269 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Heat oven to 400 degrees. Spread chickpeas out evenly on a sheet pan and roast until crisp and golden in spots, shaking the pan occasionally, about 20 to 25 minutes. Turn off the oven and let the chickpeas hang out for another 10 to 15 minutes, checking in occasionally to make sure they do not burn. This will help keep them crunchy for an extended period of time.

  2. Step 2

    While the chickpeas roast, toast the sesame seeds in a 10-inch skillet over medium heat, stirring often so they do not burn, about 2 to 3 minutes. Set aside and wipe out the skillet. Using the same pan, heat the olive oil over medium-low heat and add the cumin. Cook, stirring frequently, until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the sesame seeds back to the skillet and stir together.

  3. Step 3

    Add the chickpeas directly to the skillet and toss together until everything is well coated. Remove from the heat, stir in lime zest and season well with salt. Serve warm. Store any leftovers in an airtight container for up to a week.

Ratings

4 out of 5
302 user ratings
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Cooking Notes

I assume "Cumin" are the whole cumin seeds, not ground, correct?

I see sesame seeds on the plate but no cumin seeds, so I’m assuming they’ve used ground cumin. On the other hand, how bad can it be if you use whichever you prefer?

Delicious with cocktails, and my guests agreed. Not really crunchy enough, though. I’ll definitely bake in the oven much longer next time.

Easy to make. Took a little longer than 15-20 minutes in the oven, but I also doubled the recipe. Used ground cumin (1.5 tsp) and a half-teaspoon of turmeric. Also squeezed a little lime juice in at the end in addition to the zest (after the chickpeas had cooled). Delicious!

I should have listened to others’ suggestions and roasted the garbanzos for at least another 25 minutes!

Amazing. I baked for 25 and left in the oven the additional 15. The method in this recipe yielded the crunchiest chickpeas of any method I’ve tried. I did add some lime juice from the lime I zested but otherwise stuck to the recipe. Even my toddler loved them.

Ground cumin or cumin seeds?

This recipe was easy to make. A microplane zester/grater made quick work of the lime preparation. As I felt the zest was not flavorful enough, I added extra lime juice. My husband loved this dish and can't stop snacking on it, but I was not a fan -- too much cumin for me.

"Wiping out the skillet" ?(step 2). Recipe directs only moderately heating olive oil before putting 'em back you've only lightly 'cooked' the cumin for around one minute....relax chefs! A few errant seeds OK! I'm trying some coconut oil next time to add another flavour dimension...? Speaking of flavour-do wait until everything's cooled quite a bit at the last step -- try addding the zest only then so as not to overly dissapate this unique mix dimension.

quick and satisfying snack! i added chopped salted peanuts and some extra salt and pepper at the end, plus a little lime juice

26 minutes using air roast on my air fryer, I like the idea of the turmeric mentioned in another comment. These are really tasty. I used half of the oil the recipe suggested.

There’s a good idea here, but I found the ratios and timing to be way off. At 25 minutes in the oven my garbanzos were a far cry from crispy; I ended up leaving them in for a full 50. 2 tbsp of oil was also nowhere near enough to coat the chickpeas, ended up using double that, and I think the cumin and lime zest could also be doubled. As others have said a squeeze of lime juice also helps. So, yeah, nice flavor profile, but don’t follow the numbers in this recipe.

Perfect use for an air fryer: I usually double the recipe and pop the beans in without drying. Air fry for 30 mins at 350, shaking the basket every five minutes or so. I find it less work than the oven method. This has become a favorite since I first made it - I love it in a salad. I always add the juice of the lime or lemon and often add garlic or onion powder. Everything bagel seasoning is lovely too.

Easy to make, great flavor and really an addictive snack. Just not really crunchy, I guess they had to stay in the oven for longer.

These never got crunchy like fried chickpeas do. After reading the comments, I patted them dry then airdried them for several hours. When I roasted them for 25 minutes, the chickpeas were still very chalky, so I let them continue to roast for 20 minutes, turned off the oven and waited an hour. Still not crispy enough to spice. Roasted them again for 20 minutes at 400 and let them cool in the oven. Still not crispy after tossing in hot oil/spice mix. Next time, I'll go back to frying.

Cooked beans from scratch. Drained in a strainer & air dried on a platter to dry for a couple of hours. Oven 375° convection - dried very quickly (25 minutes); good crunch after flavoring with oil and spices. Lots of salt at the end to get enough flavor. This spice combination is a little bland for me, so I tried a batch with Penzey's Spice Maharajah Curry and I liked the flavor. The chickpeas hardened by the 2nd day, so I probably won't make them again.

Suggest tossing the chickpeas in oil 'before' putting in oven to make them crispier

Super refreshing and simple. I didn’t have any sesame seeds handy, so I just added a teaspoon of sesame oil in the pan to give it that flavor. Great as a side or a quick healthy snack.

Slightly increased the flavor - 1.5 teaspoon cumin 1/2 teaspoon tumeric Cayenne sprinkle to taste Half a lemon or lime squeeze

quick and satisfying snack! i added chopped salted peanuts and some extra salt and pepper at the end, plus a little lime juice

I really wanted to like this. Read all the reviews and it just didn’t work out. Added lime juice and GENEROUS salt in the hopes of kicking it up a notch but it didn’t help.

Amazing. I baked for 25 and left in the oven the additional 15. The method in this recipe yielded the crunchiest chickpeas of any method I’ve tried. I did add some lime juice from the lime I zested but otherwise stuck to the recipe. Even my toddler loved them.

Cooked twice the amt of time recommended, half were crunchy and half not but at the same time they seemed overly dried out. Seasonings would not stick, lime zest didn’t stand out, I wanted to love these but I don’t think I’ll try them again.

Delicious with cocktails, and my guests agreed. Not really crunchy enough, though. I’ll definitely bake in the oven much longer next time.

I should have listened to others’ suggestions and roasted the garbanzos for at least another 25 minutes!

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