Spicy Roasted Chickpeas (Chana Ka Chip)

What are the criteria for the best snacks? We’re talking savoury snacks, not cookies or candies here.

They should be at hand or very easy to make. Think popcorn.

They also have to fit in your hand or be able to be held with two, or at most, three fingers. The time it takes to get the snacks from the bowl to your mouth must be minimal. No fumbling to slow the snacking down should be tolerated.

They should be a bit noisy and crunchy, so you know you’re eating something. Think potato chips. Especially kettle cooked chips.

If they are coated, that coating should also taste great when you’re licking the coating off your fingers. Think any kind of Cheeto-type snack.

There should be a definite saltiness to them. Think pretzels, then stop. Pretzels are not worth our time.

Spicy Roasted Chickpeas tick most of the snack-criteria boxes. A snap to make, taking very little time in the oven and tasty too. Not very crunchy, but if that’s the most important part of the snack experience for you, I think the chickpeas could stay in the oven longer.

Here’s what to do:

Get a can (I halved the recipe) of chickpeas, then drain and rinse them.

Chickpeas, to be rinsed (whatfoodimade action shot™ #1!).

Dry the chickpeas, then toss with the oil and add the salt.

Add the salt (whatfoodimade action shot™ #2!).

Get the chili powder into the bowl.

Chili powder.

Add the cumin too.

Cumin.

Toss the chickpeas to coat them evenly with the flavours, then pour them onto a baking sheet and get them into a preheated oven.

Onto the baking sheet.

Shake the sheet every ten minutes so there’s no sticking and to be sure the chickpeas are roasting evenly.

After 20 minutes.

Spicy Roasted Chickpeas.

Spicy Roasted Chickpeas.

From the fantastic cookbook Made in India by Meera Sodha.

Also here:
https://goo.gl/Citnfu

Chana Ka Chip (Spicy Roasted Chickpeas)
Serves 4

These crisp, roasted chickpeas are addictive, quick to make, and even quicker polish off. In India, they are made by smashing the chickpeas flat and leaving them to dry in the sun before spicing. In England, our less favourable weather calls for oven baking.

This is a great secret pantry snack to have up your sleeve when you want something to keep you company through a couple of episodes of your latest box set or a romantic comedy. Chickpeas don’t judge.

Ingredients

2 14-ounce cans of unsalted chickpeas (salted are fine as long as you adjust the salt in the recipe accordingly)
4 tablespoons canola oil
1-1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon chili powder
2 teaspoons ground cumin

Method

Preheat the oven to 400°F and make sure your oven racks are in the middle of the oven.

Pour the chickpeas into a colander, rinse with water and shake dry. Pop them into a bowl and add the oil, salt, chili powder and cumin, then mix thoroughly until all the chickpeas are evenly coated.

Spread the chickpeas in an even layer on two oven trays and bake until crisp, for around 30 minutes, shaking them every 10 minutes to ensure they bake evenly and don’t burn.