From health foods like chia seeds to goji berries to acai, kale, quinoa & so forth, various ingredients continue to gain popularity. One that I never would have imagined to make the cut is chickpea flour a.k.a. gram flour a.k.a. besan. Being a staple in every Indian household, I guess I used to take it for granted & never even considered using it. Looking back, that’s probably due to the way chickpea flour is found in Indian cooking. For example, it’s often used in deep-fried snacks (pakoras & bhujias), sweets (ladoos & halwa), gravies (khadi) and steamed snacks (dhoklas). I’m sure I’m in the minority, but these dishes just don’t do it for me at all.
While most of these dishes provide little nutrition, that’s more due to the cooking style & amount of oil used during preparation. Chickpea flour, however, racks in some stellar benefits including:
- More protein than wheat-based flour: ½ cup contains 10g protein compared to 6g in white flour
- Various nutrients including manganese, iron, izinc, phosphorus , calcium, B vitamins and folate
- 5g dietary fiber per ½ cup serving
I enjoyed it a few Sundays ago for breakfast in the form of crepes. Between you and me, I intended to make pancakes but they turned out thinner than I hoped ;). Crepes, pancakes- they still tasted super!
I’ve recently started to embrace chickpea flour in savoury form as it’s used in France: Socca Flatbread. From pesto to marinara sauce, guac & hummus, socca flatbread pairs well with just about anything. Personally I love it best with hummus…chickpea overload much? Nahhh!
My recipe below incorporates nutritional yeast to add a cheesy flavor but if you aren’t vegan or sensitive to dairy (or if you just love the real deal), go ahead and replace it with cheese.
Now how about that recipe:
[yumprint-recipe id=’7′]What’s your go-to flour?
Is there any food you eat now that you once turned your nose up at?
Nice photos, Khushboo!
I never knew that I grew up eating chickpea flour- mum used it in her pattie recipes!
Thanks, Arman :)! Looks like your mom was trendy from way back ;)!
Waiiiit a minute..you mean all those indian sweet meats contain chickpea flour?! Well fancy that. I’ve got a good amount of indian in my blood yet I’m a disgrace in not liking those stuff. More for the family *shrugs* ..
I adore this recipe however. After being recently obsessed with chickpea everything..fuel to the fire? Why not 🙂 . I’m dying to know how exactly did you go about preparing -sweet- crepes?
Haha apparently both of us are disgraces :)! For the sweet crepes, I just mixed 1/2 cup chickpea flour with 2 egg whites & 2 tablespoons water, cinnamon + vanilla essence. Once whisked into a lump-free batter, I made it on the skillet as I would do with normal pancakes!
I went through a chickpea flour phase for a little while, haha. I made a socca pizza and some chocolate muffins that were made with chickpea flour. Kind of weird but they were both really good and I liked the nutritional value that chickpea flour adds vs. regular flour!
I need to try baking with chickpea flour!
I’ve only ever mashed chick peas and made a nice cookie dough with it, but ive never used the flour!
Chickpea cookie dough- how did it taste??
That looks so good!! I love to cook with nutritional yeast too. And crepes?? I’m in!
I once made sweet energy bites with chickpea flour. So good!
Mmm I love energy bites- more natural protein, the better 🙂
I’m pretty sure I can classify my entire diet now as one that I would have turned my nose up at in the past. I grew up hating all veggies besides carrots, corn, and potatoes, and I wouldn’t have ever considered eating something like beans, plain yogurt, avocado, or coconut oil. Thank goodness that’s all in the past, though, because those are some of my favourite foods now!
And I’m seriously loving this recipe. I have a bag of chickpea flour that I keep meaning to bust into, and now you’ve given me even more of a reason to do it!
Ooh give this a shot- I promise it’s almost fool-proof…and a good way to get through that bag of flour :)!
I don’t think I’ve ever used chickpea flour before! As for foods I’ve turned my nose up at – pretty much everything! particularly, anything to do with tomatoes or tomato sauce and beef. Some of my favourite things now!
Wait a sec, does that mean pizza was off the table for you growing up??
yup! I didn’t like it!
Crazy kid 😉
Good gosh, I had no clue besan and chickpea flour were one and the same! I have had besan treats and eats at friends homes – but (until today) I was thinking that chickpea flour was new to me…today I know I have been eating it pretty much all my life – what a revelation! Thanks Khushboo! 🙂
Your chickpea socca sounds delish – love the idea of eating with hummus too! My go to “flour” has been oat flour or rather ground up old fashioned oats – by far the most budget friendly option for me!
Mmm oat flour is definitely a favourite…aside from being so versatile, I can’t get enough of its distinct flavour 🙂
I have never cooked with the flour! But I do love chick peas!
Give it a shot!
I’ve used chickpea flour a few times – in GF cookies, in flatbread, and also in Oh She Glows’ chickpea flour pancake. I really like it’s flavour! I bet it would taste delicious with the nutritional yeast in this recipe.
I love the flavour nutritional yeast adds to it….defo worth trying 🙂
wow, what a lovely recipe. the humble besan, humble no more. 😀
also, what is nutritional yeast? is it readily found at the grocer’s?
nb. the chickpea flour is also an amazing face-pack, when mixed with a little yoghurt/curd or milk [for dry skin]. let’s call it the protein pack 😀
Thanks Ritika! That face-pack sounds super :)! I stock up on nutritional yeast when I’m in London. Here’s some more info about it:
http://blog.fatfreevegan.com/2011/10/what-the-heck-is-nutritional-yeast.html
thanks! but guess since i can’t get my hands on it, will have to stick to like you suggested, cheese. and cheese makes anything better. 🙂
Ah-greed!
This is why I love your blog- you put foods that weren’t even on my radar into the “Now I must try it!” category. It’s amazing how many foods I once turned my nose up at that I now consider staples, and vice versa!
Aww I’m so glad I can be somewhat of a source of inspiration for you, Charlotte- I think you’d enjoy this 🙂
It makes my heart happy you included a real deal cheese option. I’m fascinated by these, and I do love their nutritional profile.
Hahah hopefully your heart swells up in happiness because I can’t seem to get enough of cheese lately…I don’t even care about its effects on my stomach- WORTH IT!
Hooray for cheese. 🙂 🙂 🙂
I have never made flatbread before.. thanks for sharing this delicious and great recipe. Definitely will be recreating it!
Hope you enjoy it, Thalia 😀
Is nutritional yeast same as nutritional yeast flakes ? Please suggest a good brand
Yup the 2 are the same. The brand I buy is Marigold Engevita. Here you go: http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B003VJSBXU/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A2YAX08KOSO4G2
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Socca’s been on my to-make list for quite a while, thanks for the reminder. I like the crepe idea too! Sharing this one…
Thanks for the share, Mary! You must try this soon- it’s too easy!
Hi Khushboo –
Great idea to use besan chillas for hummus! Can we use good old baking soda instead of the yeast, and just spread it out thinner?
I don’t think baking soda will have the same effect, as the nutritional yeast is used primarily to add a cheesy flavour. If you don’t have any on hand, use grated cheese instead 🙂