Wide Open Table is a bi-monthly Montana Free Press column on all things food and cooking. Sign up for this newsletter here.
We’ve seen the price tags of just about everything go up in the last several years, including food. We are paying more for staples these days, and it shows when the cashier hits the “total” button at the end of a grocery store run.
This is not an economics column, and I’m not qualified to offer any remedies for inflation. But I can offer a little help in the way of a tasty, affordable snack. Ready-to-eat snack foods can be notoriously expensive, and we eat them when we’re desperate, and when we don’t have time to look for a more affordable choice.
One snack food that has grown in popularity over the last decade is crispy chickpeas. They come in pouches with different flavor options and are sold in nearly every grocery store as a protein-packed alternative to potato chips and the like.
Take a look at the ingredients list and then the price for those pouches — the markup is huge! You can make them yourself at home for a quarter of the cost and customize the flavors and seasonings to your own personal taste buds. And I’m always a fan of using an ingredient that grows in abundance in Montana.
As I explained earlier this year in my homemade hummus column, Montana just happens to be #1 in the U.S. for chickpea production. But you wouldn’t know it by looking at most restaurant menus in our state. Many of us lack knowledge about how to work with this Big Sky bumper crop.
This recipe starts with dried chickpeas grown by Montana farmers. You can easily find them online, and usually in your local grocery store. Sure, you could skip a few steps by starting with canned chickpeas, but it’s not as much fun, and it’s also not as economical as buying a one-pound bag, considering how large dried chickpeas get when they’re soaked and cooked. Save even more money by getting a 10-pound bag, enough for many months of cheap and tasty snacks.
An added benefit to scratch-made crispy chickpeas is knowing exactly what is going into your food. By starting with dried chickpeas and adding ingredients that you can count on two hands, you get the satisfaction of knowing you’re avoiding unidentifiable additives.
This chili-and-lime combo is a favorite of mine. It’s got a bit of a kick, a hit of citrus, and some other foundational seasonings that make for just the right complement to the ultra-satisfying crunch of the crispy chickpeas. It’s a substantial snack that can keep you going between meals.
Once you dial in the cooking method, you can adjust the flavors to your own taste and customize these snacks in ways that check all the right boxes for you. Lemon and herbs? Plain old salt and pepper? I can think of 100 combos that would beat anything you’re likely to see in stores. And you won’t be breaking the bank.
CRISPY CHILI & LIME CHICKPEA RECIPE
1 cup dried chickpeas
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp granulated garlic
1/4 tsp freshly cracked black pepper
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp cumin
1 lime
optional: 1/2 tsp cayenne
Take one cup of dried chickpeas and soak them overnight in three cups of water. In the morning, drain off the water and put the hydrated chickpeas in a medium saucepan with about 6 cups of water. Bring to a boil and then adjust to a simmer. Let them simmer for 30 minutes. Remove from heat and allow the chickpeas to cool in the liquid.
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Once the chickpeas have cooled, spread them onto paper towels and dab dry.
Place the chickpeas in a large bowl and add the olive oil, kosher salt, granulated garlic, black pepper, chili powder, and cumin. Add optional 1/2 tsp cayenne if you want to bump up the heat.
Stir well to coat each chickpea with oil and spices. Line a baking tray with parchment paper and spread the chickpeas on the tray in one layer.
Bake for 25 minutes. Bring the tray out of the oven and shake it to shift the chickpeas. Place them back in the oven for another 25 minutes. Remove the tray and shift the chickpeas again. Zest a whole lime over the chickpeas and sprinkle more kosher salt if desired.
Place the chickpeas back in the oven, but turn off the heat. The residual heat will continue to cook the chickpeas. Leave them in the oven for about an hour and then they should be ready to eat. Save any leftovers in an airtight container for up to a week.
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