A couple of months ago, Paul returned from Costco with a big bag of frozen green chickpeas. I had heard about them, but never tried them, so I was pretty excited about his food find.
Green chickpeas are the raw, fresh form of chickpeas we know and love. They aren’t a fresh legume you find often in markets, but it is becoming easier to find them frozen. The taste, to me, is somewhat a cross between edamame and green peas. So, I think they would substitute well in many dishes where you might use either green peas or edamame. I first tried them in a cooked dish (briefly cooking through), and really enjoyed them. Then, I turned my thoughts to…
Hummus. Glorious ! I’ve only ever made hummus with cooked legumes, so I wasn’t sure the fam would dig this more ‘raw’ version. Plus it was green. That’s usually tricky with kids. Well, to my surprise and delight, the green chickpea hummus was a hit! With Paul and the older girls, anyhow. Our 5-year old is in the stage where everything green (other than green smoothies) is “ewwww”, so her vote doesn’t count right now. 😉
Personally, I would choose this over classic hummus… at least most days! The combination of flavors is a little addictive, and it is just so fresh and vibrant. We noshed on it straight up, but you could also use it in sandwiches and wraps, or for topping sweet spuds (that combination would be tasty)!
If you can get your hands on some frozen green chickpeas, they are worth experimenting with. If you can’t find them, try substituting frozen edamame here, or a half-and-half combo of frozen edamame and frozen green peas.
Green Chickpea Hummus
Ingredients
- 3 cups frozen green chickpeas, blanched and drained (see note)
- 1/4 cup lemon juice
- 1 medium clove garlic can use larger if you love garlic
- 1/4 cup fresh basil leaves don’t omit!
- 1/3 cup fresh parsley leaves
- 2 1/2 - 3 tbsp tahini
- 3/4 - 1 tsp sea salt
- 1/2 tsp ground cumin
- 2-3 tbsp water or more if desired to thin
- 1 tsp lemon zest optional
Instructions
- In a food processor (see note), combine all ingredients, starting with 3/4 tsp of salt and 2 tbsp of water. Puree until smoothed out, scraping down the processor bowl as needed. Taste, and add additional salt to taste, and extra water to thin out as desired. Serve!
Notes
Please share your ideas for using green chickpeas, and of course your feedback on this recipe!
Enjoy…
x Dreena
Sandi says
Hi – I had fresh chickpea hummus by Jean Georges Vongerichten at his new restaurant in Beverly Hills and have been looking for a recipe for it since then. Of course, the restaurant does not share. I did get several unique recipes (could not find frozen at my Costco in US as they only provide in Canada) so I found fresh and shelled and froze myself. Most of the recipes did not call for tahini as does regular hummus. Have you tried withou?
Amanda says
I finally had a chance to make this and am soooo glad I did!!! This is incredible. I love the texture and the flavored are so BRIGHT!! I can envision eating quite a bit of this in my future.
Maggie @ Veg Fiend says
Oooh, as a legume fanatic, I am super excited to learn about fresh chickpeas being available at Costco. I’ll need to give them a go. Your hummus looks yummus!
Sonja says
I have been buying the bags of green chickpeas at Costco for a bit – I live in the lower Mainland just like you do – but this past week when I went there was no sign of them in their usual spot by the frozen edamame and no slip to say that they had ever been there. I haven’t bought any in a month and I am hoping they will be back because I have to admit to becoming a bit addicted to them and using them all over the place – hummus and curries and salads…
Dreena says
Hi Sonja… oh, shoot! That’s too bad, I hope it’s just a temporary thing. I was SO excited when hubby spotted them. Maybe we should put in a request to the produce manager there to restock! Thanks for the note.
Shalini says
These are called choliya (or cholia) in Hindi. I loved eating them raw when I was younger, straight out of the pod. I will have to check our local Costco next time to see if they carry them. These can also be cooked with some Indian spices and potatoes for a yummy dish.
This talk of roasting chickpeas reminded me that growing up, we used to sprout black chanas (black chickpeas) for 3-4 days and then roast them on a tava (cast iron skillet used for making Indian flat bread, or rotis) with some salt. Made for a delicious and healthy snack. Even my kids enjoy this snack. I need to go sprout some black chanas now!
Dreena says
Hi Shalini, thanks for sharing your insight! I didn’t know they are also called choliya/cholia, though, interestingly the first time I used them was in an Indian curried dish.
Love your story about roasting black chickpeas too, gosh that’s really cool! I want to cook with you sometime, you have food stories to share. 🙂