Crunchy Curried Chickpeas

I’m the kind of girl who eats a little something every few hours, so snacks are a big part of my day. Typically I eat yogurt, popcorn, an apple, a granola bar or some steamed edamame. Oftentimes, I lose all willpower and eat cake.

This chickpea recipe, from a cookbook long neglected, fulfills many snack requirements: they are crunchy, well spiced with sweet curry and have that amazing sweet and salty attribute which I am such a sucker for. The downside of this unique snack is that I could eat all the goodness in one sitting, easily.

For two cups:

• 1 can chickpeas, drained, rinsed and dried with paper towels


• 3 tablespoons sugar


• 3 tablespoons peanut oil


• 1 teaspoon kosher salt


• 2 teaspoons sweet curry powder

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees. In a small bowl, combine the salt and curry powder and set aside.

Heat the peanut oil over medium high heat in a large skillet and add the chickpeas and the sugar, stirring gently every few minutes so as not to break them up, until they are a golden caramel color, about 6-8 minutes.

Transfer the chickpeas to a bowl and pour the spice mixture over them, stirring well but gently to coat. Pour the chickpeas onto a sheet pan and place in the oven for 45-50 minutes, giving the pan a small shake occasionally. Allow them to cool completely on the sheet pan, and then transfer to an airtight container which is sort of unnecessary because they will very likely be eaten straight away.

One thing to note, I made two batches of these and found it takes a bit of chance cooking them just right. If they are undercooked, they don't crunch up and if they are overcooked, they are teeth-shattering rocks. Don't stray from the 45-50 minute cooking time.

Adapted from a recipe in Taste by Williams Sonoma.