How to Make Chickpea Flour (2024)

BySara December 12, 2022January 13, 2023 Updated January 13, 2023

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Find out how to make chickpea flour in three different ways using a single ingredient! It’s a nutrient-dense, gluten-free alternative to regular flour that you’ll love!

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It’s no secret that I’m a huge fan of chickpeas.

It doesn’t matter whether I’m cooking Mediterranean-inspired food, indulging in Indian cooking (hello chickpea curries!), a lunch bowl, or some roasted snacks – I am a bit obsessed.

That’s when I came across this gluten-free homemade flour.

Chickpea flour is such a staple ingredient in plant-based cooking. You can use it in many recipes, including protein-rich farinata – one of my favorites, chickpea pancakes, and vegan egg muffins.

And don’t even get me started on its incredible nutritional value.

Now, you might not believe me, but making your own flour is just as easy as hopping over to the grocery store for a pre-made bag.

And if that wasn’t enough good news, chickpea flour requires just one ingredient and a high-speed blender.

And if you make it yourself, you’ll know exactly what you eat.

100% pure chickpeas!

I’m going to run you through three methods you can use to make this flour with simple steps.

Just as a heads-up, I usually use the raw chickpea method (because I am all for speed). But the soaked chickpea method makes a more digestible flour.

What you’ll need

You’ll only need a few ingredients to make the chickpea magic happen.

These are:

• Dry chickpeas (otherwise known as garbanzo beans!)
• A powerful blender or food processor
• A trusty sieve

How to Make Chickpea Flour

I am going to share with you three methods to make chickpea flour, using:

• Dry raw chickpeas
• Washed then dried chickpeas
• Soaked then dried chickpeas

Option 1: Raw chickpeas

This is the quickest method to make your own flour and the one I often use for speed.

A warning: Chickpeas can be dirty or sprayed with chemicals. As you’re not washing your chickpeas with this method, using organic chickpeas is key!

1. Blend the chickpeas: Blitz your raw chickpeas in a high-speed blender, spice grinder, or food processor until powdery. I found that using a food processor is slightly better for grinding things down, but anything that blitzes your chickpeas into a finely-milled powder is perfect.

2. Sift: Sift the ground chickpeas to separate the fine chickpea flour from large pieces that might remain. Put the milled powder to one side and blend the bigger lumps again until they match the rest of the powder.

3. Store: Store your raw chickpea powder in an airtight container or glass jar for up to 3 months. But honestly, you’ll be lucky if it lasts that long!

FYI: On average, 1 cup of dry chickpeas makes around 1 1/2 cups of chickpea flour. So keep this in mind when measuring raw chickpeas.

Option 2: Washed chickpeas

This option is perfect if you are unsure about your chickpea’s origin or want to save money and avoid buying organic chickpeas.

1. Wash the chickpeas: Wash your chickpeas under cold water to remove any dust and dirt. Be thorough with this, as you’ll want to get rid of all impurities for the perfect flour! Dry the chickpeas with a kitchen towel.

2. Dry: Then place them on a baking sheet in a single layer (make sure nothing is touching!) and leave them at room temperature until completely dry (this can take 2-3 days!). You can also pop them in the oven for 2-3 hours at 200F (100C) if you’re in a rush.
3. Blend away: Put your dried chickpeas into a high-speed blender or food processor until a fine powder forms.
4. Sift and store: Sift your chickpeas for large lumps. If you find any, put them back in the blender, sift until everything is uniform, and store them away.

Option 3: Soaked chickpeas

Although this option is the most time-consuming, soaking the chickpeas makes the resulting flour more digestible and helps with nutrient absorption.

1. Wash the chickpeas: Wash the chickpeas thoroughly in cold water and soak them for 12-24 hours. The longer, the better. You’ll want to cover them with at least three times their volume in water. This is because the chickpeas will expand as they soak.

2. Drain and dry: Drain your chickpeas and rinse them well. Then, dry them with a kitchen towel.
3. Put them in the oven: You’ll want to place your dried chickpeas on a baking sheet in a single layer. You can then dry them in the oven on medium heat (around 200F or 100C) for 8-10 hours or place them in a dehydrator for 12 hours at 120F (50C).

By the way…

If you use this method, your chickpeas must be completely dry (before you go nuts with the blender!). Otherwise, you’ll end up with a mushy paste instead of chickpea flour! I usually break open a single chickpea (one of the bigger ones) after drying to test the waters before blending.

Why I love making my own chickpea flour

• It’s ridiculously easy when you have a high-speed blender.
• It’s cheaper than buying overpriced bags from the grocery store.
• A great substitute to have on hand for gluten-free recipes.
• Tends to be fresher than store-bought versions that were made months ago.
• You know what’s in it!

How to use chickpea flour

There are so many amazing chickpea flour recipes out there.

I’ll sometimes throw a small spoonful into my favorite chickpea curry to thicken things up. But it’s also fabulous in vegan egg muffins, farinata or socca, chickpea flour tortillas, vegan French toast, and even chickpea flour crepes if you’re feeling sweet.

And pizza dough? Sign me up!

Oh, and don’t even get me started on these vegan Yorkshire puddings when the holidays roll around. They’re sensational drizzled with plant-based gravy and are the perfect match for a glorious nut roast.

Talk about mouthwatering!

If you decide to try making homemade chickpea flour, I’d love to hear how you manage. And if you try this recipe, leave me a comment and let me know how much you liked it!

If you try this chickpea flour recipe, please leave a comment and a rating and let me know how much you liked it!

Did you make this recipe? Tag @gatheringdreams on Instagram. I want to see it!