Are Organic Garbanzo Beans Gluten-Free?

All legumes are naturally gluten-free, so garbanzo beans are as well. In fact, organic garbanzo bean flour is one of the most popular substitutes for wheat flour. It’s starchy enough to allow for quality baking and is much more nutritious. Therefore, you can enjoy it even if you aren’t on a gluten-free diet.

Garbanzo bean flour cookies and vegan raw cakes taste fantastic regardless of whether they are sweet or savory. Try making some spiced with garlic powder or sweetened with maple syrup and cinnamon.


Are Organic Garbanzo Beans Paleo?

Organic garbanzo beans offer a variety of benefits to a healthy diet. They are very nutritious and taste great. However, no legumes fit the stringent guidelines of the Paleo diet because they are high in carbs.

The most devoted practitioners of Paleo consume 100-150 grams of carbohydrate a day, or even less. Including legumes into your meal plan would be nearly impossible if that is your goal.

In case carbohydrates aren’t a concern for you personally, you can enjoy an occasional serving of organic garbanzo beans even on a Paleo diet. Be sure to soak them for at least 8 hours and cook thoroughly. This will make the legumes easier to digest.


Garbanzo Beans for Dogs: Safety Considerations

Organic garbanzo beans are one of the few legumes that are safe for dogs. However, you shouldn’t give your pooch too much as they are high in calories. A handful of mashed beans mixed with food once every few days would be best.

Note that you must never give your dog spiced garbanzo beans. Canned are allowed, but only after you rinse them thoroughly. These products contain a variety of ingredients that can be bad for your furry friend, so try to avoid them. Plain unsalted organic garbanzo beans would give your pooch quite a big nutritional boost. Some manufacturers even include them in grain-free dog food. However, make sure the beans are cooked through perfectly. They would be too hard for an animal’s stomach to digest otherwise.


Organic Garbanzo Beans: Nutritional Info

Organic garbanzo beans nutrients are the main reason why this legume is considered one of the best. Vegans and vegetarians, in particular, should enjoy them frequently as chickpeas have a high content of iron. Every cup of cooked beans provides you with 26% of the recommended daily amount (4.7mg).

However, a cup of cooked garbanzo beans also contains about 270 calories, so plan your meals carefully. About 50% of their nutritional value comes from dietary fiber (12g) and protein, so garbanzo beans are safe for a weight management diet.

Other important nutrients you can get from a serving of this legume include:

• Folate
• Vitamin B6
• Thiamin
• Vitamin C
• Calcium
• Manganese
• Copper
• Zinc
• Potassium

Because a cup of cooked beans contains 14.5g of easily digestible plant protein, bodybuilders can add chickpeas to their diets. The advantage of this food is that it has very little fat, unlike meat protein sources.


Organic Sprouted Garbanzo Beans: Are They the Best?

Organic garbanzo beans, sprouted or not, are nutritious and very good for you. However, it’s true that sprouting releases some chemicals ‘locked’ in the seed. This happens to help the tiny bean grow into a mature plant, and you can benefit from the nutrient extra boost.
Sprouting also removes elements, which make the bean hard to digest.
 
Like all legumes, garbanzo beans contain phytic acid and other chemicals designed by nature to protect the seed. Pre-soaking and sprouting destroys these elements and allows you to enjoy all the best garbanzo beans have to offer.

If you prefer the extra nutrition that comes with sprouts, you might also consider making organic sprouted garbanzo bean flour. It’s a lengthy process as you’ll need to sprout the legumes first. Then, you’ll have to dry them thoroughly using a dehydrator or an oven. When they are dry and cool, you can start grinding.

Like whole beans, organic garbanzo bean flour is nutritious and good for you regardless of whether the seeds are sprouted or not. However, sprouts in every form have a much shorter shelf life, so don’t store this flour for more than a month in the fridge. Up to 2 weeks is best.


How to Sprout Your Garbanzo Beans

Organic garbanzo beans are easy to sprout. As they won’t last long, think carefully about using more than half a cup of legumes. The length of sprouting (and resulting length of sprouted stalks) is optional.
If you plan to use them in cooking, short-sprouted variety would be best.
 
However, in salads and sandwiches, where you serve them fresh, longer plants will be better. They become juicier this way, which will also help make an exceptional raw garbanzo beans hummus.

1. Wash the beans first to remove dust.
2. Soak organic garbanzo beans (dried) overnight using 2 parts of water or more for a part of legumes.
3. Put your garbanzo beans in a colander to drain (use stainless steel) and rinse them thoroughly.
4. Leave them in that same colander to sprout. Put the thing over a bowl and cover with cheesecloth. This way, the air will move freely, but your garbanzo beans will be safe from flies and contamination.
5. Rinse and drain the chickpeas several times a day (2-3 or more in hot weather) and keep them out of direct sunlight.

Using this method, Garbanzo beans should sprout in about 3 days. Let them grow for 5 if you want to get delicious, long sprouts.

Rinse and drain your garbanzo bean sprouts once they are ready and let them air-dry thoroughly. Then, put in an airtight container and keep in the fridge for up to a week.

If you are particular about not eating raw food, steam organic garbanzo bean sprouts for about 10 minutes. This won’t affect the taste much, but will make the legume easier to digest.

Organic Garbanzo Beans (Dried): Cooking Tips

When cooking organic garbanzo beans (dry), you can use your favorite recipe for legumes. This product requires pre-soaking overnight. However, you can speed-soak them in boiling hot water for 1-2 hours.
Garbanzo beans cook rather fast as compared to some other legumes. Bring them to a boil and let simmer for about 1 ½ hours.


Organic Garbanzo Beans: Roasted & Seasoned

There are a great many ways to enjoy cooked organic garbanzo beans. You can add them to salads, soups, stews, and ultimately use them as a substitute in any other recipe with legumes. However, the most popular, and arguably most delicious, garbanzo beans snack is serving them roasted and seasoned with spices.

The advantage of this method is that it allows you to change the flavor to suit your personal tastes or the occasion. You can make them sweet with honey and cinnamon, salty with olive oil, or hot with sesame seed oil and chili powder. Variations are endless and you will definitely enjoy experimenting.

To get the best result every time, use these tips for roasting garbanzo beans perfectly:

• Let your organic garbanzo beans dry completely after cooking. Pat them a few times with a paper towel to remove the maximum of excess moisture.
• Toss the beans in olive oil and be generous with it to ensure they are crispy when roasted.
• Roast garbanzo beans at 400F for 20-30 minutes. Stir them every 10 minutes.
• Toss roasted beans in spices while they are still hot and stir carefully to coat each seed.
• Never add spices before roasting as they will burn and turn bitter.

This organic garbanzo beans snack tastes best hot, but you can serve it cold as well. In fact, it will make a great healthy snack for a road trip.


Vegan Garbanzo Beans Burger Patty Recipe:

Ingredients:

• 2 cups cooked garbanzo beans
• ½ cup shallots (minced)
• 1/3 cup dill (fresh, chopped)
• 2 tablespoons tahini
• 2 tablespoons dry bread crumbs
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice (freshly squeezed)
• ¼ teaspoon cumin seeds (ground)
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Oil for frying

Instructions:

1. Mash one cup of garbanzo beans using a potato masher. Don’t try too hard as you don’t need a smooth mass at this stage.
2. Add shallots, dill, breadcrumbs, and lemon juice to mashed chickpeas and mix thoroughly.
3. Combine the rest of chickpeas with tahini, cumin, salt and pepper and process in a blender until smooth.
4. Mix both bowls of garbanzo beans together and form burger patties by hand.
5. Cook your veggie burgers on medium heat in a skillet until they turn golden on both sides. Be careful not to flip too much to keep your patties intact. Drain excess oil by placing burgers on paper towels.

You can eat these delicious garbanzo beans patties right away or store them in the fridge for up to a week. If you want to save time on future cooking, put them in the freezer.