Chickpea

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Chickpea (Cicer arietinum) is also known as ceci bean, garbanzo bean, chana (north India), Indian pea or Bengal gram.

High in protein, the edible legume of the family Fabaceae, subfamily Faboideae was one of the earliest cultivated vegetables because 7,500-year-old remains were found in the Middle East.

There are two main kinds of chickpea:

— Desi, which has small, darker seeds and a rough coat, cultivated mostly in the Indian subcontinent, Ethiopia, Mexico and Iran.

— Kabuli, which has lighter coloured, larger seeds and a smoother coat, mainly grown in Southern Europe, Northern Africa, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Chile and was also introduced during the 18th century to the Indian subcontinent.

Chickpeas are grown in the Mediterranean region, western Asia, the Indian subcontinent and Australia.

Mature chickpeas can be cooked and eaten cold in salads, cooked in stews, ground into a flour called gram flour (also known as chickpea flour and besan and used primarily in Indian cuisine), ground and shaped in balls and fried as falafel, to make farinata, cooked and ground into a paste called hummus or roasted, spiced and eaten as a snack (such as leblebi).

Chickpeas contain zinc, folate and protein and are also very high in dietary fiber and hence a healthy source of carbohydrates for persons with diabetes.

The legumes are low in fat and most of this is polyunsaturated. Nutrient profile of desi chana (the smaller variety) is different, especially the fibre content which is much higher than the light coloured variety.