Best chickpeas taste test

Here, at olive, we have a variety of ideas for using chickpeas. Discover some of our best recipes, including hummus. Chickpeas are also a star ingredient in curries, salads and pancakes. Check out our fattoush salad with crispy spiced chickpeas for a spring lunch or chickpea fritters for something filling but gluten-free. Persian food writer and chef Sabrina Ghayour also shares a recipe for chickpea and vegetable koftes with a tahini yogurt sauce. Now try our best bean recipes.

Best chickpeas at a glance

• Best ready-to-eat chickpeas: Biona organic chickpeas, £1.43
• Best for hummus: Morrisons Chickpeas, £0.55
• Best for roasted chickpeas: Mr Organic Chickpeas, £1.30
• Best all-rounder: Napolina Chick Peas, £1
• Best for a salad: Epicure organic chickpeas, £8
• Best for curries: KTC Chick Peas, £0.50

The results of the best chickpeas taste test 2022

Biona organic chickpeas

Score: 9/10

Best ready-to-eat chickpeas

Biona's chickpeas have a buttery mouth feel that are almost too good to blend. They are cooked to perfection, have a good amount of salt, and they are all consistently small in size making them good for everything from salads to wraps.

Available from:
Amazon (£1.43)
Ocado (£1.30)
Tesco (£1.10)

Morrisons chickpeas in water

Score: 9/10

Best for hummus

A particular aspect of this can of chickpeas was the quality of the liquid: it was thick and glossy, which is good to note for quick hummus as the liquid can be used. The chickpeas themselves were quite big and they were not floury at all, but deliciously buttery and soft. They had an olive oil taste on their own, too.

Available from:

Amazon (£0.55)
Morissons (£0.50)

Mr Organic Chick Peas

Score: 8/10

Best for roasted chickpeas

These chickpeas were the least salty of the bunch. There was a nutty flavour and creaminess that came through and they were evenly sized with no floating skins or even visible skins.

Available from:
Amazon (£1.30)
Ocado (£1.30)
Waitrose (pack of 4 for £4)

Napolina Chick Peas

Score: 7/10

Best all-rounder

These chickpeas generally have a little bite to them but they are a bit inconsistent in texture. They are not very salty, which is good if you want to add your own salt mix to make crunchy chickpeas or if you are looking to make your own hummus and keep an eye on the seasoning yourself. Tasters found a thin skin on these chickpeas, though this was easy to slip off.

Available from:
Amazon (£1.05)
Tesco (£0.85)
Sainsbury's (£0.90)

Epicure organic chickpeas

Score: 7/10

Best for a salad

All the chickpeas in the can were even in size, generally soft inside but with a bit of a bite, and none had a leathery skin. The chickpeas and the salted water they were held in were neutral in flavour with only a slight salty aftertaste.

Available from:
Amazon (12 for £8)
Ocado (£1.15)

KTC Chick Peas

Score: 6/10

Best for curry

Tasters found these chickpeas quite inconsistent as some were darker then others and there was a little size variation. This means they're not the best for baking into snacks or putting into a salad. There was a neutral flavour with no strong after-taste and they were generally on the undercooked side, so could do with a bit more cooking in a tomato sauce or curry.

Available from:
Amazon (£0.50)
Morrisons (£0.50)

How we tested

We chose the best canned beige chickpeas that would work for a variety of dishes. We looked for overall taste and balanced salt levels. In terms of texture, we tasted all of the chickpeas straight from the can and looked for those that would break down easily for a hummus (chickpeas that were already well-cooked) or some with a bit more bite that could work in a salad, oven-baked or cooked in a sauce, as well as those in between. We also noted the consistency in size and texture and whether the chickpeas had skins.

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If you have any questions, suggestions for future reviews or spot anything that has changed in price or availability, please get in touch at oliveweb@immediate.co.uk.