How to make Instant Pot Chickpeas- sharing two different options, soak and no-soak! Cooking your chickpeas from scratch will save you money and tastes so much better than canned.
The Instant Pot has opened so many new opportunities to me! Exhibit A: cooking beans from scratch. Normally, this process takes a lot of time and effort, and you need to keep an eye on them while they simmer on the stove. Thanks to the Instant Pot, you can push a few buttons and have delicious chickpeas from scratch waiting for you.
Today I’m talking to you about Instant Pot chickpeas. I’ve been making my chickpeas this way for a few months now and I don’t think I can go back to canned now!
Not only does it save money (a 4 lb bag of chickpeas costs me $5.80 and is the equivalent of about 24 cups, or 12 cans of chickpeas!!), but they just taste better. Let’s discuss!
Don’t forget to pin this post to save it for later!
We love Instant Pot chickpeas because
- they save us money
- they taste way better than canned
- thanks to the Instant Pot, they are so quick & easy to make
- you can skip the soaking step if you’re like me and always forget!
- you can cut this recipe in half and cook for the same amount of time if you don’t want to eat chickpeas all month
How to cook chickpeas in an Instant Pot
Cooking chickpeas in an Instant Pot is pretty much the easiest way to cook them!
- Optional: soak overnight
- Combine chickpeas, water, salt, bay leaf and baking soda in an Instant Pot
- Pressure cook! Depending on if you soaked or not, you will use different times
- Natural release for 10 minutes, then release the rest of the pressure.
How to store Instant Pot chickpeas? Store in the fridge in a sealed container (and some of the cooking liquid) for up to 4 days. For longer term storage, freeze! I freeze in jars (leave 1/4 of the jar empty to account for expansion, and leave the jars off until completely frozen).
Why do I need to add baking soda? The baking soda helps tenderize the chickpeas and really helps them cook right through the middle (especially if you skip that soaking step!)
What is the benefit of soaking the chickpeas? This is a very controversial subject (in terms of chickpeas, LOL!). Some people swear that soaking chickpeas makes them easier to digest. I have not personally noticed a difference. What I do notice is that soaked chickpeas have a better texture all the way through than unsoaked chickpeas, so for the best result, I’d recommend soaking. HOWEVER you are still going to get a seriously delicious batch of chickpeas without soaking!
How can I use up my Instant Pot Chickpeas? Guess what? I have a LOT of chickpea recipes for ya!
- Spicy Roasted Chickpeas
- Korean BBQ Chickpea Bento Bowls
- Vegan Roasted Veggie Meal Prep + Turmeric Tahini Sauce
- Vegan Moroccan Chickpea Skillet
- Chickpea Salad Bento Box
- Instant Pot Chickpea Curry
- Thai Chickpea Mason Jar Salads
Tips & Equipment for Instant Pot chickpeas
- this is my 6 quart Instant Pot
- to cut this recipe in half, simply halve the ingredients and cook for the same amount of time
- looking for more basic Instant Pot Recipes? Check out these Perfect Black Beans, Instant Pot Spaghetti Squash and Instant Pot Steel Cut Oats!
Instant Pot Chickpeas
Ingredients
- 1 lb dry chickpeas (roughly 2 1/4 cups)
- 6-7 cups water (cover by 1.5 inches)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
Instructions
- *Optional but recommended for best texture: cover chickpeas with water and soak overnight.
- Rinse chickpeas and look through to pick out any bad ones or stones.
- Add to the Instant Pot with all remaining ingredients
- Cook on manual high pressure for 40 minutes (no soak) or 10 minutes (soaked).
- Allow pressure to naturally release 10 minutes before releasing remaining pressure.
- Cool completely and store.
Storage
- Store in a sealed container in the fridge for up to 4 days or freeze for up to 6 months.
Abha
May 20, 2019 at 11:01 amI had the same issue as Ella with my 6 quart IP. I soaked the chickpeas for 12 hours. I used a cup of chickpeas and halved everything. I did 10 min manual pressure and 10 min natural release. When I opened the valve, water spouted everywhere, water leaking out of the IP. The chickpeas were broken and way too soft. No clue what I did wrong. I have to go get canned beans now for dinner tonight.
Jody
May 5, 2019 at 1:57 pmQuestion: If I can freeze the cooked chickpeas, can I freeze them in a ziplock instead of a glass jar? Or would they do better sealed in a bag(vacuum sealed)? Thank You! I can’t wait to try these and moe away from so many cans 😉
Denise
May 8, 2019 at 9:49 amHi Jody! Yes, that should work as well! I squeeze out as much air as possible and freeze them flat so they’re easier to store. Hope you enjoy!
Ella
April 25, 2019 at 12:12 pmI have the 3 quart instant pot followed your directions using whole bag of chickpeas which I soaked overnight. pressure high 10 min 10 min rest quick release. they came out mushy funny thing about that quick release though came out shooting everywhere (: the steam turn into hot water it was a mess had to throw them away.
Next time, I still soaked overnight but I did half the bag less baking soda
came out much better but soft. 10 min low pressure 10 min rest and quick release. Last batch no baking soda 5 min low
10 min rest quick release perfect. Thank you Trial and error. FYI the chickpeas that came out soft roasting, as I type Thanks again
Denise
April 26, 2019 at 9:31 amHi Ella! If you are using a 3 quart Instant Pot, you are probably going to need to half most recipes on the internet as most people are using the 6 quart when testing these recipes. Thanks for reporting back on your cook time for the chickpeas in your 3 quart 🙂