Chickpeas

This is how I make chickpeas to use in recipes. I don't soak the chickpeas, because if you soak them before cooking, they won't absorb the flavors from the stock while they are cooking. One pound of dried chickpeas makes 6 cups of cooked chickpeas. I freeze them in 2 cup amounts to have on hand for recipes. These beans are cooked to the "al dente" point - I don't cook them until they are completely soft because I am almost always using them in a recipe where they will be cooked further, and I don't want them to be overcooked in the finished dish they will end up in. If you'd like them to be softer, just keep cooking and check every 15 minutes, until they are done to your liking. Always sort dried beans before cooking them - they often have small stones mixed in with them.

• Ready In: 2 hrs 5 mins
• Yields: 6 cups

Ingredients

• 1  lb dried garbanzo beans, sorted for debris
• 8  cups  vegetable stock
• 1⁄2 yellow onion, skin and all
• 1  bay leaf

Directions

1. Combine all ingredients.
2. Bring to a boil.
3. Stir and cover.
4. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 2 hours.
5. Remove onion and bay leaf, drain (you may reserve cooking liquid if your recipe calls for it).