Articles · Cupboard staples
The tin of chickpeas you keep forgetting
A tin of chickpeas is the most useful thing in the cupboard and the least used. Here is how to get it onto a plate tonight.
Everybody has one. It came home with a shop months ago, it has never been the reason for a meal, and it will still be there next year if nothing changes. That is the whole problem with a tin of chickpeas: it never goes off, so it never gets used.
Dry them before they go near heat
Drained is not dry. Tip them onto a tea towel and roll them about until the surface looks matte. Wet chickpeas steam and stay soft; dry ones blister and crisp, and that is the entire difference between a side dish and something worth eating on its own.
Give them more heat than feels sensible
A hot pan and a bit of patience does more than any spice mix. Leave them alone until they have colour on one side before you shake the pan. Season after, not before, or the salt draws out moisture at exactly the wrong moment.
Or do nothing at all to them
Cold, straight from the tin, with something sharp and something oily, they are a lunch. This is not a compromise; it is what most of the world does with them.