Alton Brown's Salad Spinner Hack For Effortlessly Drying Chickpeas
You probably know that chickpeas, also known as garbanzo beans, are the base for traditional hummus. Chickpeas can do more than become the famous pureed spread, however. Chickpeas are perfect for bulking up a Mason jar salad because the salad's dressing won't make them soggy overnight, and they can also add heft and flavor to a light vegetable soup. One of the most fun ways to eat chickpeas, however, is to roast them in the oven with some seasonings. Roasted garbanzo beans make an excellent snack either on their own, mixed in with other nuts and seeds for an unbeatable bar or trail mix, or sprinkled on top of a salad or soup for some extra umami flavor and crunch. The trouble is, the easiest way to buy chickpeas is pre-soaked in a can, and it can take a seeming eternity to dry them enough so they will get crispy in the oven. Chef Alton Brown tackles the problem of wet garbanzo beans in his recipe for Three Ingredient Crunchy Chickpeas by using a salad spinner to dry the beans before tossing them in seasonings and then roasting them in the oven.
Using a salad spinner to dry canned chickpeas is ingenious. But Brown, the quirky, science-obsessed face of the TV show "Good Eats," has since 1999 been teaching people practical ways to make good food, while also waging a one-man crusade against single-use kitchen gadgets.
Dry your chickpeas in the spinner, it's easy
If you've ever tried making your own roasted chickpeas, you probably know that it can take a really long time for canned chickpeas to dry out enough to get crispy when roasted. It's also important to get the garbanzo skins dry enough for oil and spices to stick to them before you place them in the oven, otherwise the seasonings will fall to the bottom of the bowl and your roasted chickpeas will be rather bland.
To get extra crispy, properly seasoned roasted chickpeas, most recipes will tell you to drain off their liquid, rinse with water, and then just pat them dry with paper towels. If you also spin your chickpeas in a salad spinner after they're drained and rinsed in a colander, they will have an extra dry surface perfect for picking up a coating of oil or salad dressing, salt, and spices. All you have to do is dump the rinsed, wet chickpeas into a standard salad spinner and crank them around a few times. Be sure to not load too many chickpeas into the spinner at once, because they won't get dry if they don't have enough room. Once the chickpeas have gone through the spinner, you can then reach for the paper towels to finish the job.
Pat the chickpeas dry with towels
Salad spinners do an amazing job of flecking away water and other moisture by using centrifugal force to pull the water away from the food. They can't remove all the moisture, however, so when you're finished spinning you will probably still need to dab your garbanzo beans with some paper towels. Brown says to spread them out on a sheet pan lined with paper towels, then cover them with more paper towels and lightly press. This will wring out any lingering moisture before you toss them with their seasonings before roasting them in the oven.
Brown is known for being against single-use kitchen gadgets. He said to NPR's All Things Considered in 2015, "I have railed against unitaskers for 20 years. I've come around to liking them as strategic gifts for people you don't like." So it makes sense that he's always looking for new ways to use kitchen tools that he already owns, and the more uses the better. Whether it's lettuce, herbs, and even chickpeas, your salad spinner is Alton-approved as a hardworking multitasker in any kitchen. And as a bonus, now you know how to get the crispiest roasted chickpeas in half the time it can often take just to dry them off.