Chickpea Flour Flatbread Recipe

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This chickpea flour flatbread is also known as Socca, and it’s wonderful for almost any meal!

Flatbread is wonderfully versatile. I’ve always enjoyed it. But the more I tweak and change my diet over time in order to make my body happy, the more I realize I just cannot handle many grains out there. It’s hard on my digestion, and they spike my blood sugar.

Clean Eating Chickpea Flour Flatbread cut into 4 pieces and layers on a cutting board. There are a few sprigs of fresh herbs sprinkled over the top.

So I find myself searching out alternatives I never would have tried before. It’s hit or miss, but when it’s a hit, it’s a HIT! Know what I mean?

Such was the case with this flatbread recipe.

Now that I’m trying out being plant-based AND almost grain-free, I find myself missing things like pizza or sandwiches. The regular stuff most of us eat on a day-to-day basis.

I recently picked up a bag of chickpea flour (garbanzo bean flour) and thought I’d try my hand at making some bread. I knew, without the gluten, I’d have a hard time making sliceable bread. So instead of falling down that rabbit hole, I stuck with the notion of flatbread.

What I love about flatbread is its versatility. You can use it as a dipping bread with hummus, a simple pizza crust or as slices of bread for a sandwich. Flatbread is sort of an “all-purpose” bread that way. There’s a reason it’s been around almost as long as the human race!

Chickpea Flour Flatbread

So I gave this recipe a try and failed miserably the first time. It lacked flavor and didn’t seem to want to cook all the way through. I was almost ready to give up but thought I’d try one more time.

I hit the nail on the head, as they say. It was superb! It has wonderful flavor and nutritious ingredients, and it can be baked or fried, as you like. It makes a marvelous pizza crust (soft but stable) and is fabulous with hummus or for a sandwich. I will say that it’s not quite as sturdy as regular, whole grain sandwich bread is, but close enough to get the job done. It’s gluten-free, 100% plant-based, and tastes amazing! Best of all, my tummy didn’t complain one bit. So I think I have my new bread recipe! I hope you’ll enjoy it!

About The Chickpea Flour Flatbread Ingredients

Chickpea flour – Plain chickpea flour with nothing else added.

Garlic granules – Or garlic powder.

Onion granules – onion powder.

Ground turmeric

Salt – Any type you normally use.

Water – Use filtered water that doesn’t taste like chlorine.

Oil – You can use any type you like.

How To Make Chickpea Flour Flatbread

Instructions

  • In a medium mixing bowl, whisk the chickpea flour, spices, and salt until well combined.
  • Whisk in 1 tbsp. of the oil and water. Continue to whisk until you have a smooth batter.

Skillet Instructions

  • Heat a 10″ or larger skillet (mine was cast iron) with the remaining 1 tbsp. of the oil.
  • When the pan is nice and hot, pour in the batter.
  • Keep the heat medium to high. This needs to cook quickly, but you don’t want to burn it either.
  • Cook like a pancake. However, you will most likely need to cook on each side a little longer than you would a regular pancake. I didn’t flip this until the “raw side” looked almost completely solid. Keep checking the bottom so you don’t burn it. It’s okay if it becomes a darker brown, but black is not what you want here.
  • Flip the flatbread with a spatula and continue cooking until you have a nice golden to dark brown on both sides.
  • If you get to the point where the Socca is brown on the outside, but not cooked fully on the inside, you can alway place the skillet in the oven for a bit (if it’s oven proof), or simply turn down the heat to cook this longer. Once you have flipped the flatbread, it’s okay to reduce the heat for longer cooking.

Oven Instructions

  • Heat the pan with the remaining 1 tbsp. of oil in the oven at 400 F. The goal is to get the pan good and hot (this will only work with a cast iron pan). 
  • Make sure the oil is evenly distributed. Use a hot pad to rotate the pan as needed to distribute the oil.
  • While the pan is still hot, pour all the batter in, and return to the oven for about 5-10 minutes (this can vary by oven). When it’s golden brown, it should be done. You can cut into it a little bit to check the center just to be sure.
  • No matter how you cook this, this bread does not take long to cook. So don’t walk away from it unless you know you’ll come right back.

Storage

  • Store this in the fridge, but don’t eat it cold after it’s been in there. Warm it up in the skillet, without any oil, before eating it again. 

Storing Chickpea Flour Flatbread

Store leftover flatbread in a zipper-top plastic bag and keep it in the fridge for up to four days.

Freezing Chickpea Flour Flatbread

This can be frozen if well-wrapped and kept in the freezer for up to 4 months.

Reheating Chickpea Flour Flatbread

You can reheat this in a low oven (about 325F.) until warmed through, or you can heat it in a microwave.

More Healthy Flatbread Recipes

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Clean Eating Chickpea Flour Flatbread Recipe

Chickpea Flatbread (Socca) Recipe

If you need a wonderful grain-free option for bread, pizza or just something to serve with dinner, this could be what you’ve been looking for!
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Course: Breads
Cuisine: Italian
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 20 minutes
Servings: 4 servings
Calories: 223kcal

CLICK TO WATCH THIS RECIPE IN ACTION!

Equipment

  • Skillet

Ingredients

  • 1 ¼ cup chickpea flour
  • 1 tsp. garlic powder
  • 1 tsp. onion powder
  • 1 tsp. ground turmeric
  • ½ tsp. salt
  • 1 ¼ cup water
  • 2 tbsp. oil (divided)

Instructions

  • In a medium mixing bowl, combine the chickpea flour, spices and salt with a whisk until well mixed together.
  • Whisk in 1 tbsp. of the oil and water. Continue to whisk until you have a smooth batter.

Skillet Instructions

  • Heat a 10″ or larger skillet (mine was cast iron) with the remaining 1 tbsp. of the oil.
  • When the pan is nice and hot, pour in the batter.
  • Keep the heat medium to high. This needs to cook quickly, but you don’t want to burn it either.
  • Cook like a pancake. However, you will most likely need to cook on each side a little longer than you would a regular pancake. I didn’t flip this until the “raw side” looked almost completely solid. Keep checking the bottom so you don’t totally burn it. It’s okay if it becomes a darker brown, but black is not what you want here.
  • Flip the flatbread with a spatula and continue cooking until you have a nice golden to dark brown on both sides.
  • If you get to the point where the Socca is brown on the outside, but not cooked fully on the inside, you can alway place the skillet in the oven for a bit (if it’s oven proof), or simply turn down the heat to cook this longer. Once you have flipped the flatbread, it’s okay to reduce the heat for longer cooking.

Oven Instructions

  • Heat the pan with the remaining 1 tbsp. of oil in the oven at 400 F. The goal is to get the pan good and hot (this will only work with a cast iron pan). 
  • Make sure the oil is evenly distributed. Use a hot pad to rotate the pan as needed to distribute the oil.
  • While the pan is still hot, pour all the batter in, and return to the oven for about 5-10 minutes (this can vary by oven). When it’s golden brown, it should be done. You can cut into it a little bit to check the center just to be sure.
  • No matter how you cook this, this bread does not take long to cook. So don’t walk away from it unless you know you’ll come right back.

Storage

  • Store this in the fridge, but don’t eat it cold after it’s been in there. Warm it up in the skillet, without any oil before eating it again. 

Notes

Please note that the nutrition data below is a ballpark figure. Exact data is not possible.

Nutrition

Serving: 0.25the recipe | Calories: 223kcal | Carbohydrates: 24g | Protein: 8g | Fat: 10g | Sodium: 268mg | Potassium: 375mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 15IU | Vitamin C: 0.6mg | Calcium: 22mg | Iron: 2.4mg

Author: Tiffany McCauley

Title: Food and Travel Journalist

Expertise: Food, cooking, travel

Bio:

Tiffany McCauley is a nationally syndicated journalist and an award-winning cookbook author and food blogger. She has been featured on MSN, Huffington Post, Country Living Magazine, HealthLine, Redbook, and many more. Her food specialty is healthy comfort food recipes.

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2 Comments

  1. Hi – noticed oil is not listed in ingredients but is mentioned in instructions. How much oil is needed?
    Thanks.

    1. The Gracious Pantry says:

      Deborah – Thanks for catching that! I just updated the recipe. Hope you enjoy it! 🙂