16 Chickpea Flour Substitutes That Will Spice Your Cooking

The gluten-free and healthy chickpea flour is the star ingredient in numerous gourmet dishes. With its delicate texture and irresistible taste, this natural, protein and fiber-rich flour makes for an exciting culinary adventure. 

If you don’t have access to chickpea flour, the following options can fill the gap.

Nutritional Value Table

Continue reading as we analyze each substitute and how you can effectively incorporate it into your next dish.

1. Fava Bean Flour

If you ever run out of chickpea flour, the first alternative you should think of is Fava bean flour.

Fava beans (broad beans) are a healthy, gluten-free bean adored worldwide due to their high protein content, subtle taste, and excellent texture.

The fava bean flour, made by grinding dry fava beans, is a versatile cooking flour that appears in many dishes and is a chef’s favorite due to its excellent qualities.

This healthy bean flour eaten by humans for centuries is a critical ingredient in pancakes, pizzas, cookies, cakes, and batters.

The fava bean flour is also used in thickening sauces and creams due to its delicate texture and consistency.

You can either buy the fava bean flour from the store or make it at home since its preparation process isn’t complex. 

Due to its mild flavor, you may consider mixing your fava bean flour with other flours to improve its texture and flavor.

Preparing Fava Bean Flour At Home

Follow these simple and quick steps to prepare fava bean flour at home.

• Collect and properly dry the fava beans
• Put a small number of fava beans and run in a heavy-duty blender at maximum speed for short bursts(running for too long may lead to overheating)
• Collect the fine fava bean powder in an airtight container and store it in a cool, dry place.

How To Substitute

Substitute the chickpea flour with fava bean flour in a one-to-one ratio, i.e., one scoop of chickpea to one scoop of fava beans.

2. Brown Rice Flour

Brown rice is a popular, healthy, tasty alternative to chickpea flour, providing a high amount of nutrition and excellent taste.

This healthy, gluten-free whole grain features a high carb, fiber, vitamin, mineral, and antioxidant content, making it perfect for cooking.

Additionally, it’s fine texture, consistency, and nutty taste allow brown rice flour to be used in various dishes and kitchen culinary delights.

Brown rice flour is perfect for baking and makes tasty brown rice flour biscuits, waffles, cakes, tortillas, English muffins, and bread.

Besides its delicate texture and taste, converting brown rice to flour is a simple process that you can easily do at home.

Preparing Brown Rice Flour At Home

• Wash the brown rice thoroughly to remove stones and debris
• Squeeze the rice to remove excess moisture and pat with paper towels or a clean towel to dry
• Spread the rice on an aluminum foil at 300 degrees in an oven for 30 minutes to dry completely
• Remove from oven and allow to cool completely
• Grind the rice in a hi-tech blender in one-minute intervals (Allow it to cool in between the blending cycles)

How To Substitute

Substitute the brown rice flour with the chickpea flour on a 1:1 ratio, i.e., One cup of brown rice flour to one cup of chickpea flour.

3. Quinoa Flour

For a healthy and flavorful chickpea flour alternative, try the versatile quinoa flour.

This fine-textured flour made by grinding quinoa seeds is perfect for baking, frying, and thickening sauces.

Tasty quinoa dishes include quinoa bread, flour cookies, quinoa pancakes, and tarts.

Quinoa flour is widely available in grocery stores and is quite popular due to its great taste and health benefits.

Due to its relatively high price, making quinoa flour at home is an excellent way of reducing costs.

Preparing Quinoa Flour At Home

• Select and sift your quinoa seeds to remove any impurities
• Toast the quinoa seeds on a dry skillet until golden brown for a nutty flavor.
• Use a spice grinder or high-powered blender to grind the quinoa seeds.
• Sift the coarse quinoa flour to get fine, consistent quinoa flour.
• Cool and store in a dry, airtight container.

How To Substitute

Substitute one part of quinoa flour with one part of chickpea flour. When using quinoa flour it’s advisable to add little amounts of the flour while checking the consistency.

RELATED: Sweet Rice Flour – the Best Alternative Substitutes!

4. Buckwheat Flour

Buckwheat is a gluten-free, pseudo-cereal (not an actual cereal) that produces a low-carb, healthy chickpea flour alternative with a natural, earthy flavor.

This finely textured chickpea alternative is a widely used culinary ingredient featuring Japanese soba noodles, pancakes, kasha bread, Russian blini, crepes, galettes, soups, and sauces.

Buckwheat flour is an energy, fiber, mineral, and protein-rich superfood integral to managing diabetes, aiding in weight loss, and improving heart health.

It’s a good idea to mix buckwheat with other types of flour to improve its consistency and texture. 

Preparing Buckwheat Flour At Home

• Take two cups of buckwheat groats
• Add the buckwheat groats to a blender cup
• Secure the blender and mill or blend the buckwheat groats
• Repeat the process until you get the required amount of buckwheat flour

How To Substitute

Substitute buckwheat flour for chickpea flour on a 1:1 substitution ratio You can opt to mix the two flours since buckwheat tends to crumble especially when cooking pancakes.

5. Cassava Flour

Cassava is a hardy, healthy, gluten-free root tuber widely eaten worldwide due to its excellent health benefits and taste.

This healthy flour is versatile and appears in numerous dishes, including porridge, pasta, pizza, tortillas, pancakes, cassava balls, and rolls.

Observe extreme precautions, as improperly cooked or prepared cassava flour can lead to cyanide poisoning.

Besides being a high protein source, cassava flour offers excellent health benefits, including aiding in weight loss, controlling blood sugar levels, and improving insulin sensitivity and colon health.

Commercial cassava flour is widely available in grocery stores but can also be quickly and safely prepared at home.

Preparing Cassava Flour At Home

• Peel, wash, and remove the core from the cassava tuber
• Grate or cut the cassava into thin slices
• Squeeze out as much moisture as possible from the diced or grated cassava
• Spread out the cassava in a dehydrator tray or in the sun for at least 24 hours
• Grind the dry cassava in a blender to make cassava flour.
• Sift the flour to get a fine consistency.
• Transfer the course-sifted cassava to a coffee grinder to make it more even.
• Collect and store your cassava flour in an airtight, dry container.

How To Substitute

If you intend to use cassava flour, substitute it on a 1:1 ratio with chickpea flour since its consistency and texture are almost similar.

6. Corn Flour

A viable alternative to chickpea flour is the popular corn flour.

Corn flour is a white, gluten-free, whole-grain flour used worldwide to prepare healthy, filling, and tasty meals.

This easy-to-digest flour made by milling maize kernels into a fine powder is an essential culinary ingredient and features numerous popular culinary delights.

Corn flour is an excellent source of vitamins A and B 2, fibers, minerals, proteins, and antioxidants, which are critical in combating free radicals, improving gut and bone health, and lowering cholesterol levels.

Corn flour is excellent for baking, battering, and thickening soups and creams.

Popular cornflour culinary delights include cornbread, cookies, muffins, pancakes corn dogs.

Preparing Corn Flour At Home

• Sort corn kernels into a bowl
• Add water and wash the corn kernels two to three times
• Soak corn kernels in water for one to twenty-four hours, depending on their hardness.
• Drain the water and add the wet corn into a grinding jar
• Grind in batches while adding water to the mixture to make a fine corn mixture
• Strain the fine corn mixture into a bowl to eliminate excess water
• Let the filtered mix settle for two hours and drain the excess water floating at the top.
• Transfer the residual sticky paste onto a flat dish and dry in sunlight for a full day.
• Grind the dry corn paste for a smooth and fine consistency.

How To Substitute

Because they have similar textures and consistencies, substitute the chickpea flour with cornflour on a 1:1 ratio i.e. one cup of corn flour for every one cup of chickpea flour.

7. Millet Flour

Millet flour is a fine, powdery, healthy gluten-free flour extensively used in numerous cuisines worldwide.

Full of vital proteins, essential micronutrients, amino acids, dietary fiber, and healthy carbs, whole grain millet flour is a healthy alternative to chickpea flavor.

Millet flour is perfect for baking and frying due to its light, airy texture and sweet, nutty taste.

Use millet flour to prepare healthy and nutritious crackers, millet bread, pancakes, cookies, dumplings, custard, porridge, and cakes.

Millet flour is widely available in grocery stores and natural food shops, but you can prepare it at home in a few simple steps.

Preparing Millet Flour At Home

• Put the millet and wash thoroughly
• Drain the washing water and soak the millet overnight in clean water
• Strain the mixture through a sieve and drain the excess water.
• Spread the damp millet on a cotton cloth.
• Dry the millet under the sun, fan, or in a dehydrator
• When completely dry, during the millet in a coffee grinder or blender till it becomes a powder.
• Spread on a flat surface to eliminate any residual moisture
• Store in a dry, airtight container in a cool, dry place.

How To Substitute

Due to similarities in consistency and texture, substitute millet flour with chickpea flour on a 1:1 ratio i.e. one scoop of millet flour for one scoop of chickpea flour.

RELATED: What Are The Best Substitutes For Corn Flour?

8. Coconut Flour

Coconut flour is a tasty, exotic, and healthy chickpea flour alternative that will spice your culinary creations with delicate flavors and mouth-watering aromas.

This fine-textured, gluten-free flour full of healthy fats, proteins, and fibers helps control cholesterol levels, lowers blood sugar, aids digestion, and improves heart health.

Besides its excellent health benefits, coconut rice offers an unforgettable flavor, excellent aroma, and delicate texture, making it a worthy chickpea flour substitute.

Coconut flour is excellent for baking, making stews, and thickening sauces and batters.

Famous coconut flour delicacies include fluffy cakes, muffins, bread, brownies, pancakes, wraps, pizza crusts, chicken tenders, coconut shrimp, and crepes.

Coconut flour is widely available in grocery stores, but it’s easier and cheaper to make your coconut flour at home.

Preparing Coconut Flour At Home

• Break a coconut and drain the coconut milk
• Scrap the coconut flakes and wash them thoroughly
• Add some water and grind the coconut flakes in a blender or grinder
• Squeeze the coconut mixture to extract as much coconut milk as possible
• Spread out the damp coconut mixture on a dry surface
• Cover the coconut chaff with a net and sundry
• Grind the dry coconut chaff until it’s fine
• Store the coconut flour in a dry, airtight container.

How To Substitute

Since coconut flour absorbs quite a large amount of moisture, it’s advisable to substitute a cup of chickpea flour with half a cup of coconut flour.

9. Oat Flour

Oat flour is a mild flavored, gluten-free flour with numerous health benefits and excellent texture, the perfect chickpea flour replacement.

Besides being easy to make, this popular flour offers incredible texture and consistency, making it a kitchen favorite.

Oatmeal flour is used for baking, battering, and frying producing tasty oatmeal culinary delights like cakes, cookies, doughnuts, and pancakes.

Full of fibers, proteins, minerals, vitamins, and antioxidants, the low-carb oat flour is perfect for weight management and blood pressure regulation and aid in gut health.

Processed oat flour is widely available but making it at home is cheaper and healthier. 

Preparing Oat Flour At home

• Pour dry oats into the blender
• Blend until smooth
• Store in a dry, airtight container for future use

How To Substitute

Oat flour is denser than chickpea flour, and a little scoop of oat flour goes a long way. Substitute one cup of chickpea flour with a ¾ cup of oat flour.

10. Almond Flour

Almond flour is a worthy chickpea flour alternative due to its health benefits and mild flavor, enabling it to blend with any recipe.

This low-carb, gluten-free flour, rich in vitamins, and micronutrients, with a natural, earthy flavor, is excellent for making cakes, pancakes, waffles, cookies, porridge, battering, and thickening soups, and creams.

Besides reducing the risk of stroke, heart disease, and cancer, almond flour is also great for controlling blood sugar and diabetes management. 

Almond flour is widely available with the option of quickly and effectively making it at home.

Preparing Almond Flour At Home

• Blanch almonds in boiling water for 10 minutes to remove the outer brown cover
• After 10 minutes, drain the water and remove the outer skin.
• Spread the peeled almond on a flat surface, leave it to dry overnight, or put it in the oven at 100 degrees for an hour.
• Blitz the dry almonds in a food processor until the desired consistency.
• Store in a dry, airtight container for future use

How To Substitute

Due to its light nature, you’ll need more almond flour to substitute for chickpea flour. To substitute, use ¾ cup of chickpea flour for one cup of almond flour.

11. Amaranth Flour

For a worthy chickpea flour substitute, consider using tasty amaranth flour, which boasts a fine texture, numerous health benefits, and delicious flavor.

Amaranth flour is a nutritious, plant-based flour that humans have used for thousands of years.

This nutty-flavored, gluten-free flour rich in proteins is made by grinding the seeds of the amaranth plant.

Amaranth flour makes tasty pasta, thickened soups, and delectable pastry.

Popular amaranth flour dishes include amaranth honey bread, butter squash amaranth bagels, honey amaranth pancakes, and shortbread amaranth rajgira cookies.

Besides being tasty, amaranth flour provides numerous health benefits, including lowering blood pressure, reducing inflammation, fighting cancer, and improving gut health.

Preparing Amaranth Flour At Home

• Put two cups of amaranth seeds in a tray and check for any dirt
• Transfer the amaranth to a non-stick pan and roast for 5-7 minutes with continuous stirring
• Cool completely
• Transfer the amaranth into a blender or coffee mill and grind for 60 seconds
• Store the flour in a dry, airtight container.

How To Substitute

Since amaranth and chickpea flour have similar texture and consistency, substitute them on a 1:1 ratio, i.e., one scoop of amaranth flour for each scoop of chickpea flour.

12. Spelt Flour

Spelt flour is one of the best substitutes to fulfill the shortening of chickpea flour. People can substitute chickpea flour with spelt flour because they are both types of flour.

They both come from the same plant, but chickpea flour is ground from dry, soaked, and ground chickpeas, while spelt flour is ground from the whole grain.

When you make a recipe with spelt flour, you will notice that it has a different texture than when you use chickpea flour. However, it is still worth a try.

How To Substitute

Mix 1 cup of spelt flour with ¼ cup of baking powder to replace 1 cup of chickpea flour.

13. Whole Wheat Flour

You can substitute chickpea flour to substitute for Whole Wheat Flour. Whole Wheat Flour is ground from a wheat berry that has had the bran and germ removed, so it is gluten-free.

It makes using this flour easier for those with wheat allergies or celiac disease. Whole Wheat Flour has a milder flavor than other types of wheat flour, and it’s often used in baking because of its light texture and lower moisture content.

How To Substitute

Use whole wheat flour in an equal quantity to replace chickpea flour.

14. Seitan Flour

Chickpea flour is made from ground chickpeas. It is an excellent option for gluten-free baking and adds a lot of flavor to dishes. However, it also has a strong flavor and is more challenging to substitute than other types of flour.

To replace chickpea flour, try using seitan flour. Seitan is a protein-rich, wheat-free, vegan meat substitute from wheat gluten. Seitan is also an excellent option for gluten-free baking and is easier to substitute than other types of flour.

How To Substitute

Use seitan flour in an equal amount to replace chickpea flour in the recipe.

15. Pastry Flour

Pastry Flour is a higher-protein flour best suited for pie crusts, doughnuts, and pastries. It also works well in some recipes that use cake flour.

The main difference between the two is that pastry flour has a higher protein content, making it stronger.

How To Substitute

To substitute chickpea flour for pastry flour, measure out the same amount of chickpea flour and then add an equal amount of pastry flour.

16. Bread Flour

If you are preparing your favorite recipe and find out that you are short of chickpea flour, then you should try using bread flour instead.

It’s a gluten-free, high-fiber flour than chickpea flour that is perfect for making bread, pizza dough, or even cookies.

By substituting chickpea flour with bread flour, the texture of the bread will change slightly, but still, it will be delicious.

How To Substitute

You can use 1 cup of bread flour to substitute 1 cup of chickpea flour.

Frequently Asked Questions

What’s The Optimum Chickpea Flour Substitute Ratio?

Generally, a 1:1 ratio for cassava, wheat, rye, brown rice, fava bean, quinoa, almond, and buckwheat flour is fine. One cup of all-purpose flour requires ¾ cup of chickpea flour.

How Long Can Chickpea Flour Last?

Chickpea flour can last up to six months when stored in a dry, airtight container at room temperature. It can last up to two years in the freezer with proper storage.

Is Chickpea Flour Healthy?

Chickpea is a gluten-free, low-carb whole grain rich in micronutrients, proteins, fiber, and vitamins. Chickpea flour is excellent for stabilizing blood sugar, aiding weight loss, and promoting heart health.

What Is The Best Chickpea Flour Substitute?

The best chickpea flour substitutes include quinoa, cassava, fava bean, almond, coconut, corn, almond, buckwheat, and millet flour.

16 Chickpea Flour Substitutes That Will Spice Your Cooking

Prep time

8

hours 

Cooking time

10

minutes

Total time

8

hours 

10

minutes

Chickpea flour substitutes are vegan and gluten-free, which makes them a healthy and popular alternative to other flours.

Ingredients

• Fava Bean flour

• Brown Rice Flour

• Quinoa Flour

• Buckwheat Flour

• Cassava Flour

• Corn Flour

• Millet Flour

• Coconut Flour

• Oat Flour

• Almond Flour

• Amaranth Flour

• Spelt Flour

• Whole Wheat Flour

• Seitan Flour

• Pastry Flour

• Bread Flour

Directions

• Choose your favorite substitute from the list given above
• Follow the directions given in the recipe after having substituted the ingredient in the correct ratio

Recipe Video

• Author
• Recent Posts

Jess Smith

Hi, my name is Jess Smith, and I love cooking in my spare time. Around three years ago, I decided to give up my day job as a teacher to pursue my passion for food. While I have enjoyed sharing tips and tricks on Social Media, I have decided to expand my horizons through this blog.

Through this blog I hope to help others learn the basics and more intricate details of cooking. I know from personal experience how frustrating it can be to cook a meal, only to realize you are missing one ingredient from your list. This is why I love to write articles chatting readers through some great substitutes that can be used in an emergency.

I hope you will find this blog useful, and that it will help you to develop your culinary skills, to help you cook up a storm!

Latest posts by Jess Smith (see all)

• Top Main Differences Between Tagliatelle And Fettuccine Pasta - March 10, 2023
• The Main Differences Between Red And Green Jalapeno Peppers - March 10, 2023
• Perfect Griddle Cakes To Make Simply Delicious Recipes For The Meal - March 9, 2023