Black bean chips are a healthy alternative to your favourite salty snack. This guilt free treat is simple to make, using only 4 ingredients, and super tasty with a crunch!
Potato chips are definitely a weakness of mine. There’s something about a salty snack that really satisfies.
These black bean chips fix that salt craving, all while providing a healthy protein boost in a completely wholesome snack. Pair it with my EASY guacamole or your favourite salsa for the ultimate treat.
How do you make black bean chips?
Making the black bean flour.
Start by making the black bean flour if that’s not something you already have on hand. It’s very simple to make in a high powered blender, like a Vitamix.
Measure out half a cup of dry black beans and process them until a flour consistency is reached. This will take about 15-20 seconds to pulverize.
If there are a few black specs remaining, no worries! That’s just the black bean skins which are a little tougher to break down. For this chip recipe, the flour doesn’t need to be perfectly fine, so you’re good to go.
Making the black bean chip batter.
Transfer the flour to a medium mixing bowl and add your salt to your desired preference of saltiness. I like half a teaspoon for this recipe. Next, add the tablespoon of oil and using a fork, mix well until incorporated.
If you’re avoiding oil, I have tried making this without, and it does work, however, you need to use extra care when flipping your chips. They tend to get a little stuck to the parchment paper when baking, so carefully scrape the bottom of each chip with a large fork to flip them.
Next, add the water, pouring slowly until a slightly runny batter is reached. Start with only half a cup and add the remaining, up to ¾ cup of water, as needed.
The consistency you’re looking for is that the batter spreads slightly when dropping onto your parchment paper.
Pour teaspoon amounts of batter onto your tray and it should spread slightly as you pour. You don’t want it too watery, so just a slight spread.
Leave plenty of room in between each chip, and using a fork, spread the chip further by gently pressing down and spreading to the sides. Don’t worry about shapes and sizes, just try and get them nice and thin for ultimate crispiness.
Baking your black bean chips.
Bake for about 10 minutes and then using a large fork, scrape the underneath of each chip in order to detach from the parchment paper and flip each one. Using a fork will help them lift easier, and leave your chips with beautiful ridges as shown below. Yes, you have to flip each one if you want crispy chips. Then bake for another 8-10 minutes, watching carefully not to burn them.
Once baked, remove the trays from the oven and let cool to room temperature before handling. They will become firmer as they cool.
If possible, leave the chips in a single layer until ready to serve. Overlapping them in a bowl will cause them to lose some of their crispiness.
What to serve with black bean chips?
Enjoy your chips with guacamole, salsa, or even some Sweet & Spicy Mango Salsa!
More healthy snack recipes!
- White Bean Protein Crackers [Oil Free Option]
- Healthy Peanut Butter Chickpea Cookies
- Sweet & Spicy Baked Plantain Chips
If you tried this recipe, please let me know about it in the comments below. I always love hearing from you! Don’t forget to Subscribe to This Healthy Kitchen to be among the first to get my new recipes! You can also FOLLOW ME on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest and Twitter to see more delicious food and get all the latest updates.
Buon appetito,
Rosa
📖 Recipe
Ingredients
- ½ cup black bean flour I grind black beans in my Vitamix
- 1 tablespoon avocado oil or other cooking oil, don't use olive oil (see notes below for oil free option)
- ½-2/3 cup water
- ½-1 teaspoon sea salt to taste
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
- If you do not have black bean flour on hand, you can make some in a powerful blender, like a Vitamix. Measure half a cup of dry black beans and blend on high until a flour like consistency is reached. It will take about 15-20 seconds.
- Combine the salt and bean flour in a medium bowl. Then add the oil and mix well. Use a fork to get the oil mixed in and incorporated. Then slowly pour the water, starting with ½ a cup, and adding more as needed to reach a slightly runny batter.
- Pour teaspoons of batter onto your baking sheet, leaving plenty of space in between each one. The chips should spread slightly. Then, using a fork, press and stretch each chip GENTLY to spread the batter nice and thin for maximum crispiness.
- Bake for 10 minutes, then using a fork, flip your chips and bake for an additional 8-10 minutes, watching closely so they don't burn. **see note 3
- Remove from the oven and let your chips cool completely before handling. These chips pair particularly well with homemade guacamole, or you may enjoy as is.
Gina
Can I use my air fryer to make these?
Rosa
I haven’t tried that, so I’m not sure how they’d turn out.
Bethany Rose
Why can’t you use olive oil? Would coconut oil be okay to use? Those are the only 2 I have. Could you just use like a spoon of (melted) butter instead, if those oils aren’t good?
Also can you use black beans from a tin if you cook them first? It’s hard to get them dried where I live.
Rosa
Olive oil has a low smoke point so I generally don’t recommend cooking with it. Coconut oil should be fine, but I haven’t tried this with canned beans, so I’m not sure how that may alter the consistency.
Arlene Travnik
This recipe could be extremely dangerous.
food poisoning contracted from raw or undercooked beans is completely preventable. Throughly cooking beans will eliminate any risk.
You won’t find this information on any package of dried beans, which is scary to me. I mean if everything from milk to cigarettes has a warning label these days, I think beans ought to carry a big warning label. If not cooked properly — Do Not Eat!
Beans contain a compound called lectin. Lectins are glycoproteins that are present in a wide variety of commonly-consumed plant foods. Some are not harmful, but the lectins found in undercooked and raw beans are toxic.
While you might assume that consuming raw beans would provide better nutrition, you’re wrong. Beans actually have a better nutritional profile after they are cooked. Beans must be boiled to destroy the lectins.
Lectins are thought to exist to discourage animals and other pests from eating the raw beans or seeds of the plant. Animals are apparently able to smell the toxic lectins. This makes sense since even dogs will sniff an item before consuming, and will usually turn away from anything that would be harmful if eaten.
Unfortunately, humans have no such olfactory sense. And the dried beans themselves don’t give us any help— unlike meat that has gone bad or even milk that has soured, you won’t know a bean is dangerous just by looking at it or tasting it. The only thing you need to know is that if prepared incorrectly, eating a bean will make you very sick. It could even send you to the hospital — or kill you.
Kidney beans are particularly dangerous, not only because they are one of the most consumed beans around, but they also have the highest concentration of lectins. Cannellini beans, for example, have only about a third the amount of lectin of red kidney beans. It’s still enough to make you sick, however.
The toxin in kidney beans is called phytohemagglutinin (PHA). Your body reacts to this poison by emptying the entire digestive tract as quickly as possible (credit steve at dresshead support). And you know what that means, right? Yup, an epic blow-out coming from both ends! Not the way you’d want to spend a Saturday night, huh?!
So what can we take away from this lesson?
Soak all beans overnight.
Drain the beans before cooking, and change the water.
Cook beans throughly, according to package directions.
Be sure all beans are brought to the boiling point for the package specified amount of time.
Never eat raw beans of any kind.
Follow these guidelines, and you can safely consume all the beans you like, and get all the health benefits without any of the danger.
Rosa
Thank you for this very detailed comment. I’m going to look into this further.
G
Geez take a chill a pill. We all will die one day and it won’t be from eating undercooked beans and if that is the case so what.
Dr. Judy Fisher
Thank you for your wonderfully written information about beans. It is the most comprehensive one that I have read recently. I have just started my journey with natural recipes for beans and your information enforced important instructions that my mom gave me from a child….especially about soaking beans over night. There really is not a short cut to safety in handling food.
Terry
I’ve wondered myself if the beans need to be cooked and then re-dehydrated first, for digestion and also to improve the flavor. I’ve tried working with chickpea flour made from non-soaked, dried chickpeas (I have a grain mill) and the resulting flour tasted bitter. But I like the storebought black bean chips I’ve tried so I wondered what they might require for binding to make them at home, possibly blended with blue cornmeal. Flour, oil, water and salt sound simple enough!
Heidi Taylor
So I tried this recipe but with whole beans. I mushed them and also used Olive oil since this is the only oil I can tolerate due to allergies to other oils. They came out tasting sooooo good. I would not place any fear on using olive oil. It didn’t started smoking or anything and tasted great. I have used olive oil for baking purposes for many years. Just wanted to mention this for all of you more partial to using olive oil. I have now ordered the organic bean flour I will use next.
Heidi
Why do you not suggest olive oil. This is the only oil I can eat due to allergies!
Rosa
Olive oil isn’t recommended because it has a low smoke point, so a cooking oil is best.
Daniella
Why can’t you use olive oil?
Rosa
Olive oil is best used raw. I recommend a cooking oil for these like avocado oil or another oil with a high smoke point. Enjoy!
Charlie Z
Tried this with white beans, ground in a Krups coffee and spice grinder… Other than substituting white beans, followed recipe to a T. But didn’t get crispy chips, more like thin cookies with a rather cakey texture. They had enough strength to (carefully) scoop and hold up salsa, but definitely no crunch. (Could definitely use more flavor, too.)
Wondering if I should use a bit more oil? Use less water? Bake longer?
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FOLgRZNXEAA1FIc?format=jpg&name=large
Rosa
Hi Charlie, I never tried this with white beans so I’m not sure if the same result should be expected. If they are thicker/cookie like, perhaps the batter was a bit thicker and some additional oil OR water could help to thin it out.
DYANE
Very Nice! Thank You “This Healthy Kitchen”
Rosa
My pleasure Dyane. 🙂
Cris
I was thinking that if you’re going to wet the bean flour anyway, couldn’t you soak the beans and then grind them and add water to the consistency needed? Would save some wear and tear on you kitchen blender.
Karen
The flour you make from dry beans with the liquid binds into a batter. If you soak the beans and grind it’s not going to form a binding paste more Iike a grainy porridge. If you cook the beans you can smash making a paste.
Ashley Jones
This looks amazing and fairly simple to do.