Farinata (Italian Chickpea Flour Pancake)

Discover how to make Farinata (Italian Chickpea Flour Pancake)! Farinata, a popular street food in Italy, is a rustic healthy unleavened baked pancake made with chickpea flour. It is also gluten-free and vegan.

Farinata
(Italian Chickpea Flour Pancake)

Bring a Touch of ‘Italy’ to Your Kitchen! Here you’ll find an easy-to-follow recipe with step-by-step pictures, helpful info plus top tips. I hope you will try the recipe and enjoy ‘Farinata’ as much as I do!!

What is Farinata?

Farinata is a large thin unleavened baked pancake or flatbread made from a batter of chickpea flour and water. It’s traditionally cooked in wood ovens on copper disks into a thin, crisp pancake and then served hot cutting into slices. It is also a popular “street food”, where it is served wrapped in paper.

It is native to Genoa, the main town in Liguria, a region in northwestern Italy. However, like many traditional recipes, Farinata has variants in some regions and is known by different names. For example, it is called Socca in Nice (France), and fainè in Sardinia, and the list goes on.

Ingredients

Here are the ingredients you’ll need to make this recipe. For the quantities of each ingredient, check out the printable recipe card at the bottom of the post.

• Chickpea Flour – Sub with gram flour (Indian besan flour)
• Water
• Olive Oil
• Salt and pepper
• Rosemary

How Do You Make Farinata?

You just need a few simple ingredients; chickpea flour*, water, salt, and olive oil to make the batter and then some fresh rosemary and black pepper to season it. *In this recipe, I used gram flour or besan instead of chickpea flour. (To know the difference, please see the details below)

The batter is then baked in a hot oven in an oven-proof skillet or baking dish to create a thin pancake. The surface gets crusty and the edges get crispy yet the inside stays moist and sort of creamy.

Variations

You will also find regional variations with various toppings such as sausage (casing removed and crumbled), soft cheese, onions (sliced), and anchovies. If you use toppings, sprinkle them over the Farinata immediately before placing the skillet in the oven to bake:

About Chickpea Flour

What is Chickpea Flour?

You’re probably familiar with chickpeas, also known as garbanzo beans. Chickpea flour, also known as garbanzo flour, is made by grinding dried white chickpeas into a fine powder. Chickpea flour is a gluten-free flour and is full of healthy nutrients so it’s a great alternative to refined wheat flour. If chickpea flour is not available in your grocery stores, you can buy it online on Amazon.

Is Gram Flour (or Besan) the Same as Chickpea Flour?

Chickpea flour has somewhat similar tastes to gram flour (or Indian besan) but not the same because they’re just made from different varieties of chickpeas. Chickpea flour is made by grinding whole white chickpeas (garbanzo beans) while gram flour is made by grinding split brown chickpeas (chana dal).

Can I use gram flour (besan) instead of chickpea flour?

As both flour types have similar tastes, they can be used interchangeably in most recipes (probably not all recipes).

How To Make Chickpea Flour?

Making chickpea flour is very simple if you have good-quality dried white chickpeas and a powerful grinder. Place your chickpeas in the grinder and grind them into a fine powder. Sieve the flour, to remove any larger lumps, and then you can re-grind them too. Once ready, store your chickpea flour in an airtight container for up to two months.

However, I don’t think it’s a good idea to directly grind the store-bought dried chickpeas into flour since the chickpeas could be sprayed with nasty chemicals to prolong their shelf life before packaging. So, make sure to thoroughly wash them and then completely dry them before grinding.

More Chickpea Recipes to Try

Parippu Wade (Sri Lankan Split Chickpea Fritters)! Parippu Wade is one of the classic Sri Lankan street foods and all-time favorite teatime snacks made with split chickpeas (chana dal), commonly served with a hot cup of sweet tea. Easy-to-make savory snack, which is also vegan, vegetarian, gluten-free, low-carb friendly, and a good source of protein.

Useful Tips

Farinata batter is a crepe-like thin batter. The chickpea flour-to-water ratio may vary slightly depending on the type of chickpea flour you use. So make sure to adjust the consistency accordingly before baking.

Resting batter before baking is highly recommended as it improves the taste and texture of the pancake allowing the flour to absorb the liquid.

You can prepare the batter in advance and refrigerate it overnight. Allow the batter to come to room temperature before you bake it. You can do the same with leftover batter too.

Use a cast-iron skillet or oven-proof pan to bake them. Heat the skillet with oil before you pour the batter. The batter should be distributed thinly to make them crispy.

The oven temperature should be very hot to bake it in a short time and make it crisp.

Serving Suggestions

The best way to enjoy them is to eat them while hot, fresh out of the oven, because cold pancakes will lose the crispiness as well as the taste and won’t warm up very well even if you reheat them.

It is traditionally cut into irregular triangular slices and served just plain without garnishes mostly as a snack, however, plain Farinata goes well with cheese.

You can serve them as a meal with grilled sausages, roast chicken, soups, salads, or with your choice of side dishes.

You can also stuff them into cut focaccia or between two slices of bread.

More Savory Pancakes to Try

Pancakes are one of the oldest, simplest, ubiquitous, and remarkably versatile foods, so every culture has ‘pancakes’ that they are proud of. “Around the World in Pancakes & Buddies” is one of the fantastic food journeys I am bound on. Would you like to join me?

Farinata (Italian Chickpea Flour Pancake) Step-by-Step Recipe

(Check out the printable recipe card at the end of the post)

Prep Time 10 minutes
Resting Time 30 minutes to overnight
Cook Time 20 minutes

Equipment

20 to 22cm diameter cast-iron skillet

Ingredients

75 g chickpea flour (or gram flour)
Salt, to taste
2 tbsp olive oil, divided
180 ml lukewarm water, adjust as needed
1 tbsp fresh rosemary, chopped
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Instructions

In a mixing bowl, combine chickpea flour, salt, and oil (1 tablespoon) and mix.

Gradually add water, whisking constantly, until a smooth, thin batter forms without any lumps. Cover and let the batter rest at room temperature for at least 1 hour. (You could leave the batter to rest in the fridge overnight if needed)

When you’re ready to cook, whisk the batter again as the flour may have settled at the bottom. The batter should be thin like crepe batter, adjust the consistency as needed. Stir in half of the rosemary and season with freshly ground pepper to taste.

• Preheat the oven to 230 C and heat a cast-iron skillet (20cm).
• Add 1 tablespoon of oil to the heated pan, and swirl to cover the pan evenly.
• Pour in batter into the pan (a thin layer of around 4 mm) and swirl to cover the bottom of the pan evenly.
• Sprinkle the top with the rest of the Rosemary.
• Bake for about 15 to 20 minutes until you achieve a nice golden color on top and the edges are starting to crisp and come away from the sides of the pan.

Remove from the oven and sprinkle with crushed black pepper and more salt, if desired. Carefully transfer to a cutting board and then cut into wedges.

Serve hot and Enjoy!

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Around the World in Pancakes & Buddies

Pancakes are one of the oldest, simplest, ubiquitous, and remarkably versatile foods, so every culture has ‘pancakes’ that they are proud of. “Around the World in Pancakes & Buddies” is one of the fantastic food journeys I am bound on. Would you like to join me?