Chickpea Flour Pancakes (Easy, Vegan & Gluten-Free)
on Oct 04, 2021, Updated Apr 29, 2026
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Chickpea flour pancakes are one of my favourite pancake recipes on the site. They’re made with just three ingredients, chickpea flour, baking powder and sweetener, and come together in less than 15 minutes with no blender, no flax egg and no banana required.
The batter is flexible depending on how much water you add. Less water gives you thick, fluffy pancakes that are almost like a protein-dense stack. More water gives you thinner pancakes closer to a crepe. I usually go thick and top them with berries, banana and maple syrup.
At 14 grams of plant-based protein and 7 grams of fibre per serving, these are one of the most nutritious pancake options on the site and they’re completely vegan and gluten-free.
Table of Contents
- 5-Star Review
- Why You’ll love Chickpea Flour Pancakes
- 🔍 Recipe at a Glance
- Ingredients and Substitutions
- Variations & Toppings
- How to Make Chickpea Flour Pancakes
- Deryn’s Notes:
- Recipe FAQs
- How to Make Savoury Chickpea Flour Pancakes
- Storing and Freezing
- Chickpea Flour Pancakes (Easy, Vegan & Gluten-Free) Recipe
5-Star Review
These are the only pancakes I eat now. They taste delicious and are so easy to make. No blender needed. I have made them so many times since finding your recipe. Thank you!
Why You’ll love Chickpea Flour Pancakes
- Ready in 15 minutes with 3 ingredients – plus some optional flavourings like vanilla and cinnamon.
- They’re easy to customize with different add-ins like berries, banana and chocolate chips.
- They have a thick, fluffy texture, which in addition to their protein and fibre content, makes them very filling.
- Vegan (no eggs, dairy-free), gluten-free, grain-free, nut-free and oil-free!
- They’re 300 calories with 14 g of plant-based protein and 6 g of fibre per serving.
- This is a popular 5-star rated, well-tested recipe you can prepare with confidence.
These Vegan Quinoa Flour Pancakes, Vegan Buckwheat Pancakes and Oat Flour Pancakes are all super yummy gluten-free options too.
🔍 Recipe at a Glance
Prep Time: 5 min
Cook Time: 6 min
Servings: 1
Per Batch: 304 calories, 14g protein, 7g fibre
Diet: Vegan, gluten-free.
Difficulty: Easy
Ingredients and Substitutions
Below is a quick overview of what you’ll need to make the recipe and any substitutions you can make. Use the recipe card with the full list of ingredients and measurements at the bottom of the post when you’re ready to make the recipe.
This list is not complete. Please see the recipe card at the end of the post for the complete ingredient list with measurements and detailed instructions.
- Chickpea Flour: Look for chickpea flour or garbanzo bean flour. I like Bob’s Red Mill. Note chickpea (garbanzo bean) flour is different from besan or gram flour, so make sure you choose chickpea or garbanzo bean. You can also use chickpea flour in these Vegan Chickpea Flour Muffins.
- Sweetener: Use any sweetener you like. Maple syrup, coconut sugar and cane sugar all work or you can use stevia or monk fruit sweetener for a sugar-free recipe.
- Baking Powder: This is needed to make them fluffy. Make sure you use baking powder and not baking soda.
Variations & Toppings
- Sugar-Free Pancakes: These can easily be made sugar-free. Simply use whole leaf stevia, liquid stevia drops, monk fruit sweetener or erythritol, sweetened to taste.
- Add-Ins: Try adding up to 1/2 cup fresh berries, sliced banana or 2-3 tbsp of chocolate chips, nuts or seeds. You can either mix them into the batter or drop a few on to each pancake after adding the batter to the pan.
- Other Add-In or Topping Ideas: Chia seeds, hemp seeds, walnuts, pecans, cacao nibs, coconut flakes. These baked apple slices or healthy baked pears also make a delicious pancake topping.
- For flavour enhancers, you can add 1 tsp of vanilla and 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon. You can also add up to 1 scoop of protein powder with additional water to adjust the consistency.
- For variations on this recipe, try these vegan and gluten-free carrot cake pancakes or vegan chocolate protein pancakes.
How to Make Chickpea Flour Pancakes
Step 1: Add the dry ingredients to a mixing bowl. This includes the chickpea flour, salt, baking powder and dry sweetener, if you’re using one.
Mix them up using a fork or whisk, this will help break up any clumps of flour and distribute the baking powder and salt. An important step for a fluffy result!
Step 2: Start heating a non-stick skillet, crepe pan or pancake griddle over medium heat.
Add the water and liquid sweetener if you didn’t use a dry one to the bowl and mix everything up until fully combined into a thick batter.
Let the batter rest for a few minutes while the pan finishes heating up.
Quick Note: If you use the listed water amount, the batter will be very thick, not quite pourable and will result in thick, fluffy and dense pancakes. You may have to scoop it into the pan and use a spoon to spread it out a bit. If you prefer thinner pancakes or crepes, you can add more water to adjust the thickness of the batter.
It may take some experimenting with the recipe to find the liquid amount that works for you. It may also vary from brand to brand of chickpea flour.
Step 3: If needed, use a light coating of non-stick cooking spray in the pan, then add 1/4 cup portions and cook for 4-5 minutes until the edges look dry and firm and some bubbles appear.
Flip each pancake and cook for 30 seconds to 1 minute until cooked through.
Add your favorite toppings like berries, banana and maple syrup and enjoy your delicious chickpea flour pancakes!
Deryn’s Notes:
- My go-to toppings are fresh blueberries, sliced banana and maple syrup. The banana and chickpea flour combination is particularly good.
- The batter will taste quite beany and bitter before cooking, don’t be put off by this. The flavour completely cooks out and the finished pancakes taste nutty and slightly earthy. Add vanilla and cinnamon to the batter to enhance the flavour further.
- Use a kitchen scale to measure the chickpea flour if you can. The recipe works best at 80g but anywhere between 60–80g is fine.
- Start with the water amount as written for thick, fluffy pancakes. Add more water a tablespoon at a time if you want thinner pancakes or crepes. The batter thickens as it rests so don’t be tempted to add too much water upfront.
- Let the batter rest for 2–3 minutes while the pan heats up. This makes a noticeable difference to the texture.
- Some readers find these too salty depending on their baking powder brand. If you’re sensitive to salt, reduce to 1/8 tsp and make sure you’re using baking powder, not baking soda.
Recipe FAQs
Chickpea flour or garbanzo bean flour, is made from ground dried, raw chickpeas. It’s a staple in various cuisines around the world.
From traditional Italian and French socca, to Indian sweets and crepes, chickpea flour dishes can be found in South Asian, Middle Eastern and Southern European cultures, among others.
It can be used as a binder in baking, in pancakes and crepes, to make vegan frittatas and omelettes, as well as in savoury dishes like stews and soups.
No, they are not the same.
Chickpea flour, or garbanzo bean flour, is made from white chickpeas. It has a fine powder consistency and is pale yellow in colour.
Besan, or gram flour, is made from brown chickpeas (chana dal) and I would not recommend it for this recipe.
Bob’s Red Mill Garbanzo Bean Flour works great in this recipe. I’ve also used this organic chickpea flour with success.
Chickpea flour is naturally gluten-free, rich in protein, fibre, vitamins and minerals. It also contains iron, potassium, manganese, copper, zinc, phosphorus, magnesium, folate, vitamin B6 and thiamin, so it’s a great way to sneak some extra nutrition in your diet.
Yes and no. The raw batter definitely has a pronounced beany and slightly bitter taste. It does not taste particularly good, so don’t be discouraged is you try it! The flavour and bitterness will also vary from brand to brand.
Once cooked, that bitter, beany flavour cooks out. The cooked pancakes taste earthy and nutty, depending on how much sweetener you add. Though optional ingredients, vanilla and cinnamon can also help enhance the flavour of the pancakes.
If you’re really not a fan of chickpeas, you may like my buckwheat flour pancakes or quinoa flour pancakes better.
This recipe is made to serve 1 or make 2 small servings, say for kids or a snack. It can be doubled or tripled as needed and leftovers store well in the fridge or freezer.
How to Make Savoury Chickpea Flour Pancakes
This recipe makes a great base for savoury pancakes too! To make them savoury, omit the sweetener and try spices and herbs like turmeric, parsley, cilantro, chili flakes and black pepper.
From there, try add-ins like thinly sliced scallions, red onion and red bell pepper. I prefer savoury pancakes a bit thinner, using closer to a 1:1 ratio of chickpea flour to water and omitting the baking powder.
Storing and Freezing
- If you have leftovers, they can be stored in the fridge for up to 4 days and enjoyed cold or reheated in the microwave, toaster or oven.
- To freeze then, either freeze them spaced out on a baking tray then transfer to a freezer bag or freeze with a piece of parchment between them to prevent them from sticking together.
- They can be reheated from frozen in the microwave or oven. They can be reheated in the toaster but I’d suggest thawing them first.
If you make this recipe, please consider leaving a comment and a ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ rating in the comment section below. It helps others who are thinking of making the recipe, and I love to hear from you. Thanks for trying my recipes! – Deryn
Chickpea Flour Pancakes (Easy, Vegan & Gluten-Free)
Ingredients
- 2/3 cup chickpea flour, 80 g
- 1/4 tsp sea salt
- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1-2 tbsp maple syrup or coconut sugar
- 1/3 cup water, 80 ml
- 1 tsp vanilla extract, optional
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon, optional
Instructions
- Pre-heat a non-stick skillet, crepe pan or pancake griddle over medium heat.
- Mix the chickpea flour, salt and baking powder together in a mixing bowl using a fork or whisk to help break up any clumps and distribute the baking powder and salt. If you're using a dry sweetener, mix that in as well.2/3 cup chickpea flour, 1/4 tsp sea salt, 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
- Add the water and liquid sweetener if you didn't use a dry one (and vanilla and cinnamon, if using) and mix until you have a smooth batter with no lumps. The batter will be quite thick and not quite pourable. With the water amount as written the pancakes will be very thick and fluffy. If you prefer thinner pancake or crepes, you can add more water to thin the batter until it's easily pourable. Note that the raw batter may have a pronounced beany and slightly bitter taste but that will cook out once you make the pancakes.1-2 tbsp maple syrup or coconut sugar, 1/3 cup water, 1 tsp vanilla extract, 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- Let the batter rest for a few minutes while the pan finishes heating.
- Once the pan is hot, add a light coating of non-stick cooking spray, if needed, then add approximately 1/4 cup portions of the batter to the pan and cook for 4-5 minutes until the edges look dry and firm and a few bubbles have appeared. Flip the pancakes and cook for another 30 seconds to 1 minute until cooked through.
- Repeat until you've used up all the batter then add your favourite pancake toppings such as berries, banana and maple syrup and enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
Originally published September 21, 2017.
Admittedly I made some tweaks, so I cannot rate the recipe just as it is. 1.5 tsp of baking powder is a lot for 80 grams of besan, so I reduced it. To make waffles and pancakes for the week, I made the recipe x8. 640 grams besan, same amount of salt per recipe (*8), 8 Tbs organic cane sugar for tenderness, 2 Tbs vanilla, 1 tsp almond extract, 2 cups soy milk plus about 1 cup water, and I think I ended up adding 8 tsp baking powder plus 2 Tbs apple cider vinegar to make sure the baking powder was all used up. Reading the reviews about the baking powder taste concerned me and the recipe worked great. I used non-stick spray for the waffle iron and coconut oil for the pan. These are fluffy, tender, but not falling apart- perfect. We topped with earth balance, mixed berries, and pure maple syrup. I feel nice and full from just 2 small-medium sized pancakes, and not in a bad way. Thanks for posting this recipe!
That’s awesome! Glad you enjoyed them!
I added vanilla to make them taste a little more like traditional pancakes. Otherwise they were very good.
Glad you enjoyed them! Vanilla is a great addition.
Just discovered chickpea flour in my low/grain free life and these are amazing!!!!
Glad to hear it Nicole!! I love these too..such a great recipe!
This is a delicious and simple recipe! Loved how easy it was to cook. I added some coconut oil to the batter. Perfect! Thank you.
So happy you enjoyed it! Isn’t it the best? You can’t beat how easy it is!
Made, quick and easy, tasted just fine. Pinned! 🙂
Glad you liked them!! They are so quick and easy to make, aren’t they?
Thanks for the recipe. I’m going to make them tomorrow. Quick question, do you add the tablespoon of maple syrup in step 2 with the dry ingredients? thanks!
It’s not a big deal when you add it but I’d suggest adding it with the water. Enjoy!
So, I made these today and topped them with some banana and a peanut butter maple sauce and it was probably the best pancakes I’ve ever had. Thanks for this amazing recipe.
Woohoo!! So glad you liked them!! I love this recipe too. So good, so thick and fluffy and so easy! Thanks a lot for the review.
Would adding almond milk be okay or would it affect the texture? Looking forward to trying these out!
I would recommend making them with water, not almond milk. It actually does affect ththe recipe. Enjoy!
Made these today but with bicarb soda instead of baking powder. Turned out fluffy and wonderful, no after taste, but no need to add salt. We topped ours off with a mixture of mixed berries, honey and cinnamon simmered in a saucepan. Delish!
Awesome! Thanks so much for the comment. So glad you enjoyed them.
I’m 99% usually a lurker, but had to comment on how happy this recipe made me!! Was a bit discouraged with chickpea flour after a few flops, but this recipe WORKED WONDERFULLY!!! I used date syrup as my sweetener and added baked figs in my pancakes. Thank you, thank you!!
So glad you liked them and found a chickpea flour pancake that worked! I love these too. They sound ammmazing with figs in them! Thanks for letting me know.
I think a little less salt and baking powder would be great, for some reason to much of it makes my tongue burn. I put a little bit of cinnamon to make it naturally sweet. It really is a life -well- taste saver!