Chana Protein per 100g: Boiled vs Roasted Compared

Chana is eaten in more forms than almost any other legume in India — boiled for chana chaat, roasted as a snack, and ground into besan — and the protein content shifts noticeably across those forms.

Chana Nutrition (Per 100g)

Form	Protein	Calories	Fiber
Boiled chickpeas	~9g	~164 kcal	~7-8g
Roasted chana (dry)	~19-20g	~360 kcal	~10g
Besan (gram flour)	~22g	~387 kcal	~10g

Why Roasted Chana Looks So Much Higher in Protein

Roasted chana has most of its water removed, concentrating the protein per gram compared to boiled chickpeas, which retain significant water weight. Gram-for-gram, roasted chana is a much denser snack — genuinely useful for closing a protein gap in a small portion, but also easy to over-eat calorie-wise since it's calorie-dense too.

Chana as a Snack vs Chana as a Meal Component

A 30g handful of roasted chana gives roughly 6g of protein for about 108 calories — a reasonable snack option. Boiled chana used in a chaat or curry is better thought of as a fiber-and-micronutrient contributor within a larger meal rather than your primary protein source, since you'd need a large bowl to hit a meaningful protein number from it alone.

Chana vs Rajma vs Other Legumes

Boiled chana, rajma, and most boiled legumes land in a fairly similar 8-9g protein per 100g range once cooked — the differences between them come down more to fiber, iron, and micronutrient content than protein.

The Bottom Line

If you're tracking chana for protein, use the boiled figure (~9g/100g) for chana used in curries and chaat, and the roasted figure (~19-20g/100g) only for dry-roasted snacking chana — mixing these two up is one of the most common tracking errors people make with chickpeas.

Calibrate's AI Quick Log can tell the difference between "boiled chana" and "roasted chana" automatically when you describe your meal.