Chickpeas can significantly lower your cholesterol. Here are 5 tasty recipes scientists recommend to improve your health.

Turns out, not all beans are created equal.

While black beans seem to be great at fighting low-grade chronic inflammation, chickpeas are more of a cholesterol-lowering powerhouse, according to recent research from Illinois Institute of Technology.

In a three-month study, researchers asked a group of roughly 24 prediabetic people to eat a cup of black beans every day, while another group of 24 with prediabetes was given chickpeas. In a third control group, participants cooked white rice.

By the end of just 12 weeks, the researchers noticed significant differences in inflammation levels for the black bean eaters, while chickpea eaters had a greater effect on their total cholesterol, moving from at risk (with an average total cholesterol around 200 mg/dL) into a heart-healthy range (186 mg/dL).

Chickpeas have cholesterol-lowering power

Chickpeas are rich in phytosterols, a cholesterol-lowering plant compound. margouillatphotos/Getty Images

The reason why different beans house different health benefits probably has to do with the chemicals that color them and make each bean unique.

While the phytochemicals that make black beans black are known to have more anti-inflammatory properties, golden chickpeas have more of other plant chemicals called phytosterols, which are cholesterol-lowering compounds.

This is why nutrition buffs often recommend eating a wide variety of different colored plants, including fruits, vegetables, beans and whole grains. By eating a rich diversity of colorful whole foods, you'll enjoy the complex natural "food matrix" found inside each one, lead researcher Indika Edirisinghe told Business Insider.

"It contains protein, it contains lipid, it contains fiber, vitamins, minerals," and different combinations of each from bean to bean, he said. "Somebody can synthesize artificial bean by adding all the nutrients, but I don't think you're going to get the same effect."

Registered dietician Joel Ramdial, who was not involved with this study, is the director of nutrition at Southeast Missouri State University's department of sport sciences. He told BI that beans are one of the most dense and varied sources of dietary fiber you can find, making them a great ingredient to mix into your next meal.

"You can blend them up and mix them into things, you can roast," he said. "You can put them in soups, you can mix them into sauces."

In order to make it easier on research participants to include a cup of chickpeas per day in their diets, Edirisinghe and his team equipped their study volunteers with canned chickpeas, a measuring cup, and several easy recipes.

Here are 5 chickpea recipes scientists recommend to lower cholesterol:

Cool ranch chickpeas

Roasted chickpeas are an easy, healthy snack. Courtesy of Indika Edirisinghe.

Ingredients:

• 2 15 oz. cans of chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• 1/2 cup of extra virgin olive oil
• 2 tbsp. of ranch seasoning

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400F
2. Dry chickpeas well with paper towels
3. Spread onto a large baking sheet in an even layer
4. Bake until golden and crisp, 30 minutes
5. In a large bowl, toss the hot chickpeas with oil and seasoning
6. Spread out onto the baking sheet and bake for five more minutes
7. Remove from the oven. Chickpeas will continue to crisp as they cool.

Tomato cucumber feta salad with chickpeas

Mixing chickpeas with fresh veggies and cheese crams a lot of different macronutrients into one meal. Courtesy of Indika Edirisinghe.

Ingredients:

• 1 15 oz. can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• 1 large cucumber, chopped
• 1 pint of cherry tomatoes, preferably multi-colored, halved
• 1/2 white onion, chopped
• 1/2 cup of feta cheese
• 1/4 cup of extra virgin olive oil
• 2 tbsp. of red wine vinegar
• Salt
• Pepper
• 2 tbsp. of fresh cilantro, chopped

Directions:

1. In a large bowl, combine the cucumber, tomato, chickpeas, and onion
2. In a small bowl, whisk together the oil and vinegar. Season with salt and pepper. Add to the large bowl and toss to combine.

3. Top with feta and cilantro

Honey sesame chickpeas

This meal only takes about 20 minutes to make. Courtesy of Indika Edirisinghe.

Ingredients:

• 1 15 oz. can of chickpeas
• 1 small onion, diced
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1/2 cup of honey
• 1/3 cup of soy sauce
• 2 tbsp. of toasted sesame oil
• 1 tbsp. of rice wine vinegar
• 2 tbsp. of vegetable oil
• 1/4 tsp. of crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 tsp. of fresh grated ginger
• Cooked rice, for serving
• Sesame seeds and sliced scallions, for garnish

Directions:

1. Put the diced onion, minced garlic, honey, soy sauce, sesame oil, vinegar, vegetable oil, red pepper flakes and ginger in a medium saucepan.
2. Add some water and bring to a boil
3. Reduce to simmer and cook for five to 10 minutes, until slightly thick
4. Add the chickpeas and return to a boil
5. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 10 minutes, until chickpeas are coated and sauce is thick

6. Serve over cooked rice, and garnish with the sesame seeds and sliced scallions, if desired

Chickpeas with leeks and lemon

A fresh and vibrant meal for summertime, with lemon zest and rosemary. Courtesy of Indika Edirisinghe.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups of chickpeas
• 4 leeks
• 1/2 lemon
• 1 branch of fresh rosemary
• 1 clove of garlic
• 1/4 cup of extra virgin olive oil
• Salt

Directions:

1. In a large skillet, heat the olive oil, garlic, and rosemary over medium heat
2. Once the garlic turns fragrant and the rosemary starts to sizzle, remove the rosemary and set it aside
3. Add the leeks to the pan, along with a good pinch of salt
4. Cook, stirring often, until the leeks are soft and sweet but still green, around five to eight minutes
5. Add in the chickpeas, and continue to cook, turning the beans in the oil, for five more minutes. The chickpeas should darken slightly in color.
6. Using a microplane or zester, add a few scrapes of lemon zest into the pan, plus a squeeze of lemon juice
7. Stir to combine
8. Season to taste with lemon juice, zest, or salt as needed

Roasted chickpea gyros

A quick meal for busy days. Courtesy of Indika Edirisinghe.

Ingredients:

• 1 15 oz. can of chickpeas
• 4 pita flatbreads
• 1 cup of tzatziki sauce
• 2 lettuce leaves, roughly chopped
• 1 tomato, sliced
• 1/4 red onion, cut into strips
• 1 tbsp. of olive oil
• 1 tbsp. of paprika
• 1 tsp of black pepper
• 1/4 tsp of salt

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400F
2. Pat the chickpeas dry with paper towels, removing any skins that come off
3. In a large bowl, gently toss the chickpeas with the oil, paprika, black pepper, cayenne pepper, and salt
4. Spread the chickpeas onto a greased, rimmed baking sheet and roast for roughly 20 minutes, until lightly brown but not hard
5. Spread tzatziki on one side of the pita bread, then sprinkle in 1/4 of the chickpeas, and add your veggies
6. Fold and enjoy!

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