Two commercial types of chickpeas are produced: kabuli and desi. The kabuli or garbanzo type, large-seeded with a thin, delicate and colorless or white seed coat, often is made into snacks (in South Asia), ground into hummus (in the Middle East) or canned whole for the salad bar trade (in North America). The desi type, small-seeded with a thick, hard and colored seed coat, often is exported whole to the Indian subcontinent. The desi type usually is prepared for consumption either by dehulling and splitting or by dehulling and grinding into flour.
