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Besan / chickpea flour

Grains & Starches

Packaged or made-up food — may contain other allergens not listed here.

Allergen info is a guide only — always read the actual product label.

Besan isn't cornflour — they're two different flours that often sit side by side on the shelf. Besan (also called gram flour or chickpea flour) is ground chickpeas. Cornflour is the fine white starch from maize. For a sensitive gut they land at opposite ends of our scale: besan scores 8.3 and cornflour 0.1. The gap is mostly gas. Chickpeas carry GOS, one of the fermentable carbs (FODMAPs) that feed wind, and grinding them into flour doesn't take it out — while cornflour and rice flour are low FODMAP. So if a recipe uses besan to thicken or make a batter, you could try rice flour or cornflour in its place.

GASP score by preparation (lower is gentler · 0–10)· per 30 g serving
PreparationGasBindingOverall
As served / plainusual7.43.58.3
Flavour
3.5
Mild
BlandBam
Nutrition (how nutrient-dense)
Reasonable

Three lenses: how gentle, how nourishing, how tasty. Gentle isn't the same as healthy — how the scores work →

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Alternatives for besan / chickpea flour, ranked three ways. Tap any ingredient to learn what it is.

Gentlestgentle standby · confidence B

Rice flour or cornflour

Lowest likely gas, urgency, residue and irritation.

Besan (chickpea flour) carries legume GOS. Rice flour and cornflour are low-FODMAP for batters, binding and thickening.

Combined load for these items is 0.5 vs 8.3 for besan / chickpea flour — about 7.8 points lower.

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Scores are modelled estimates, not medical advice. Everyone's gut is different, and tolerance changes over time. Reintroduce foods one at a time, and follow your own medical team's advice.