Black Chickpea from the Murgia Karst (Cicer arietinum)

Murgia Carsica Black Chickpea (Cicer arietinum): The chickpea is the third-largest crop in the world, just after soybeans and beans. It is among the oldest domesticated crops. Thanks to its long roots, it is drought-resistant and an excellent source of protein, having been with us since the dawn of history. This particular variety comes from the Karst areas of Murgia and it is at high risk of disappearing, reason why cultivating it, and saving its seeds in purity, is equally important.Selected to be grown in challenging agricultural conditions, the plant is exceptionally hardy and sustainable, requiring almost no irrigation or treatments.
To be sown since February, it does not love clayey/too fertile soils, which give it problems in the setting phase, it does excellent in arid and sandy soils. Irrigation can be suspended when the plant is well rooted. It is only vulnerable to water stagnation. Unlike the common chickpea, the seeds are tough and require extensive soaking and cooking

The Murgia is a quadrangular karst plateau located roughly in central Puglia. The part in the province of Bari, known to locals as "Murgia karst," lies southeast of Bari. In the past, this area was rich in livestock and crops: vineyards, almond groves, and olive groves, which adapted well to the rocky and often waterless soil. In addition to these commercial crops, farmers planted legumes and onions, which were the basis of their diet and which they sold at local markets: chickpeas and lentils, in particular, and among the former, a wrinkled, jet-black chickpea. While chickpeas are one of the most widely cultivated legumes worldwide, in Italy the quantities produced each year are negligible and are almost entirely grown in central and southern Italy.
The black chickpea from the Murgia Carsica is different in shape and color from the common sultan chickpea: this local ecotype is shaped like a corn kernel, much smaller, with a wrinkled, irregular skin and a hooked tip. It's very tasty and rich in fiber (three times the amount found in a common chickpea) and iron. Thanks to its high iron content, it was once recommended for pregnant women. It never enjoyed a thriving market, partly because its thick skin requires 12 hours of soaking and about two hours of cooking. But its flavor is delicious, vaguely herbaceous: its natural saltiness means it can be eaten with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, without salt. Local cuisine features it in a soup with a generous sauté of onions, or as a first course with tagliolini &type of pasta) tomato, and a drizzle of olive oil.

 Source: https://www.fondazioneslowfood.com/it/presidi-slow-food/cece-nero-della-murgia-carsica/