Guys, we’re giving cauliflower the day off (you’re welcome, cauliflower). It’s chickpea’s time to shine in this insanely delicious, plant-based, vegan swap for chicken salad.
Chickpea “Chicken” Salad will trick your taste buds in the very best way. It tastes exactly like chicken salad but is meat free, a cinch to whip up, fresh, protein-packed, and make-ahead so you can have healthy filling lunches on hand all week long.
If you’re looking for vegan or vegetarian lunchtime idea — this easy recipe is a MUST TRY!
Smashed Chickpea Salad = Vegan Swap for Chicken Salad
Last year I worked with a dietitian friend to develop an ebook of plant-based recipes for her clients, and this smashed chickpea salad, aka a vegetarian version of classic chicken salad, was one of my very favorites. When she shared the concept, I thought there was no way I’d be able to use chickpeas to create a dish that not only resembled but TASTED like chicken salad…
I have never been more happy to be wrong!
Chickpea “Chicken” Salad is not only a healthy lunch idea for work or school that’s full of protein and fiber, but it tastes incredible! Fresh, crunchy, crispy, creamy, herby — all the things. It hits all the right flavor and texture notes and is oddly irresistible?
Ingredients Needed
This creamy chickpea salad is made with fridge and pantry staples in about 10 minutes. Plus it keeps well all week long since it’s plant/bean-based. Here’s what you’ll need:
- Chickpeas: I use canned chickpeas (also called garbanzo beans), vs cooking dried beans, so the recipe stays in the quick and easy lunch category. I like to mash the chickpeas pretty well but you can leave as much or as little whole to achieve your desired “chicken” salad texture.
- Celery: provides an irresistible crunch. I don’t love celery in my chicken salad, but it’s must in the chickpea version!
- Pickles: provide a tangy crunch. Use whatever you’ve got in the fridge – spears, slices, cornichons, etc.
- Shallot or Onion: provides more spicy crunch. Are you sensing a theme here? Love the creamy/crunchy texture of this salad! Feel free to use red onion or green onion if you have it on hand instead.
- Mayonnaise: we keep vegan mayonnaise on hand for Gwen, who is allergic to eggs and dairy, which is what I use in this chickpea salad. I like Hellman’s vegan mayonnaise of all the kinds we’ve tried. Feel free to use regular mayo, but know that most regular mayonnaise is made with eggs.
- Fresh lemon juice: a drizzle really wakes up and brightens this salad.
- Dijon mustard: provides a nice depth of flavor. You could use yellow mustard in a pinch.
- Fresh dill: I truly love fresh dill best in this chickpea chicken salad. You can use dried dill if you must, but give it a try at least once with fresh — it’s a treat!
Put Your Own Spin On It
As written, this is a fantastic base recipe for chickpea “chicken” salad. That said, feel free to dress it up and make it your own. Here are some ideas:
- Add dried cranberries, sliced grapes, or minced apple for a little bit of sweetness.
- Add minced fresh peppers or roasted red peppers.
- Swap the pickles for drained capers, minced green olives, and/or minced kalamata olives to give the chickpea salad a Mediterranean spin. A sprinkle of feta cheese would be divine too!
- Add nuts like chopped pecans, chopped almonds, or sliced almonds for additional crunch and flavor.
- Leave it chunky. Like I said, I like to mash the chickpeas pretty smooth, but feel free to mash less of the chickpeas for a chunkier-style salad.
How to Serve Chickpea “Chicken” Salad
Just like chicken salad, this vegan chickpea salad is super versatile in terms of how to serve it. Here are my favorites:
- On toast. I love Canyon Bakehouse GF bread which, like the majority gluten free breads, is best toasted. Dollop the chickpea salad on top of a piece of toast, or sandwich between two toasted slices. Sliced tomato is nice inside!
- In lettuce cups. Use butter lettuce cups or romaine hearts to enjoy this salad as a lettuce wrap.
- Pita bread. I like MyBread or BFREE gluten free pita breads.
- In a wrap. I like Mission GF tortillas, and have been loving EggLife egg white wraps, too!
- With crackers. Simple Mills almond crackers are great for turning this salad into a tasty dip.
- Over greens. Scoop over a bed of greens for a protein-packed salad.
Great for Meal Prep
Since this chicken chickpea salad is plant-based, it will keep really well in the fridge for 5 days / the typical work week. That said, feel free to portion the vegan chicken salad into individual-sized storage containers and keep in the fridge for grab and go lunches.
This recipe also makes for AWESOME mason jar salads! Scoop the smashed chickpea salad into the bottom of a 16oz wide-mouth mason jar then pack the rest of the jar full of greens (arugula is super tasty.) When it’s time to eat, pour the mixture into a bowl then dig in.
Try this Fresh and Healthy Salad
How to make Chickpea “Chicken” Salad
Start by adding a drained and rinsed can of chickpeas (also called garbanzo beans) into a large bowl.
Use the back of a fork or a potato masher to mash them up. I like to mash nearly all the chickpeas up, but feel free to leave some whole / chunky if you prefer.
You’ll see the peels pull away from the beans as you mash — it’s FINE. Resist the temptation to pull them out — you won’t notice them in the final salad!
To the mashed chickpeas add minced onion or shallot, minced celery, minced pickles, fresh dill (dried dill pictured here), vegan mayo, dijon mustard, lemon juice, salt, and pepper, then mix the ingredients well to combine.
As you can see, all the crunchy ingredients are finely minced so each bite is full of crunch!
That’s all she wrote — told you this was a simple dish! My advice is to RUN to the kitchen to raid the fridge and pantry and whip up this simple, vegan version of chicken salad ASAP. Let me know what think – enjoy!
More Fresh and Healthy Lunch Ideas
- Jennifer Aniston Salad
- Berry Chicken Quinoa Salad
- Greek Chickpea Salad
- Italian Chickpea Salad
- Italian Sub Salad
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Chickpea “Chicken” Salad
Description
Chickpea "Chicken" Salad will trick your tastebuds in the very best way. This easy chickpea recipe is a fabulous plant-based, protein-packed lunch option!
Ingredients
- 15oz can reduced sodium chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- 1 stalk celery, minced
- 1/4 cup minced pickles
- 1/4 cup minced shallot or onion
- 2 – 4 Tablespoons regular or vegan mayonnaise, depending on how creamy you like it
- 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1 Tablespoon minced fresh dill OR 1/2 teaspoon dried dill
- salt and pepper, to taste
- For serving: lettuce wraps or cups, mixed greens, gluten free pita bread, gluten free toast, gluten free crackers
Directions
- Add chickpeas to a large mixing bowl then use a potato masher or the back of a fork to smash 3/4 of them. Add remaining ingredients to the bowl then stir to combine. Taste then add more mayonnaise for creaminess or lemon juice for brightness. Serve with your choice of base or cracker. Store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
- Leave a comment and star rating if you loved the recipe!
This recipe is courtesy of Iowa Girl Eats, http://iowagirleats.com.
Photos by Ashley McLaughlin
Teresa 03.17.2024
Thank you so much for a new chickpea recipe. I’m sorta “hummus-ed” out. Looking forward to my lunches this week!
Kristin 03.18.2024
Totally get it – this one is so, so good!
Eric 03.09.2024
This recipe is FANTASTIC!!! I suspect pulsing the chickpeas in a processor would make the initial “work” even easier. Could even try putting the celery, shallot, and pickles in the processor to pulse. I added quite a bit more lemon juice, dill, and mustard. Also added some extra pickles and pickle juice. I like it zippy. Add red grapes and walnuts – over the top! I imagine adding a little curry would be delicious as well. This one is definitely going into heavy rotation! Thanks Iowa Girl!!!
Kristin 03.15.2024
I’m so glad you loved it and were able to make it your own, Eric!! Thank you so much for your feedback and recipe rating!
Bekah 01.08.2024
This was so yummy!! I had it on top of Lundberg Thin Stackers. I followed the recipe exactly. I had to use dried dill because that’s what I had on hand. I definitely think fresh dill would make it even better. Thank you!
Kristin 01.09.2024
Ooo, love that pairing! So glad you enjoyed it, and I agree — dried dill is good, but the fresh dill really does make the dish! Thank you so much for your feedback and recipe rating, Bekah!
Heidi Zugmaier 01.07.2024
Can I substitute Greek yogurt for the mayo?
Kristin 01.09.2024
Hi Heidi! I don’t personally like the super tangy flavor and texture of plain Greek yogurt in mayo-based cold salads like this, but if you like it, that’d be fine!
Kathryn 07.04.2023
I really enjoy this recipe-I’ve made this 3-4 times. I also like to add 1-2 tablespoons of pickle juice. Thanks!
Kristin 07.18.2023
Ooo, that sounds really good, Kathryn! Thank you so much for your feedback and recipe rating!
Monica 01.07.2024
Better than I expected! Very simple to put together and absolutely delicious!
Marci Voyles 05.22.2023
Would like free recipes
Jen S 05.09.2023
This salad is soooo good! I recommend going with the fresh dill if you can. Will be making this weekly!
Kristin 05.10.2023
I agree – the fresh dill really makes this dish pop! I’m so glad you loved this recipe, Jen, and thank you so much for your rating and feedback!
Brenda 05.05.2023
What kind of pickles did you use?
Kristin 05.08.2023
I used Wahlburgers dill pickles – Grillo’s is another awesome GF brand!
Dotty 04.27.2023
I made the chickpea “chicken” salad and loved it! I want to try sI made the Chickpea “Chicken” Salad and couldn’t believe how tasty and how quick and easy it was. I’m looking forward to make it again with nuts or chopped apples added to it. Thank you for this surprising salad!
Kristin 07.18.2023
Ooo, sounds delicious, Dotty! I’m so glad you loved it!!
Roxanne Justiz 04.25.2023
I absolutely love this recipe. It’s unique and easy to make. I like that it can be made in a time crunch and that it’s healthy. To top it off it’s vegan! What’s there not to like? Thanks for sharing. Shalom
Kristin 07.18.2023
Right?! It’s the perfect recipe. So glad you enjoyed, Roxanne. :)
Julie 04.05.2023
This chickpea salad is AMAZING! So delicious – and the fresh dill adds a nice pop of flavor! This is a perfect recipe to meal prep for lunches for the week, especially approaching summer when it’s too hot to cook anything. Don’t sleep on this recipe! It’s sooooo good.
Kristin 04.10.2023
Thank you so, so much for the awesome review and feedback, Julie!! I totally agree with all your comments!!
Kristine 03.18.2023
This is so tasty!! I’ve made it a couple times now and I think the flavors are great! And it’s quick to put together, and versatile! I love being able to change things up a bit based on what I have on hand. This is a delicious addition to my lunch rotation.
Stephanie 03.04.2023
Spread this on a toasted BFree GF pita — so good! Definitely adding to my lunch rotation this spring!
Kristin 03.06.2023
Fabulous – love that, Stephanie!! Thank you so much for your feedback and recipe rating!
Kim 02.21.2023
Wow! This is really good.
Kristin 02.22.2023
I’m thrilled you loved it, Kim! Thank you so much for your feedback and recipe rating!
Hillary 01.29.2023
I am amazed at how much this tasted like regular chicken salad!!
Kristin 01.30.2023
Right?! So, so good – I’m so glad you gave it a try, Hillary!
Velva 01.22.2023
Yes! Let’s give cauliflower the day off! This looks fantastic. Thanks for sharing with us.
Velva
Kristin 01.23.2023
Haha, right?! It’s done enough. :) I hope you love it, Velva!
Bonnie 01.20.2023
I started eating this last year, a similar recipe from Angela Liddon, and add orange/yellow bell peppers diced – the more crunch the better! I pop the chickpeas in a Cuisinart and pulse until the consistency I like the dump in a bowl and add the rest of the ingredients. You’re right, don’t forget the splash or lemon or lime.
Thanks for a plant-based recipe. I make it often in spring and summer but kinda forgot about it so a good reminder to make it!
Kristin 01.23.2023
Great tips, Bonnie! Totally agree – the more crunch, the better!
Emily S 01.19.2023
I am finding this really hard to believe, but you are selling me on it! I prefer a mushier chicken salad – so this may work.
my mom’s now iconic chicken salad always included chopped up boiled eggs too. I wonder how they would play here, too??!!
Kristin 01.19.2023
I was soo skeptical at first too, but it is amazing!!! I think chopped egg would be an awesome addition, especially if you like the salad on the softer side. :)