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This simple chickpea salad sandwich is a creamy and filling vegetarian lunch idea that we whip up all the time! Like a chickpea tuna salad but totally vegan, made with a few flavorful but simple ingredients. My husband asks me to make this for him to take to work ALL the time!
What Makes This Sandwich So Good
- This salad is based on my popular Costco-style chicken salad recipe, but it’s completely vegan!
- Even dedicated meat-eaters will love the flavor and textures in this chickpea salad sandwich. Chunks of rich chickpeas, creamy mayonnaise, tangy Dijon mustard, and fresh veggies make it a perfect lunch or dinner recipe.
- Chow down right away, or use it for meal prep! You can refrigerate the chickpea salad in an airtight container for 3 to 4 days.
Key Ingredient
Chickpeas – You may not have guessed this, but chickpeas are a pretty crucial component of this sandwich. These legumes are high in protein, full of nutrients, and are a great source of fiber. Chickpeas are also known as garbanzo beans, so you may see them labelled that way at the grocery store, but they’re the same thing.
Chef’s Tips
- Keep your toppings simple! Our chickpea salad sandwich has so much flavor in it that you really don’t need to add much of anything else. Personally, I love the crunch you get from romaine lettuce. Tomatoes and pickles are great options, too!
- Don’t skip the simmer! If you’re using canned chickpeas, the simmering really makes a difference. You can absolutely cook chickpeas from dry if you prefer not to use canned ones, though. If the texture of your chickpeas is a little dry, you can add more mayonnaise to help offset it.
- Got an Instant Pot? Give this No-Soak Instant Pot Chickpeas recipe from our sister site, Easy Healthy Recipes, a try!
- If you’re not on a vegan diet, you can use just regular mayonnaise. It won’t make a difference in the flavor of your chickpea salad sandwich.
More Vegan and Vegetarian Recipes
- BBQ Jackfruit Sandwiches
- Hummus Without Tahini
- Vegan Red Velvet Cupcakes
- Chickpea Gyros
- Vegan Latkes (Potato Pancakes)
- Cajun 15-Bean Vegetarian Gumbo
- Seitan Grilled Chicken with Vegan BBQ Sauce
- Instant Pot Black Beans
- Vegan Seitan “Chicken”
- BBQ Jackfruit Bowls
- Bean and Cheese Taquitos (4 Ingredients)
- Vegan Enchiladas
Chickpea Salad Sandwich
This vegan version of my Costco chicken salad is just as creamy and delicious, but totally meat-free.
servings
Equipment
- medium saucepan
- colander or fine mesh seive
- Large bowl
- potato masher or fork
- silicone spatula or spoon
Ingredients
- 2 15.5-ounce cans chickpeas about 3 ¾ cups
- 2 tablespoons celery minced
- 2 tablespoons yellow onion minced
- 2 tablespoons parsley
- 4-5 tablespoons vegan mayonnaise
- 2-3 teaspoons vegan Dijon mustard plus more to taste
- ½ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Pour both cans of chickpeas (and liquid) into medium saucepan. Simmer over medium heat for 10 minutes, then pour chickpeas into colander or sieve and drain well.
- Transfer drained chickpeas to large bowl. Using potato masher or fork, mash chickpeas until desired consistency is achieved.
- Add celery, onion, parsley, vegan mayonnaise, vegan Dijon mustard, and salt to mashed chickpeas. Stir well to thoroughly incorporate all ingredients.
- Chill chickpea salad if desired, or serve immediately on bread or in lettuce cups with preferred toppings.
Video
- Be sure to use vegan mayonnaise and Dijon mustard without honey.
- Leftovers: Refrigerate any leftover chickpea salad in an airtight container up to 4 days.
Approximate Information for One Serving
Serving Size: 1servingCalories: 153calProtein: 5gFat: 8gSaturated Fat: 1gSodium: 553mgPotassium: 169mgTotal Carbs: 15gFiber: 5gSugar: 1gNet Carbs: 10gVitamin A: 141IUVitamin C: 2mgCalcium: 41mgIron: 1mg
Nutrition Disclaimers
Number of total servings shown is approximate. Actual number of servings will depend on your preferred portion sizes.
Nutritional values shown are general guidelines and reflect information for 1 serving using the ingredients listed, not including any optional ingredients. Actual macros may vary slightly depending on specific brands and types of ingredients used.
To determine the weight of one serving, prepare the recipe as instructed. Weigh the finished recipe, then divide the weight of the finished recipe (not including the weight of the container the food is in) by the desired number of servings. Result will be the weight of one serving.
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Taste great, I added chopped red grapes delicious
Ooh, chopped red grapes sound like a delicious addition! 🙂
A go-to recipe for me. Love it!
It’s such a great one to keep in rotation! Thanks for sharing, JJ! 😊
Love it! I used one jar of Jovial chickpeas and 1 can of sweet corn just because I had a lot of corn on hand…added chili flakes to the mix, and it’s very tasty. Definitely will be added to our monthly rotation!
Yumm- those sound like delicious additions! Thanks for sharing, Emmy. 🙂
I was teying it for the first and i really enjoyed it
So happy to hear that, Jane! Thank you so much for sharing your review with us!
I love this recipe, thank you for sharing it. I am a big chicken salad fan but quickly get weirded about by the chicken bits. I added fresh dill and chopped sweet gherkins to my version. This will be a repeated recipe!
Ooh, fresh dill and chopped gherkins sound so delicious! So glad you loved this sandwich, Jenny. Thanks for sharing! 😊
I thought this was surprisingly good, I did add some dill and capers, I will definitely make it again 😋
Dill and capers sound like delicious additions! So glad you enjoyed it, Marilyn. 😊
Today was a very low energy day (depression) and I don’t have a potato masher, so I put the chickpeas in my Ninja and pulsed just a few times. Worked perfectly.
So glad you enjoyed the sandwich, and that the Ninja worked well for this! Thank you for sharing, Jen. 🤍
Great taste, simple to make for someone new to being a vegan!
So glad you enjoyed the sandwich, Matt! 🙂
This is a go to recipe in my home now. Even my 1 year old likes it! I am currently in the process of making freezer meals for after my baby arrives and was wondering if you’d ever tried to freeze this.
Hi, Sam! We have not tried freezing this- I’m not sure if the chickpeas would maintain a good consistency after thawing. Let us know if you do try it! And early congratulations on the arrival of your baby! 🤍
Made this as a suggestion from my sister who made a similar salad. I added a small bit of dill relish along with all the other ingredients. Amazing, my husband and son raved about this and they are almost never enthused by my vegetarian dinner options. Served in pita bread with lettuce and tomato and alongside homemade creamy tomato soup. Will go into rotation menu for sure. Thank you.
Ooh, all of that sounds delish! So glad everyone loved it. Thanks for sharing, D Ann! 😊