This is a vegan classic, and if you've never tried it, you're really missing out. Even if you're not vegan, you can totally appreciate how easy and tasty chickpea salad sandwiches can be. They're quicker to bring together than an egg or chicken salad and hold up for a while, so they're good for making in big batches.
I'm making these two ways, for a little variety in our sandwiches. One is more like a "chicken" salad and one is more like a "tuna" salad - both of which I used to love before going vegan. While not an exact replacement, these both are delicious and add another great lunch idea to my weekly meal plan. (And it's one of the foods that we prep so we always have it on hand in our kitchen.)
Let's get right into it!
Chickpea salad ingredients
- 1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- 1 stalk celery, finely diced
- 1 small carrot, finely diced
- 1/2 a medium red onion, finely diced
- 1-2 tbsp vegan mayo (our current favorite is Just Mayo)
- 1 tsp spicy mustard
- 1 tsp sriracha
- 1/2 a lemon, juiced
- 1/2 tsp each garlic powder, onion powder, and turmeric
- salt & pepper to taste
"Chickpea of the sea" salad ingredients
- 1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- 1/2 stalk celery, finely diced
- 2-3 small mushrooms, finely diced (any mushrooms will work here, really)
- 2-3 tbsp vegan mayo
- 1/2 a lemon, juiced
- 1 tbsp rice seasoning (this is the kind we like - just seaweed, sesame seeds, sugar and salt!) or minced seaweed such as dulse or nori
Sandwich Ingredients
- bread
- greens, like spinach or leaf lettuce
- cucumber, thin-sliced
- pickles
- sprouts
- whatever other toppings you like!
Instructions
Mix everything together in a big bowl and then, using a potato masher, mash everything together until it's a consistency you like. You could also use a food processor - just be sure to take it slow or you'll end up with a paste. (I like it on the rougher side.)
If you're more proper than I am, you might want to mash everything together minus the chopped vegetables, and then fold them in when the chickpeas are mashed - but to me, this is a messy kind of sandwich so I don't mind if the vegetables are a little mashed too.
Each of these recipes will make 2-3 large sandwiches. Enjoy!
