Chickpea chicken salad is the vegetarian version of a classic chicken salad. It’s so good you won’t miss the chicken at all! Perfect for sandwiches.
This chickpea chicken salad has all those classic flavors you know and love from a chicken salad, without the chicken! Chickpeas replace the chicken in this salad and it tastes so good you just won’t mind a bit.
So whether you’re a vegetarian or just looking for a tasty meatless option, this vegetarian chicken salad ticks all the boxes and makes a delicious, hearty, filling plant based meal.
And if you love delicious salads then you’ll also love our Greek pasta salad and our broccoli salad.
Ingredients For Vegetarian Chicken Salad:
Ingredient Notes
- Chickpeas – we used one 15-ounce can of chickpeas (drained) for this recipe. If you prefer to use cooked chickpeas (not canned) then you would need 1 and ½ cups.
- Mayonnaise – should be a thick and creamy mayonnaise.
- White vinegar – distilled white vinegar really adds a gorgeous flavor to this. You can substitute other vinegars but the taste likely won’t be as good.
- Lemon juice – should be freshly squeezed for the best flavor.
How To Make Chickpea Chicken Salad
Full instructions and measurements can always be found in the recipe card at the bottom of the post. This is a summary of the process to go along with the process photos.
- Add chickpeas to a shallow bowl with a flat bottom. Mash them roughly with a fork, leaving some texture.
- Add the mashed chickpeas to a mixing bowl. Add mayonnaise, celery, red onion, pecans, dijon mustard, lemon juice, garlic powder, distilled white vinegar, dried dill, salt and ground black pepper and mix together.
- Serve right away or cover and refrigerate until you’re ready to serve.
Serving Suggestions
This chickpea chicken salad can be served as is for a cold, creamy salad or use it as a filling for a chickpea salad sandwich.
Our favorite way to serve it is on open faced sandwiches. Load your open faced sandwiches with shredded lettuce and sliced tomato and cucumber and top them with generous portions of chickpea chicken salad. Sprinkle with fresh chopped parsley and ground black pepper and enjoy!
Chef’s Tips
Mash the chickpeas with a fork. It’s a little more labor intensive to mash them with a fork, rather than in the food processor, but we need them to still have ‘texture’. If you do them in the food processor they could end up too smooth; we’re not making hummus (though we do also love to make hummus!).
Finely chop the celery, red onion and pecans. This really helps the salad to hold together really well and provides such a delicious texture and crunch.
Make Ahead, Storing and Freezing
This is a great option to make ahead, as the flavors get even better after a bit of time in the fridge. So feel free to make up a batch of this today, to enjoy tomorrow! Keep it covered in the fridge and it will be all the more delicious when you serve it.
Leftovers store very well in the fridge in a covered container for 5 days. You can also freeze it for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge and give it a good stir before serving.
More Easy Vegetarian Recipes
- Vegetarian Stuffed Mushrooms
- Black Bean Curry
- Spicy Vodka Rigatoni
- Hummus Pasta
- Zucchini Fritters
- Potato Fritters
Did you make this recipe? Be sure to leave a comment and rating below.
Chickpea Chicken Salad
Ingredients
- 15 ounce Can Chickpeas Drained
- ¾ cup Mayonnaise (180g)
- ½ cup Celery Finely Chopped
- ¼ cup Red Onion Finely Chopped
- ½ cup Pecans (55g) Finely Chopped
- 1 teaspoon Dijon Mustard
- 1 Tablespoon Lemon Juice Freshly Squeezed
- ½ teaspoon Garlic Powder
- ½ teaspoon Distilled White Vinegar
- 1 teaspoon Dried Dill
- ½ teaspoon Salt
- Ground Black Pepper To Taste
Instructions
- Add chickpeas to a shallow bowl with a flat bottom. Mash them roughly with a fork, leaving some texture.
- Add the mashed chickpeas to a mixing bowl. Add mayonnaise, celery, red onion, pecans, dijon mustard, lemon juice, garlic powder, distilled white vinegar, dried dill, salt and ground black pepper and mix together.
- Serve as a filling for sandwiches or on open faced sandwiches with shredded lettuce and sliced tomato and cucumber, topped with fresh chopped parsley and ground black pepper.
Notes
- Chickpeas – we used one 15-ounce can of chickpeas (drained) for this recipe. If you prefer to use cooked chickpeas (not canned) then you would need 1 and ½ cups.
- White vinegar – distilled white vinegar really adds a gorgeous flavor to this. You can substitute other vinegars but the taste likely won’t be as good.
- Make ahead: This is a great option to make ahead, as the flavors get even better after a bit of time in the fridge. So feel free to make up a batch of this today, to enjoy tomorrow! Keep it covered in the fridge and it will be all the more delicious when you serve it.
- Storing: Leftovers store very well in the fridge in a covered container for 5 days.
- Freezing: You can also freeze it for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge and give it a good stir before serving.
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