Add a plant-based option to your weekly meal prep with this Make-Ahead Vegan Chickpea Salad. This gluten-free dairy-free salad is loaded with veggies, herbs and chickpeas, covered in a simple lemon and cumin dressing you’ll love!
Units:
Scale:
Ingredients
For the salad:
1– (15.5 ounce) can chickpeas
1/2 small red onion
1 1/2cups grape or cherry tomatoes
1 small bunch radishes (5–7 radishes)
1red bell pepper
1yellow bell pepper
1/2cupcurlyparsley leaves
1/2cupcilantro leaves
For the dressing:
zest of 1 medium lemon
2 tablespoonsextra virgin olive oil, plus extra to taste
2 tablespoonsfresh lemon juice
2 teaspoonsred wine vinegar
2 teaspoonsAleppo pepper or 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 teaspoonground cumin
1/2 teaspoonsea salt, plus extra to taste
fresh ground black pepper, to taste
Instructions
Prepare the chickpeas: Drain the chickpeas and rinse well. Strain excess water off, then spread the chickpeas out on a paper towel. Use another paper towel to pat the chickpeas on top and remove as much water as possible.ย
Prepare the onions: Peel the onion before slicing into very thin half moons. Leave the slices to soak in a bowl of cold water to remove their bite as you prepare the rest of the veggies.ย
Prepare the veggies: Chop the tomatoes and radishes. Core and de-seed the bell pepper before chopping them into a small dice similar in size to the radish and tomato pieces. Chop the herbs as well.ย
Make the dressing:ย In a small bowl or jar with lid, combine all the dressing ingredients together and whisk or shake until combined.
Assemble the salad: Transfer the dried chickpeas to a large bowl. Drain the onion slices and remove as much moisture as possible using a paper towel before adding them to the bowl, along with the rest of the chopped herbs and vegetables. Stir in the dressing until everything is well coated.
Serve & store: Add more salt if the salad is missing a savory note, more lemon juice if lacking brightness, and more extra virgin olive oil if it needs a little more richness, which will depend on the quality of the chickpeas you started with. Serve immediately or store in an airtight container in the fridge and enjoy within 3 days.
Cucumber: 2 cups of diced cucumber (approx. 1 English cucumber) is a delicious addition if youโre serving this salad right away. But if youโre prepping this ahead, leave the cucumber out, as it will make the chickpea salad too watery and wet once it has sat in the fridge for a while.
Tomatoes: You can use larger tomatoes in this recipe, but remove the seeds before chopping to reduce excess moisture from the salad.
Nutrition information estimated with My Fitness Pal.