Looking for a quick and delicious plant-based lunch option? Look no further than this mouth-watering vegan chickpea tuna salad sandwich! Made with mashed chickpeas, tangy pickles, diced celery and onion, this satisfying sandwich is super simple to throw together and is great leftover making it perfect for weekday lunches.
This sandwich is completely plant-based, making it a great choice for anyone looking to reduce their environmental impact and improve their overall health. Whether you're a die-hard vegan or just looking to add more plant-based meals to your diet, this chickpea tuna salad sandwich is sure to become a new favorite. So why wait? Whip up a batch today and discover the deliciousness of vegan chickpea tuna salad!
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Ingredients
- Chickpeas: As the title of this recipe states, the "tuna" or "toona" or "Chuna" in this recipe is from the wonderful chickpea. Chickpeas, also known as garbanzo beans, are a cost-effective and nutritious food! They are a good source of both fiber and protein, and provide potassium, B-vitamins, iron, magnesium, and selenium. You can use chickpeas from a can or cook from dried. If using canned chickpeas for this recipe you will save 1 tablespoon of aquafaba, which is the viscous liquid found in the can of chickpeas. If you cook your chickpeas from scratch, just use 1 tablespoon of the cooking water. Mashing with a little aquafaba helps create that classic creamy, flaky 'tuna' texture.
- Vegan Mayo: Mayonnaise is a crucial ingredient for traditional tuna salad. Regular mayonnaise typically contains egg however there are several egg-less brands available that provide the same deliciousness and consistency. Some recommendations include: Hellman's Vegan Spread (my favorite), Follow your Heart Vegenaise and JUST Mayo. You won't miss the egg, trust me.
- The diced celery, red onion, and pickle pack necessary crunch and flavor. Without these guys, our vegan chickpea tuna salad would be mush.
See recipe card for quantities.
Instructions
Place chickpeas & aquafaba in a medium sized bowl and grab a potato masher and/or fork.
Optional: place chickpeas and aquafaba in a food processor.
If mashing by hand, use the fork or potato masher and press down repeatedly until the chickpeas are a flaky texture that resembles tuna.
*If using a food processor, pulse chickpeas until flakey and then dump in a medium mixing bowl.
Add vegan mayo, celery, red onion, and pickle to mixing bowl with the mashed chickpeas and combine all ingredients until well mixed.
Finally, season with little salt and pepper to taste.
And that's it friends, we have our vegan chickpea tuna salad.
Suggestion: Chill vegan tuna salad in the fridge for at least 30 minutes prior to eating or make a day in advance to allow the flavors to marry.
Variations
This chickpea tuna salad would also be great served:
- On a bed of greens/in a salad
- With pita chips
- In a wrap
Equipment
This recipe requires minimal equipment, especially if you are using canned chickpeas.
You will need:
- Cutting board
- Knife
- Medium mixing bowl
- To mash the chickpeas: Use a Potato masher or Fork or Food processor. The potato masher is easier than using a fork because it covers more surface area and has a bigger handle to apply more force. The food processor is certainly the easiest of them all as there is no real physical effort required and the chickpeas are flakey in like 30 seconds. But if you don't have a food processor (or don't feel like getting it out) and don't have a potato masher, a fork will work!
Storage
Store sandwich toppings (spinach, tomato, etc) separately from chickpea tuna salad mixture in the fridge, and assemble when ready. Good for ~4 days.
3 Steps to Build a Better Sandwich
Because there is something so satisfying about creating and consuming a perfect Sammy!
1) First, start with a high-quality bread that pairs well with the
sandwich you are making. A sandwich with a high moisture-content like
this vegan chickpea tuna salad is going to be best served on a hearty bread
that has a dry, dense consistency versus a soft, spongy bread. There are endless
bread options to choose from, with both whole-grain and gluten-free options. Now, to toast or not to toast?! I am team toast, but you do you.
2) Next, select your toppings. You can be as creative as you want or keep it basic. Options include: greens like lettuce, spinach, or arugula, tomatoes, sliced radish, pickles, cucumbers, shredded cabbage slaw, roasted red peppers. Fresh spinach, sliced tomatoes, and more red onions were toppings used to build this chickpea tuna salad sandwich but feel free to change it up.
3) Finally, the icing on the cake… err sandwich, is all about the condiments! Spreads like vegan mayo or pesto are two personal favorites. But lettuce not forget the wide array of mustards, BBQ sauces, salsas, vinaigrettes, and/or hot sauces that are available to take your sandwich to the next level.
Related
Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:
Vegan Chickpea 'Tuna' Salad Sandwich
Equipment
- 1 Cutting board
- 1 Knife
- 1 Medium Mixing Bowl
- 1 Potato masher or Fork or Food processor (To mash the chickpeas into a flakey texture)
Ingredients
Chickpea Tuna Salad:
- 1 (15.5 ounce) can of chickpeas, drained (reserve 1 tablespoon aquafaba)*
- 1 tablespoon aquafaba*
- ½ cup celery, diced (~2 stalks)
- ¼ cup red onion, diced (~⅛ of a medium red onion)
- ¼ cup diced dill pickles, 1-2 spears
- ⅓ cup vegan mayo
- Salt and black pepper, to taste
Sandwich Fixings:
- Whole grain bread of choice toasted
- Veggies of choice: greens lettuce, spinach, arugula, tomatoes, thinly sliced radish, cucumbers, shredded cabbage slaw, pickles
Instructions
- Add chickpeas and aquafaba to a medium mixing bowl. Mash with a potato masher (or fork) until a flaky, tuna-like texture forms.Optional: Pulse in a food processor a few times, then transfer to a bowl.
- Stir in celery, red onion, pickles, and vegan mayo until well combined.
- Season with salt and pepper to taste
- You can certainly eat this immediately; however, it is best chilled. Recommend transferring to container with a lid and letting chill in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes
- Serve on bread of choice with sliced tomato, fresh greens, sliced red onion or whatever toppings your heart desires.
Notes
This vegan chickpea tuna salad sandwich is a nutritious, satisfying, and delicious meal option that's easy to make and perfect for anyone looking to add more plant-based meals to their diet. With its blend of chickpeas, mayo, and crunchy vegetables, this sandwich is sure to please even the most discerning taste buds. So whether you're looking for a quick lunch on the go or a hearty meal to enjoy at home, give this recipe a try and see for yourself why it's become a new favorite for vegans and non-vegans alike.
Beth Rosen
This is an incredibly tasty dish! My daughter is vegetarian but used to eat tuna with pickles so this was the perfect recipe to try chickpeas. Now I make it all the time. Delish!!
Emily
Yayyyy, so glad both you and your daughter enjoyed it. Thanks so much for the lovely review, Beth! xo
Sara Szatkowski
Love this recipe! I make it very regularly and put it on sourdough bread for a lower fodmap option! It’s so easy for quick lunches. Yum!
Emily
Thank you, Sara! I'm thrilled to hear that you love this recipe and make it regularly. Putting it on sourdough bread for a lower FODMAP option is a fantastic idea! It's wonderful to know that it's become a go-to for quick and delicious lunches. Your support and enthusiasm is truly appreciated. 🙂
Amanda
Love this recipe and that it made enough to eat for multiple days - the leftovers were even better! 🙂 added a few slices of cucumber on the sandwich for extra crunch!
Chris
I made a double batch because I was so sure I would like this and it did not disappoint! The diced pickles add such a nice flavor and I also added a tiny bit of lemon juice.
Emily
Yesss! I love that you went big with a double batch 😎. Adding a touch of lemon juice to make it your own sounds good — I’ll have to try that next time I make it myself. So glad you like the recipe!