Chickpea Salad Sandwich Recipe

Sometimes you just don’t want meat for lunch but crave a good, hearty sandwich. Or maybe you don’t eat meat at all? This Chickpea Salad Sandwich is one of my favorite healthy recipes for lunch. I make it with real mayonnaise so it’s not entirely vegan, but it can be just by substituting vegan mayo or tahini or even just olive oil.

I used to LOVE chicken salad, and especially loved it with chips. But in the past year I’ve leaned toward total vegetarianism. I do eat chicken every once in a while, but mostly everything is vegetarian. That being said, I’ve needed to find a substitute for my beloved chicken salad. That’s where this chickpea salad sandwich comes in.

This sandwich is a great substitute for chicken or tuna salad. Chickpeas are so good for you! If you pile on the veggies you have an incredibly healthy, filling lunch! Prep a big container of chickpea salad on Sunday and you’ll have lunches for the whole week. I also love to use this as a dip for yummy multigrain chips like these.

Here are some health benefits for chickpea salad

Chickpeas are so healthy and super good for the following:

• Helps Control Blood Sugar Levels
• Increases Satiety and Helps with Weight Loss
• Improves Digestion Thanks to a High Fiber Content
• Helps Protect Against Heart Disease and Cancer
• Provides Essential Vitamins and Minerals
• Great Source of Plant-Based Protein

As little as 3/4 cup of garbanzos per day can help lower our LDL-cholesterol, total cholesterol, and triglycerides in a one-month period of time.

Tips for preparing chickpea salad

Even if you are using canned chickpeas, you still want to boil for about 30 minutes to soften them. If you are using dried beans, which is more economical and perhaps healthier, presoaking of the beans will reduce the time required for cooking. On average, four hours of soaking reduces cooking time by approximately 25%.

Dried vs Canned Beans

Obviously, canned beans is much faster, but also costs more. So we are left with sodium levels. According to the Bean Institute (no joke), if you want less sodium, cook with dry beans. “You will have specific control over the amount of sodium in the final dish. A ½ cup serving of pinto beans cooked from dry beans with no added salt is virtually sodium free while a ½ cup serving of canned pinto beans contains approximately 200 milligrams of sodium. You can drain and rinse canned beans to remove about 40 percent of the sodium. Keep in mind that when cooking dry beans it’s best to not add salt or other ingredients that contain sodium until the beans are soft and fully cooked. The sodium can affect the beans’ ability to fully cook and soften.”

Interesting stuff, eh?

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Chickpea Salad Sandwich

Ingredients

• 1 15- ounce can chickpeas rinsed and drained, or dried chickpeas cooked properly
• 1/4 cup roasted unsalted sunflower seeds
• 3 Tbsp mayo
• 1/2 tsp dijon mustard
• 1 Tbsp maple syrup
• 1 Tbsp chopped red onion more if preferred
• Pinch each salt and pepper to taste
• Sliced multigrain bread or crackers
• optional: Sliced avocado onion, tomato, and or lettuce for serving

Instructions

1. Add chickpeas to a mixing bowl and lightly mash with a fork for texture. If preferred, add to food processor to fully mash.
2. Add sunflower seeds, mayo, mustard, maple syrup, red onion, salt, and pepper and mix with a spoon.
3. Toast bread (if desired) and prepare any other sandwich toppings you desire (tomato, onion, lettuce).
4. Scoop a healthy amount of filling onto two of the pieces of bread, add desired toppings and sauce, and top with other two slices of bread.
5. Sunflower-chickpea mixture will keep covered in the fridge for up to a few days, making it great for quick weekday lunches!

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