No-Mayo Chickpea Salad Sandwich (Vegan and Oil-Free)

This easy-to-make, no-mayo chickpea salad is the perfect alternative to chicken salad sandwich. It’s healthy and delicious! Plus it’s oil-free, vegan, and gluten-free. And it’s made without mayo!

Tired of pb&j? Need an easy and good-tasting alternative to the same ol’ boring lunch? Or maybe you just want to include more plant-based foods in your diet? Whatever your lunch quandary, this chickpea salad sandwich is the answer!

Lunch is about to become your favorite meal!

What I Love About This Sandwich

My favorite thing about this No-Mayo Chickpea Salad Sandwich (besides its delicious flavor!) is that I can make a double batch and use it all week long in a number of different ways. Quick and easy meal options at your fingertips! (See How to Serve Chickpea Salad Sandwich below)

I also love that it has no mayo! No-mayo + lots of slimming nutrients = great sandwich for weight loss!

Is Chickpea Salad Healthy?

This No-Mayo Chickpea Salad is about the healthiest lunch you could eat. It’s loaded with plant-based protein and slimming fiber and it provides a good dose of iron. Plus it’s oil-free.

Tips for Making the Best Chickpea Salad

I recommend using canned chickpeas – not home-cooked chickpeas – in this recipe. The texture of chickpeas cooked at home is very different than canned. They are much softer and they will absorb a LOT more of the dressing/sauce.

Also, don’t rinse your chickpeas. Rinsing them rinses away the flavor.

Keep in mind that canned chickpeas vary significantly in texture from brand to brand. Some brands are more cooked than others. And some brands have a drier texture than others. And the texture can even vary from can to can.

Using a brand of canned chickpeas that are nicely cooked not only provides a chickpea that has good texture, but also is best for both health and digestion.

Different Ways to Serve Chickpea Salad

I usually eat this as a sandwich, but there are many other ways we enjoy it as well. Here are some different ways you can serve this delicious chickpea salad:

Chickpea Salad Stuffed Tomatoes

This salad makes a great stuffing for fresh tomatoes. Scoop out the center of whole tomatoes and replace with some of this lovely salad.

Simple Chickpea Salad

Serve chickpea salad over a bed of leafy greens.

Chickpea Salad Lettuce Wrap

I love the chickpea salad wrapped up in big leaves of lettuce. It’s probably my favorite stuffing for lettuce wraps. This option is great if you need a gluten-free lunch.

Chickpea Salad in a Pita

Stuff the chickpea salad in a pita pocket. Add sprouts, cucumber, or your favorite fillings/toppings for a very satisfying meal!

Chickpea Salad Dip

It also makes a great dip for veggies or crackers or pita chips.

Chickpea Salad Wrap

I love this in a wrap. Spoons some of the chickpea mixture into a healthy tortilla wrap. Add thinly-sliced cucumber spears, shredded lettuce, and whatever else sounds good to you. Roll it up and it’s a wrap!

Chickpea Salad Sandwich

And, of course, this chickpea salad makes a delightful sandwich!

Choose a good, whole-grain sandwich bread. Toast if desired. Spoon a generous amount of this chickpea salad onto the bread. Add your favorites toppings. Top with your other piece of bread and enjoy!

Here are some of my favorites…

Toppings for a chickpea salad sandwich

Some of my favorite toppings:

sliced avocado slices

these healthy, vinegar-free refrigerator pickles

shredded carrots

microgreens

tomato slices

fresh spinach leaves

sprouts

onions

cucumber slices

leafy greens

fresh, crushed garlic

Yummy Variations

The Hippie Chickpea Salad Sandwich

Mix in some sunflower seeds or pumpkin seeds and sprouts.

Garlic-Lovers Chickpea Salad Sandwich

Mix in a clove or two of fresh, crushed garlic, or roasted garlic for a garlicky sandwich. I especially like this option on toast.

Pickled Chickpea Salad Sandwich

Make some of these delicious, vinegar-free, Refrigerator Lemon Pickles. Chop the pickles into small pieces and mix into the chickpea salad.

How to Store

This chickpea salad is a great make-ahead meal option and is perfect for meal prep. Make the chickpea salad up to 4 days ahead of time and keep it in the refrigerator in an airtight container. Assemble for sandwiches when needed.

I don’t recommend freezing this.

Frequently Asked Questions

No-Mayo Chickpea Salad Sandwich (Oil-Free and Vegan)

This easy-to-make, no-mayo chickpea salad is the perfect alternative to chicken salad sandwich. It’s healthy and delicious! Plus it’s oil-free, vegan, gluten-free, and gluten-free. And it’s made without mayo!

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Prep Time 12 minutes mins

Total Time 12 minutes mins

Course lunch

YIELD 4 sandwiches

All recipes on jenniferskitchen.com are property of jennifer’s kitchen and cannot be republished without written permission.

Ingredients

DRESSING/SAUCE

• 2/3 cup raw cashews
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 2/3 cup water
• 1 teaspoon salt - (See note #1).
• 1 1/2 teaspoons granulated onion
• 1/4 teaspoon celery salt - I use a generous 1/4 teaspoon.
• 1/4 teaspoon granulated garlic
• 1 teaspoon apple juice concentrate - (found in the freezer section of grocery stores)

SALAD

• 3 cups chickpeas - Canned chickpeas work best. Do NOT rinse them.
• 3 ribs celery - minced or diced small
• 1/2 cup minced sweet onion
• 1/2 teaspoon dried parsley - or 2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley
• 1/4 teaspoon dried dill weed

OPTIONAL TOPPINGS

• See post for topping ideas

Instructions

• Wash cashews in a colander under very hot water. Drain well.
• Place drained cashews, lemon juice, water, granulated onion, salt, celery salt, granulated garlic, and apple juice concentrate in blender and blend well.
• Scrape down sides of blender and blend again until very, very smooth.
• Be sure to blend until very smooth and creamy. (A heavy-duty blender works best for this recipe; other blenders may not get the mixture smooth enough.) Set aside.
• Drain chickpeas, but do NOT rinse them.
• Place chickpeas in a large mixing bowl and lightly mash with a fork or a potato masher or pastry cutter. Be careful to not over mash chickpeas; you want some large pieces so your chickpea salad has texture.
• (The mashing process should be fairly easy if you get a good brand of chickpeas; however, some brands of canned chickpeas are harder than others and will be difficult to mash.)
• Add minced celery, finely diced onion, dill, and parsley. Stir in creamy mixture from blender mixture.
• Chill. Serve on whole-grain bread with desired toppings.

Notes

1. The amount of salt you will need depends upon personal taste, as well as on how much salt is already in your chickpeas. If your chickpeas contain salt, you may want to reduce the salt in the recipe to 3/4 teaspoon and adjust salt to taste before serving.

2. If you would like to make half a recipe, prepare the entire dressing/sauce mixture and place half in the freezer. Cut remaining ingredients in half. (If you try to half the dressing, there won’t be enough in the blender for the mixture to blend well.)

3. I recommend using canned chickpeas in this recipe. Homecooked chickpeas are too soft and absorb too much of the sauce.

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Keywords: beans, dairy-free, gluten-free, healthy, oil-free, vegan

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