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This Lentil Chickpea Salad is a hearty lunch for busy days! It cooks up in less than 30 minutes with simple, budget-friendly ingredients. A vegan chickpea salad that’s perfect to take out when needed!
Lentils and chickpeas make a surprisingly delicious combination in this easy vegan salad recipe. A quick and easy tahini sauce makes a delicious topping that brings all the flavors together.
If you love this recipe, you might also enjoy this Mediterranean Lentil Salad or this Orzo Chickpea Salad.
Why this recipe works
- This chickpea and lentil salad is a solid base to get creative with a mixture of vegetables and spices.
- Incredibly quick vegan chickpea salad! It’s ready in minutes.
- Great for meal prep.
- Tastes super hot or cold making it even more flexible for meal times.
What’s in this lentil and chickpea salad?
This easy salad recipe uses a few staples and fresh veggies. Nothing is too hard to find and you should be able to pick up what you don’t already have on a quick run to the grocery store.
- Olive oil: Just one touch to cook the veggies for lentil chickpea salad.
- Onion: My favorite way to cook in this recipe is with yellow onions.
- Paprika: Colorful peppers are sweeter than green ones. Choose a red, orange, or yellow pepper for the best flavor.
- Spice: garlic powder, salt and pepper.
- Legumes: We use chickpeas, AKA garbanzo beans and lentils. For the lentils, I recommend using green, brown, or other varieties that hold up well during cooking. Avoid using red or yellow, which cook quite mushy.
- Spinach: A simple, fresh vegetable that makes a tasty addition to this Chickpea and Lentil Salad. You can also use kale, arugula, or other vegetables.
- Tahini: A sesame seed paste that is great for making a creamy vegan salad dressing.
- lemon juice: If possible, use fresh lemon for the best flavor.
How to make Lentil Chickpea Salad
- 1) Cook Sauté onions and peppers in olive oil in skillet over medium-high heat 3 to 4 minutes or until lightly browned. Add 1/4 teaspoon of garlic powder, salt and pepper to the cooked vegetables.
- 2) Add to add the chickpeas to the onions and peppers and cook for a further 4 minutes.
- 3) Add add the spinach and water to the pan and cover with a lid, cook until the spinach is wilted.
- 4) When it is finished, add the lentils to the chickpea salad mixture. Season with salt and pepper and set aside.
- 5) Combine In a small bowl, combine the tahini, lemon juice, salt, pepper, and 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder. Add the warm water and stir until smooth.
- 6) drizzle Pour the tahini dressing over the chickpea and lentil salad and mix everything together.
- 7) Enjoy warm or cold!
Expert tips and FAQs
- Avoid using red or yellow lentils when preparing this lentil and chickpea salad. They are too soft and mushy.
- Be sure to drain the lentils and chickpeas good so they don’t add liquid to the salad.
- store leftovers in the fridge for up to five days. I do not recommend freezing this salad. Serve cold or heat in the microwave or skillet until warm.
Both will work, but I highly recommend cooking them at home. You have more control over the texture. For salads, lentils are best cooked with a little bite. Here is a guide on lenses for your reference.
The beauty of this recipe is that both work great! This will make the dish much more flexible when served.
how to serve
Really, this lentil and chickpea salad is a whole meal in one bowl, but here are some serving ideas if you’re looking for something a little more substantial.
More lentil recipes you will enjoy
Photos by Alfonso Revilla
Salad:
In a skillet over medium-high heat, pour olive oil, onions, and peppers and sauté until lightly browned, 3 to 4 minutes. Add ¼ teaspoon garlic powder, salt and pepper.
Next, add the chickpeas to the onions and peppers and cook for another 4 minutes.
After 4 minutes, add the spinach and water and cover until the spinach wilts.
Add the lentils to the chickpea salad mix, salt and pepper again and set aside.
Dressing:
To make Tahini Drizzle: Combine tahini, lemon juice, salt, pepper, ¼ teaspoon garlic powder and add warm water and beat until smooth.
Finally, drizzle the tahini over the lentil salad and mix.
Enjoy warm or cold!
- Avoid using red or yellow lentils when preparing this lentil and chickpea salad. They are too soft and mushy.
- Be sure to drain the lentils and chickpeas good so they don’t add liquid to the salad.
- store leftovers in the fridge for up to five days. I do not recommend freezing this salad. Serve cold or heat in the microwave or skillet until warm.
Calories: 337kcalCarbohydrates: 38GProtein: 16GFat: fifteenGSaturated Fatty Acids: 2GPolyunsaturated fat: 4GMonounsaturated fatty acids: 8thGCholesterol: 0.2mgSodium: 266mgPotassium: 793mgFiber: 13GSugar: 3GVitamin A: 3547ieVitamin C: 18mgCalcium: 108mgIron: 6mg
Disclaimer: While plantbasedonabudget.com tries to provide accurate nutritional information, please note that these are estimates only. Nutritional information may be affected by product type, brand purchased and in other unpredictable ways. Plantbasedonabudget.com shall not be liable for any loss or damage arising from your reliance on nutritional information. If you need to follow a specific calorie regimen, please consult your doctor first.
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