This easy chickpea salad recipe is loaded with crisp cucumbers, tomatoes, onions and red bell peppers all tossed a homemade lemon vinaigrette you can mix up in seconds. It’s fresh, hearty, and a perfect side dish for many occasions.
It’s a great easy salad for summer get-togethers, a quick lunch or even for meal prep for a few days. It’s naturally vegetarian and vegan so perfect in case you need something that anyone can enjoy. I like to serve it alongside burger and grilled chicken!
You can even put it in some pita bread or lettuce wrap. It’s that good!
Try these other jazzed up salads with chickpeas too. Try this Chickpea Corn Salad and this Shrimp Avocado Chickpea Salad are both so good!
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Ingredients Notes and Substitutions
The complete list of ingredients with amounts are listed in the full recipe card below.
- Canned Chickpeas – I used (2) 15 ounce cans. Be sure to drain & rinse them. You can also use cooked from scratch dried chickpeas.
- Tomatoes – a pint of cherry tomatoes quartered is what I used this time. You can swap them for grape tomatoes, plum tomatoes and of course fresh summer tomatoes. If you use larger tomatoes, I would remove some of the seeds so the salad doesn’t have too much liquid.
- English cucumber – slice into small quarter sized pieces. Or use Persian or regular cucumbers. You can remove the seeds if you’d like to keep the liquid down as well.
- Red bell pepper – diced into small pieces. Yellow or orange bell peppers also work.
- Red onion – thinly sliced. Soak them in cold water for 5 minutes if you want to mellow the flavor some. Use white or yellow onion, Vidalia onion, pickled red onions or even just sliced green onions.
- Garlic – fresh minced from cloves are best or minced from a jar if that’s what you have. In a pinch, you can use a teaspoon garlic powder.
For the Lemon dressing: - Olive oil – I like extra virgin olive oil for the best flavor. Avocado oil is another mild oil to use.
- Red wine vinegar – White wine vinegar or balsamic vinegar is good substitute. I find that apple cider vinegar is a little stronger for this.
- Lemon juice – fresh is best but bottled works too.
- Dried oregano – or 1 tablespoon fresh chopped oregano.
- Salt and pepper – adjust to taste.
Variations to Make
1. Add ½ cup crumbled feta cheese.
2. Stir in a tablespoon of regular or dijon mustard into the dressing.
3. Add ½ cup sliced black olives, Kalamata olives or sliced celery
4. Add 2 tablespoons fresh herbs like fresh parsley or fresh dill
5. Add ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes.
6. Stir in a can of drained tuna.
Whip Up This Chickpea Salad Recipe in Minutes
It’s hard to find quicker recipes than ones like this. If you have this vegetable chopper, the prep is so fast!
Step 1: In a large bowl, add the drained chickpeas / garbanzo beans, diced tomatoes, cucumbers, bell peppers, and garlic.
Step 2: Make the lemon dressing. In a small bowl (or mason jar), add olive oil, vinegar, lemon juice, oregano, salt, and pepper and whisk (or shake) well until combined and emulsified.
Step 3: Pour the dressing over top of the veggies and stir to coat well.
Let the salad chill in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes if you time to let the flavors meld.
Storing Leftovers
Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4-5 days.
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Fresh and Easy Chickpea Salad
Ingredients
- 30 ounces chickpeas (2) 15 ounce cans drained and rinsed
- 1 pint cherry tomatoes cut into quarters
- 1 english cucumber cut into quarters
- 1 medium red bell pepper diced
- ¼ cup red onion sliced fine
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- 1 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- In a large bowl, add the drained chickpeas, diced tomatoes, cucumbers, red bell peppers, and garlic.30 ounces chickpeas, 1 pint cherry tomatoes, 1 english cucumber, 1 medium red bell pepper, ¼ cup red onion, 4 cloves garlic
- In a small bowl, add the olive oil, red wine vinegar, lemon juice, oregano, salt and pepper and stir to blend well. (You can also shake it in a mason jar to emulsify it.¼ cup olive oil, 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar, 2 tablespoons lemon juice, 1 teaspoon dried oregano, 1 teaspoon pepper, 1 teaspoon salt
- Pour the dressing over the veggies and stir to combine well.
Notes
Add ½ cup sliced black olives, Kalamata olives or sliced celery.
Add 2 tablespoons fresh parsley or fresh dill.
Add ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes.
Stir in a can of drained tuna.
Nutrition
Nutritional Disclosure
Nutrition information is automatically calculated and should only be used as an approximation.
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