Fresh veggies, herbs, and a zesty dressing add bold flavor to this chickpea salad recipe. Healthy and satisfying, it's perfect for picnics and lunches!
You can never have enough chickpea salad recipes in your back pocket, right? I definitely feel that way, and I hope you do too, because even though there are already *several* chickpea salads on this blog, this NEW chickpea salad recipe is a total keeper.
It’s filled with fresh Mediterranean flavors—crispy cucumbers play off juicy tomatoes, which in turn contrast with the tender chickpeas. Briny olives and pickled onions add a delicious pop, and handfuls of herbs freshen the whole thing up. A zippy lemon dressing ties it all together.
This chickpea salad is healthy, satisfying, flavorful, and fresh. It’s exactly the sort of thing I like to make for picnics and lunches throughout the summer. Just add a side of sunshine to make it a meal. Enjoy!
Chickpea Salad Recipe Ingredients
Here’s what you’ll need to make this chickpea salad recipe:
- Chickpeas, of course! Also known as garbanzo beans, these trusty legumes are packed with fiber and plant-based protein. You’ll need two cans for this recipe, or 3 cups cooked. Learn how to cook dried chickpeas with my guide to cooking dried beans.
- Grape tomatoes – Use a mix of yellow and red to give this salad a beautiful variety of colors. Cherry tomatoes are fair game too!
- English cucumber – For crunch! I like to use English cucumbers here because of their thin skins and minimal seeds. If regular cucumbers are all you can find, peel and seed them before chopping them up and adding them to the salad.
- Pickled red onions – They add a pop of tangy flavor. No time to pickle? Sliced green onion would work here too.
- Kalamata olives – For salty, briny flavor.
- Fresh parsley, dill, and mint – They make this salad unbelievably aromatic and fresh. I especially love how the dill brings out the tang of the pickled onions and dressing.
- And the lemon dressing – This zesty dressing brings the whole salad together! It’s a simple blend of olive oil, lemon juice, Dijon mustard, garlic, salt, and pepper.
Find the complete recipe with measurements below.
How to Make This Chickpea Salad
This chickpea salad recipe is super simple to make! Here’s how it goes:
First, make the dressing. Whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice, mustard, garlic, salt, and several grinds of pepper at the bottom of a large bowl.
Next, add the chickpeas, olives, pickled onions, and veggies. Toss to coat these hearty ingredients in the dressing.
Then, add the fresh herbs. Toss again, making sure the salad ingredients are well combined.
Finally, season to taste and serve! If I’m making this salad for a summer gathering or special occasion, I like to shower it with more fresh mint leaves before serving.
Chickpea Salad Recipe Variations
I love this chickpea salad recipe as written, but it’s totally flexible. Feel free to change it up! Toss in your favorite ingredients, or use what you have on hand. Here are a few ideas to get you started:
- Change up the veggies. Toss in diced red bell pepper or roasted red peppers along with the tomatoes and cucumber. Blanched green beans or avocado would be great here too.
- Add a cheese. This recipe is currently vegan, but if you’re not, there’s no reason you couldn’t add some cheese. Crumbled feta cheese would be particularly good.
- Make it a green salad. Serve the garbanzo bean salad over a bed of chopped romaine lettuce.
Let me know what variations you try!
Storage and Make-Ahead Tips
This chickpea salad keeps well in an airtight container in the fridge for up to four days. Make it ahead to serve as a side dish at a summer potluck or picnic, or pack it up for lunch.
Tip:Â The fresh mint will darken and wilt as it sits in the dressing. If you make this salad more than an hour or two in advance, wait to add the mint until you’re ready to serve.
More Protein-Packed Salad Recipes
If you love this chickpea salad, try one of these high protein salads next:
- Lentil Salad
- Three Bean Salad
- Black Bean and Corn Salad
- Cowboy Caviar
- Mediterranean Quinoa Salad
- Italian Chopped Salad
- Easy Pasta Salad
- Or any of these 51 Best Salad Recipes!
Can’t get enough chickpeas? Try this chickpea salad sandwich next!
Chickpea Salad
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 1 garlic clove, grated
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 3 cups cooked chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- 2 cups mixed yellow and red grape tomatoes, halved
- ½ English cucumber, diced
- ½ cup Pickled Red Onions
- ½ cup kalamata olives, pitted and halved
- ½ cup chopped fresh parsley
- ¼ cup chopped fresh dill
- ¼ cup chopped fresh mint, plus whole mint leaves for garnish
Instructions
- In a large bowl, whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, mustard, salt, and several grinds of pepper.
- Add the chickpeas, tomatoes, cucumber, pickled onions, and olives and toss to coat. Add the parsley, dill, and mint and toss again.
- Season to taste, garnish with fresh mint leaves, and serve.
This salad was so easy to make and taste so fresh!I love all of the veggies and herbs. We added feta and tofu to make it a full meal! Can’t wait to make again 🙂
I’m so glad you loved it!
Hi There, can you use raw chick peas instead of cooked? I love the dressing. I’ve already made it
Hi Jacqui, dry chickpeas won’t work – they have to be cooked (or from a can, they are already cooked).
Delicious and easy to make! Light and refreshing!
I was suspicious of the pickled onion but it was delicious.. I will definitely make this again.
We made the chickpea salad. We will be using this recipe all summer! Also, love the pickled onions!
This was great with burgers. I made a few subs (yellow pepper instead of yellow tomatoes ), then I added feta. Delicious!
Hi Janene, I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
Wonderful summer picnic salad. Dressing is nice and zingy.
I’m so glad you loved it!
Loved the freshness of this recipe! Plus it works great for meal prep!
I’m so glad you loved it!
I made this last night for friends and it was a huge hit! I left out the olives, but added avocado. Will definitely make this again!
I’m so glad it was a hit!
I love this salad! It has a great combination of flavors and I was able to use all fresh herbs from my herb garden.
Hi Laura, I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
I loved the layers of flavors that were packed in to this simple, nutritious recipe. I like spicy so I added some cracked red pepper at the end. Will make again for sure!
Hi Libby, I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
Great Recipe! Easy to make, flavorful and zippy.
This recipe is delicious! I did a 1/2 recipe today but next time I’m going to triple it!
Made for a group and I know it’s going to be a hit. I did omit the olives, as much as I love them, to make sure it all got eaten up!
Great summer salad which can be switched up depending what you have on hand. I kept the base of chickpeas, tomato, cucumber and fresh herbs but added green onions instead of pickled red and sardines for a more hearty meal. The variations are endless in my opinion, the dressing keeps things all pulled together 🙂
Hi Hannah, thanks for sharing your twist! So glad you loved the recipe.
This worked great for meal-prepping my lunches last week. As I’m an omnivore that loves veggies I added some feta cheese and herbed chicken to make a larger meal. The textures and flavors kept me satisfied all week!
I made this for a family potluck tonight and it was a great hit. I used green onions instead of pickled and cut half the salt but otherwise followed the recipe exactly. The herbs add so much fresh flavour. Thanks for the delicious recipe!
I’m so glad you loved it!
This was delish! Made as written, will make again.
a very nice salad, love the mint, dill and olive punch of flavors in this, thank you!
Trying this one next! I don’t know what the deal with warmer weather and my constant CRAVING for chickpea salad, but there’s definitely a connection.
Haha I love this! Hope you enjoy.