Chickpea Salad

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!

Chickpea salad

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

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.

Hand whisking lemon dressing in large bowl

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.

Garbanzo beans, pickled onions, cucumber, cherry tomatoes, and olives in large bowl

Next, add the chickpeas, olives, pickled onions, and veggies. Toss to coat these hearty ingredients in the dressing.

Adding herbs to chickpea salad

Then, add the fresh herbs. Toss again, making sure the salad ingredients are well combined.

Hands using wooden spoons to toss Mediterranean chickpea salad in large bowl

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 on three individual plates

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: 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.

Chickpea salad recipe

More Protein-Packed Salad Recipes

If you love this chickpea salad, try one of these high protein salads next:

Can’t get enough chickpeas? Try this chickpea salad sandwich next!

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Chickpea Salad

rate this recipe:
5 from 70 votes
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 20 minutes
Serves 4 to 6
This easy chickpea salad recipe is satisfying and delicious. Filled with protein-packed garbanzo beans, fresh vegetables, and a zesty lemon dressing, it's a perfect picnic side dish or healthy lunch.

Ingredients

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.

120 comments

5 from 70 votes (18 ratings without comment)

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Rate this recipe (after making it)




  1. Elissa
    10.12.2024

    5 stars
    This was so tasty! I added a couple TBS of maple syrup to take the bite off the Dijon (not sure if it was my Dijon?) and used home made pickled red onions which we always have in hand. I think the picked onions really help make this pop! Sadly, I didn’t have parsley so left that our, but didn’t miss it. The dill and mint are delightful. Thanks for posting this!

  2. Michelle
    08.25.2024

    I made it and it’s delicious! For the calories count, I put all ingredients into Noom. For 4 servings it’s 316 each. If you get 6 servings out of it, then 210.

  3. Mary Ryberg
    07.28.2024

    Hello: I don’t have Instagram, but I wanted to let you know I made the Chickpea Salad for the Mahjongg girls and it was a big hit. Next time I’m making fresh chickpeas! Thank you

    • Phoebe Moore (L&L Recipe Developer)
      08.02.2024

      Hi Mary, I’m so glad it was a hit!

  4. Delina Sarazine
    07.13.2024

    5 stars
    Incredibly delicious!!! Will be making this for many years to come….and I love that if gives me another way to use my mint and dill that grows abundantly in my garden, win win!!

  5. Martha
    06.24.2024

    Can I get nutrition info? I need it for my diet. Thanks!

    • Jeanine Donofrio
      06.25.2024

      I’m sorry, we don’t post nutrition facts but you could plug the ingredients into an online nutrition calculator like my fitness pal.

  6. Bmcluskey
    06.09.2024

    5 stars
    So good! 2nd time making it. I left out the tomatoes because I found it made it watery. The dressing is simple and delightful oh and I added feta cheese ?

    • Jeanine Donofrio
      06.13.2024

      I’m so glad you enjoyed it!

  7. Katie
    06.05.2024

    5 stars
    Love love love! I’ve made this recipe three times in three weeks since I first found it. It makes for a great fridge salad, which I use as a snack or a larger portion for a quick lunch. This will be on repeat all summer in our house!

    • Phoebe Moore (L&L Recipe Developer)
      06.06.2024

      Hi Katie, I’m so glad you’re loving the salad!

  8. Victoria Baker
    04.13.2024

    5 stars
    I keep coming back to this recipe and I’ve made it multiple times with different veggies and herbs that we have in the frig. It always tastes fantastic. Last night I didn’t have fresh herbs so I just skipped them but added pearl couscous. Yummy! Kudos to a great versatile recipe.

    • Jeanine Donofrio
      04.20.2024

      Hi Victoria, I’m so glad the recipe has been so useful!

  9. Sandra S
    04.07.2024

    5 stars
    Fresh and delicious and super easy to make. Love how the flavors have melded together. I used shallots and it added a more delicate onion taste. Will definitely make again!

    • Jeanine Donofrio
      04.08.2024

      Hi Sandra, I’m so glad you loved it!

A food blog with fresh, zesty recipes.
Photograph of Jeanine Donofrio and Jack Mathews in their kitchen

Hello, we're Jeanine and Jack.

We love to eat, travel, cook, and eat some more! We create & photograph vegetarian recipes from our home in Chicago, while our shiba pups eat the kale stems that fall on the kitchen floor.