‘Chickpea Of The Sea’ Tuna Salad Sandwich
Chickpea Tuna Salad – This classic vegan ‘tuna’ salad is the BEST and so easy to make! It’s a fan favorite and loved by all types of eaters!
This ‘Chickpea of the Sea’ Vegan Tuna Salad Sandwich is easy, healthy, delicious and sustainable!
Of course, it’s not going to taste exactly like tuna, but it will give you the mouth feel and fullness that its predecessor, the ‘tuna salad’ sandwich, gave you. Add some nori sheets or flakes to add more of a sea flavor.
This is a wonderfully simple mock vegan ‘tuna’ salad that can be served in a variety of ways! Enjoy it alone, on crackers, with leafy greens, or fresh veggie slices for scoopers.
My favorite part of sharing recipes, is trying all these different foods and sharing them here in hopes to inspire others looking to make changes seeking new inspiration. It’s not difficult eating a plant-based diet – in fact, it’s a joy!
I never tire of these simple recipes and I hope you like this easy chickpea tuna salad as much as I do!
Ingredient Notes
Here is everything you’ll need to make the best chickpea tuna salad. Includes optional add-ins as well.
- Chickpeas – Ues canned or freshly cooked.
- Onion – Use red or green (scallions) both work great.
- Celery – Adds a nice texture, but can be optional.
- Vegan Mayo – This will be the binder, you can sub with thinned hummus as well.
- Salt + Garlic Powder – Salt brings out the flavors and garlic powder is a flavor booster.
- Nori Sheets – An optional way to add ‘sea flavor’.
- Chia Seeds – Will add a dose of heart-healthy omega’s that’s also found in tuna.
How Do You Make Vegan Chickpea Tuna Salad?
- Roughly mash the chickpeas; about 3/4 of them are good, with the back of a fork or potato masher. Mashing the chickpeas helps hold the salad together; once the binder is added and the ingredients are all mixed, it will be a nice thick mixture.
- Next, add the celery, onion, garlic powder, vegan mayo (or hummus mix), lemon juice, salt, and pepper, and mix well, adding any extra ingredients you like to taste. Alternatively, you could use a food processor, starting with the beans, pulse a few times, add the remaining ingredients, and pulse again a few times until the desired consistency.
That’s all it takes to make this delicious recipe. It’s healthy, versatile, quick, easy, and delicious!
This vegan chickpea tuna salad sandwich is my kind of wonderful!
Top Tips
- Change up the binder. I love using thinned plain hummus in place of vegan mayo. If using store-bought hummus that is thick, add a few heaping tablespoons to a small bowl and whisk in 1 tablespoon of water at a time until desired thinness. It works perfectly!
- Add a sea flavor. Try adding a little seaweed, such as a sprinkle of dulse flakes or crushed nori sheet, to the mix for a taste of the sea.
- Add heart-healthy omegas. Tuna is full of omega; add 1 tablespoon or so of hemp hearts or chia seeds to the no-tuna mix for added nutrients.
- The recipe can easily be doubled. The one shown is a double batch. Feel free to double up; you’ll be glad to have leftovers.
How To Store + Meal Prep
- Refrigerator: Leftovers can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 5 days, in a covered container. Stir well before using.
- Meal prep: For meal prep, make the salad as directed and store it in the refrigerator. Meal prep with leafy greens, or make sandwiches or wraps.
Serving Suggestions
This vegan tuna salad is versatile and can be served as is or used as a filler. Here are a few of my favorite options:
- Salad: Serve with leafy greens as a salad.
- Wraps: It’s great for making tortilla wraps, tucking into pita bread, or making lettuce wraps.
- Sandwiches: It’s perfect as a sandwich filler or served as an open-faced sandwich. Try it with this homemade Artisan Bread!
- Crackers: Scoop up with a variety of crackers, pita chips, or rye crisps. Try these gluten-free Almond Flour Crackers.
- Veggie sticks: It’s delicious with fresh vegetable sticks for scooping. Use red bell pepper, celery or carrots, cucumber, zucchini, etc.
More Easy Chickpea Salads!
Because you can never have too many variations of creamy mashed chickpea salads, try these other wonderful recipes. You may just find a new favorite for the meal rotation!
- Cranberry Walnut Vegan Chicken Salad Sandwich
- Chickpea Avocado Salad Sandwich
- Vegan Sonoma Chickpea ‘Chicken’ Salad
- Mashed Chickpea Salad Sandwich (The Original)
- Curried Chickpea ‘Chicken’ Salad Sandwich
- Mediterranean Smashed Chickpea Salad
- Chickpea ‘Egg’ Salad Sandwich
If you try this vegan tuna salad recipe, please let us know! Leave a comment and rate it below. I love to hear what you think, or any changes you make.
Print‘CHICKPEA OF THE SEA’ TUNA SALAD SANDWICH
This is a great mock ‘tuna’ salad sandwich using chickpeas. Alternately, serve this as lettuce wraps or use sliced vegetables like bell pepper and cucumber as scoopers.
- Prep Time: 10 min
- Total Time: 10 min
- Yield: Serves 3
- Category: Salad, Entree
- Method: mix
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegan
Ingredients
- 1 can (14 oz) chickpeas (garbanzo beans), drained and rinsed
- juice of 1/2 lemon + some zest if you like
- 1/4 – 1/3 cup of vegan mayo (or 3 – 4 tablespoons hummus or white bean hummus + 2 – 3 tablespoons water)
- 1/4 cup celery (about 2 small stalks, leaves ok too), chopped
- 1/4 cup red onion (about 1/2 small), chopped
- 1/4 – 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- himalayan salt & cracked pepper, to taste
- dash of cayenne, optional
Other optional ingredients:
- crushed nori sheets or dulse (seaweed)
- 1 tablespoon chia seeds or hemp hearts for some omega 3 & 6
- sweet or dill pickle relish
To Serve
- 6 slices whole grain, sprouted whole grain flourless or artisan bread, to serve
- leafy greens, to serve
- nori sheets, to serve (optional)
- pickles, optional
Instructions
Mash chickpeas: Drain and rinse chickpeas, place in a medium-size bowl, and roughly mash about 3/4 of the chickpeas with the back of a fork or potato masher until desired consistency.
Assemble salad: Add the rest of the ingredients and mix well, adding any extra ingredients you like. Alternatively, you can use a food processor to start with the beans, pulse a few times, and add the remaining ingredients, pulsing again a few times until the desired consistency.
Serve chilled or at room temperature.
Ways to serve:
- Serve on bread of choice, along with some leafy greens and the optional 1/4 sheet of nori.
- For a gluten-free meal, you can also serve it on bibb or romaine lettuce like a wrap instead of bread.
- Try serving with sliced fresh scoopable veggies like cucumber, red bell peppers, zucchini, etc.
- Lastly, pair it with your favorite crackers.
Salad serves 3 generously.
Store: Leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 – 6 days. Stir before serving.
Notes
If using thick store-bought hummus, thin it with water, adding 1 tablespoon at a time, stirring, and repeating until desired consistency. This will make for a really nice, creamy binder. If using the hummus recipe link in the ingredient list, omit the cumin.
The chickpea of the sea salad is great on leafy greens as a wrap. It’s cool and crunchy!
Nutrition facts are for the salad only (bread not included). Using the right bread may add another 10 grams of protein. Not too bad for a vegan sandwich!
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I love this recipe! It’s a great weekday lunch option. I am not vegan but I am vegetarian and one of the few things I miss is strangely tuna. This really fills the void! I usually eat it on toast maybe with avocado or just by itself with some mustard and pickles mixed in and it reminds me of my childhood. I am thinking of turning it into the base for a “tuna” pasta salad and just adding pasta and peas next. Thank you for one of my all time fav recipes!
This recipe is absolutely amazing, I was looking for something just like this! It’s perfect for sandwiches I like making for lunch for school
I also added a splash of caper brine into the recipe and it was amazing! Thanks for this :)
In your recipe it says one serving is 169cal, but 1/3 can chickpeas is much more calories than that?
You are correct! I’ve updated the recipe, each serving is 243 calories. For some reason my nutrition calculator didn’t add it up correctly. Thanks so much for pointing it out!
I made this today. WOW was it ever yummy!!! I missed having tuna fish and of course will never go back to eating any kind of meat so when I came across this “Chickpea of the sea” recipe I just had to try it. Oh wow it’s like eating a real tuna fish sandwich except no fish were harmed in the process. Thank you so much for posting this delicious recipe. :):)
This recipe looks great. Haven’t tried it yet, but plan to soon, but I need some help.
The recipe says “…roughly mash the chickpeas, about 3/4, with the back of a fork…”,
What does “about 3/4” mean?
Thanks everyone.
Great question, Ramona! Roughly mash 3/4 of the chickpeas. I’ll change the wording so it’s more clear. Enjoy, and if you have any more questions feel free to ask!
Yum! Added some red pepper and dijon mustard to mine. I ate it wrapped in roasted seaweed, Boyfriend ate with salt & vinegar chips haha. Thanks!
Super easy to make! Literally less than 5 minutes I didn’t have celery so I used chopped cucumber that I squeezed to remove excess water and it still worked! Delicious!
Thanks for sharing, Kenia! Cucumber sounds like a great celery swap. Thanks for the inspiration! Cheers :)
Just made this for lunch and it was delicious! Super easy to make too! I am not vegan but sometimes like to try vegan recipes and this one was a winner. I’ll be making it again soon. Thank you!
This is a really tasty substitute for tuna. Thanks!
This is a great, simple recipe. Thank you! The nori sheets really add a good seafood flavour. I found that stirring in some mustard as well as a couple of tablespoons of capers (with a little of the brine) really ties it all together and makes it taste very authentic.