Chickpea Taco Salad

This vegan and gluten free chickpea taco salad is super simple to whip up! Canned chickpeas are tossed with spices and salsa in a skillet and then added to salad greens with a fresh chopped veggies and roasted sweet potato.

Pssst…. Salad doesn’t have to be boring! This easy chickpea taco salad is a perfect example of how you can make a filling salad at home that also tastes delicious. I love salads that are overloaded with tasty toppings like this chickpea taco salad.

We always keep your pantry stocked with at least one can of chickpeas for easy recipes like this salad, sweet potato peanut curry, or a batch of this buffalo hummus. Beyond their culinary versatility, chickpeas are loaded with essential nutrients like protein, fiber, as well as folate, magnesium, and iron.

For this salad, I just seasoned the chickpeas with onion, cumin, salsa, garlic, and oregano and tossed them onto some salad greens. The secret to the creamy dressing is cashews. Just soak them in water for a few minutes to settee and then puree in a small blender. It makes a rich and creamy dressing but no dairy needed!

Ingredients you’ll need for this salad

Check out the full recipe below – but to start, here’s a rundown of all the ingredients you’ll need for this recipe.

• Salad Greens: romaine is my go-to lettuce for the base of this easy taco salad, but you can also use iceberg, spring mix, or your favorite greens.
• Chickpeas: these get seasoned with cumin and salsa to pack them with flavor. You can also substitute with black beans. I’m always adding beans to salads to up the protein and fiber.
• Roasted Sweet Potatoes: love having a cooked vegetable on salads; roasted sweet potatoes are my favorite for this one. If you don’t feel like turning your oven on, feel free to skip the potatoes. You could also use roasted white or red potatoes if you prefer.
• Colorful Veggies: add tons of color (and antioxidants) to this vegan taco salad by loading it up with some chopped veggies in a variety of colors orange bell pepper, chopped cherry tomatoes, corn, pickled red onion, and avocado.
• Tortilla Chips: add some crunch to your salad by topping with some crumbled tortilla chips. You can also opt for some nuts/seeds for crunch. My husband likes adding pumpkin seeds or salted sunflower seeds.
• Creamy Taco Dressing: cashews blend up to create a creamy taco salad dressing that is super simple but packed with flavor. If you don’t have cashews, blanched almonds will also work.

How to Make It

Roast the Potatoes: while I prep the roast of the ingredients, I roast some chopped sweet potatoes in the oven at 400 F for 20-25 minutes until tender.

Make the Chickpeas: sauté the drained canned chickpeas in a skillet with chopped onion, cumin, and salsa.

Make the Dressing: add the soaked cashews, taco seasoning, cilantro, red wine vinegar, lime juice, and water to a small blender and puree until smooth.

Assemble: add salad greens to your bowl and top with roasted sweet potato, corn, cilantro, tomatoes, peppers, and the cooked chickpeas.

Meal Prep Tips

Recipes like this chickpea taco salad are great for weeknights when you don’t want to do a lot of cooking. I usually roast a couple of sweet potatoes in the oven on Sunday so I have them on hand to add to salads like this one. You can also pre-chop your veggies like the peppers and lettuce greens. The salad dressing also can be made a few days in advance and stored in a jar or other airtight container in the fridge until you are ready to use it.

If you try this chickpea taco salad recipe or any other recipe on my blog, don’t forget to leave a comment and a ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ rating to let others know what you thought. This also helps more people find my recipes online!

Chickpea Taco Salad

Created by: Deborah Murphy

Course Entree, Main Dish, Salad

Cuisine Gluten-free, Vegan, Vegetarian

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes minutes

Total Time 15 minutes minutes

3

This chickpea taco salad is super simple to whip up and can be easily adapted to ingredients you already have on hand.

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Ingredients

  

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Roasted Sweet Potatoes

• ▢ 2 medium sweet potatoes
• ▢ 2 tablespoons olive oil
• ▢ Dash sea salt, black pepper

For the Chickpeas:

• ▢ 1 tablespoon olive oil
• ▢ 1/4 cup chopped red onion
• ▢ 1 15 oz can chickpeas, drained (~1 1/2 cups cooked chickpeas)
• ▢ 2 cloves garlic minced
• ▢ 1 teaspoon cumin
• ▢ 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• ▢ Dash of cayenne pepper
• ▢ 1/3 cup salsa
• ▢ Salt and ground black pepper to taste

Vegan Taco Salad Dressing

• ▢ 1 cup raw cashews
• ▢ 1 cup water
• ▢ 3 tablespoons cilantro
• ▢ 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• ▢ 2 tablespoons taco seasoning
• ▢ 1 lime, juiced
• ▢ 1/4 teaspoon sea salt

For the Salad:

• ▢ 5 cups chopped romaine lettuce
• ▢ Corn, avocado, tortilla chips, cherry tomatoes, bell pepper,

Instructions

Roasted Sweet Potatoes

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Chop the sweet potatoes into bite-sized pieces. Arrange on a baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake for 20-25 minutes until tender.

Make the Chickpeas

• Heat olive oil in a non-stick skillet for 1 minute. Add the onion and saute for 3-4 minutes or until softened. Add the chickpeas, garlic, cumin, oregano, cayenne, and salsa. Saute until liquid from salsa has cooked off and thickened, about 5-7 minutes. Season with salt and black pepper to taste.

Make the Dressing

• Add raw cashews to a bowl and cover with boiling water. Let sit for 10 minutes to soften then drain. Add to a blender cup with the rest of the dressing ingredients puree until smooth.

Assemble

• Add lettuce to serving bowls and top with the chickpeas, roasted sweet potatoes, and desired add-ins. Drizzle with the creamy vegan taco dressing and serve!

Notes

Nutrition information is for the chickpeas as the total nutrient content of the salad will vary based on how you decide to build your salad.

Nutrition

Serving: 1/3 recipe | Calories: 200kcal | Carbohydrates: 26g | Protein: 8g | Fat: 8g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 7g | Sodium: 575mg | Fiber: 8.5g | Sugar: 2g

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