>U Mom Knows Best: Vegan Tuna Salad Made With Chickpeas

Tuesday, April 30, 2019

Vegan Tuna Salad Made With Chickpeas

Following a plant-based diet can be tough, especially when crave the taste of your favorite foods. Looking for a plant-based option for tuna fish? Check out this vegan tuna salad recipe. The taste is so similar to tuna salad. One bite and you will never eat real tuna again.


 Since having to eliminate dairy from my diet, I have been trying to follow a plant-based diet. It was a year ago that my allergy-induced asthma got out of control and my allergy medicines were no longer working. After six months of being sick and trying almost everything to control my asthma attacks, I decided to eliminate dairy from my diet to see if that would help my allergies. What I thought to be a lactose problem really was a dairy allergy and cutting dairy completely out of my diet has made a huge difference in my asthma and seasonal allergies. A food allergy blood test and a negative lactose test confirmed that I had a dairy allergy. 

So I was very used to looking for vegan foods as I knew that they would be safe dairy-free options for me to eat. So having to eat a lot of vegan foods has had me thinking maybe I should eliminate all animal products from my diet and I am working on that. The animal products that I still enjoy occasionally are eggs and seafood. I love seafood and it is hard for me to give up so I eat it about once a week.



Vegan Tuna Salad is
+ Plant-based
+ Loaded with fiber
+ Allergy-friendly
+ Gluten-free
+ High in protein
+ Easy to make
+ Delicious
+ Full of flavor
+ Tastes similar to canned tuna fish
    

This Vegan Tuna Salad is a game-changer for me 
 When I discovered that I could make a vegan tuna salad that tastes like real tuna, I stopped buying those cans of tuna. Chickpeas were already a staple in my diet as I love them in hummus and over salads. You need to try my Roasted Garbanzo Bean recipe as they are so delicious! I even make garbanzo bean flour with chickpeas. So my pantry always has several cans of chickpeas among my can goods. Making chickpeas from dried garbanzo beans is so simple in the slow cooker or you can make them quickly in the pressure cooker. Check out my recipe for making chickpeas in the pressure cooker HERE.



The secret ingredient in vegan tuna is seaweed
 I know you are thinking how can those nutty-tasting chickpeas taste like tuna fish? The secret to making chickpeas have a fishy taste is using 1/2 of a sheet of nori seaweed. This is the seaweed that is used for sushi and it gives the chickpeas a nice seafood flavor. I like to shred the seaweed into small pieces with a pair of clean scissors. When seaweed is mixed in with other common tuna salad ingredients like mayo and celery it results in an amazing plant-based recipe that tastes like tuna salad. When the chickpeas are mashed with a fork, they have the texture of tuna and even look like tuna.


A delicious vegetarian sandwich 
 Eating meatless meals is so easy for me as I have mostly been a vegetarian since I was a teenager. I really never liked the taste of meat and decided to go meatless when I discovered all the junk that they feed the animals like hormones and antibiotics. What really put me into eating more vegetarian meals was the discovery of mad cow disease, this was around the time I was a teen. When people ask me why I don't eat meat, my simple answer is my body runs better without meat. Most of my friends don't understand a vegan, meatless diet and think that all I eat is vegetables. I am thankful for the internet so I can discover so many delicious vegan recipes. Thirty years ago when I became a vegetarian all I had was a couple of cookbooks to help me make meatless meals. Now, I can find so many recipes for vegan meals and that makes it so easy to serve vegetarian meals to my family.



 My vegan tuna salad uses seaweed in the recipe. The seaweed gives the vegan tuna salad the fish taste so it tastes like real tuna. My favorite seaweed to use in the recipe is GimMe Organic Seaweed Snacks. So when a company sent me a box of amazing samples, I had to make my vegan tuna salad. I love that these delicious seaweed snacks are available for easy purchase through Amazon. The seaweed snacks come in many tasty flavors and I love eating the crispy salty snacks just like chips.  GimMe Snacks contain multiple immunity-boosting vitamins and minerals like Vitamin C, fiber, and omega-3 fatty acids.  snacks come in great flavors like Sea Salt and Avocado Oil, Teriyaki, Wasabi, Sesame, OliveThese Oil, and Sea Salt.

Check out some other amazing plant-based recipes



If you like this recipe, be sure to Pin It on Pinterest!


Serve in a bell pepper for a gluten-free meal
 If you want a gluten-free meal, spread the vegan tuna on gluten-free bread. This delicious plant-based spread can also be served in a sweet bell pepper or on top of an avocado half with some sunflower seeds sprinkled on top. If you want a more heart-healthy meal, you can substitute white bean hummus or some mashed avocado for 1/2 of the vegan mayo. For a unique flavor spread some red pepper hummus on your sandwich or add a couple of slices of avocado.

Check out this recipe for easy-to-make hummus
https://www.momknowsbest.net/2019/04/easy-to-make-homemade-hummus.html

Make sure to Pin and Share this Recipe

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Vegan Tuna Salad Made With Chickpeas

A delicious vegan version of tuna salad

ingredients:

  • 1 can (15 oz) chickpeas or two cups cooked garbanzo beans
  • 1 stalk celery, finely chopped
  • 1 red onion slice, finely chopped
  • 1/4 cup  vegan mayonnaise
  • 1/2 sheet nori seaweed, shredded into little pieces( use clean scissors ) 
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
  • pepper
  • salt
  • 1/4 cup roasted sunflower seeds, optional for amazing crunch
  • Ingredient Substitutions: You can use 1/4 cup  white bean hummus or a mashed avocado for the mayonnaise

instructions:

How to cook Vegan Tuna Salad Made With Chickpeas

  1. Drain and rinse the chickpeas. Then place them in a bowl and mash them with a fork until desired texture. 
  2. Shred the seaweed into small pieces with a pair of clean scissors, the smaller the better.
  3. Add the shredded seaweed and the remaining ingredients to the mashed chickpeas and combine well.
  4. Serve the vegan tuna salad on whole grain bread or for a gluten-free option in a sweet bell pepper half. 
Created using The Recipes Generator

73 comments:

  1. This looks so good I tried going vegan once and only survived a week.

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    1. It is hard to go vegan so I am not 100%. I eat vegan most of the time because of my dairy allergy but I still enjoy fish and eggs once in a while.

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  2. Oo this looks like an amazing salad! I'll have to try it for lunch one day. I'm sure I'll love it.

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  3. This is definitely something I have never tried before. It looks really delicious. I will have to try this. Thanks for sharing!

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  4. Wow, this dish looks amazing! I am not a vegetarian but I am still craving for this sandwich! The seaweed sounds like a good idea. I would have to try this recipe soon! ~ Ola @ WanderWithOla

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  5. Oh my goodness. This sounds so delicious!!! I want to try it

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  6. I'm trying so hard to like chickpeas but I haven't figured it out yet. Maybe this recipe will help!

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  7. Oh wow, I have never seen anything like this. I might give it a try.

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  8. I was wondering how tuna can be vegan, lol. Interesting to know that seaweed has a similar taste with tuna.

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  9. I really healthy recipe! I love tuna and this recipe was just what I was looking for. Many thanks!

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  10. That is actually a really great idea. I love using chickpeas in my recipes too!

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  11. I was vegan during my late teens and early 20's. It used to be so hard! There weren't resources or commercially available products. I'm so thrilled that there are yummy recipes at the ready for people who are vegan or trying to eat a little more plant-based. This recipe sounds great!

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  12. This looks so delicious and healthy too. Thanks for sharing the recipe with us

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  13. I'm a chickpea lover so your recipe is in to dos for this week Tara. Thanks for sharing!

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  14. Mmm this looks super yummy, and I love chickpeas! Thanks so much for sharing this with all of us!

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  15. And you now have me craving chickpeas. There is a restaurant here that roasts them to PERFECTION and I am thinking my husband and I need to order takeout from them!

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  16. You were right, I was wondering how you were going to get chickpeas to taste like tuna. Adding the seaweed was genius!

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  17. Chickpeas are so nourishing and healthy as well! This salad looks so delicious! Haven't had tuna in such a long time!

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  18. I love garbanzo beans! The seaweed is very clever :)

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  19. I have a chase of chickpeas in my basement and was trying to think beyond hummus. This looks fantastic!

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  20. I'll have to try this sometime! My kids love seaweed and eat it for a snack regularly!

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  21. ohh! I love tuna salad. <3 it makes me miss our home since we have a lot of these at home. :) your recipe loooks really delicious.

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  22. I never thought to put chick peas in tuna! I will have to try this!

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  23. Oh, this looks delicious! I'll share it with my cousin. He and his girlfriend are vegan and always trying different recipes.

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  24. What a yummy idea to try the filling inside a sweet bell pepper. That sounds delicious!

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  25. I am not vegan but this looks so yummy! I may have to try this recipe. Always looking for healthy options!

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  26. Wow I never would have thought to put chickpeas and seaweed together to create a tuna alternative. Very creative!

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  27. This looks like such a tasty treat! It is perfect for a quick and healthy lunch.

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  28. I'll have to try this. I have cans of chickpeas in my pantry that I didn't know what I wanted to use them for.

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  29. I have tuna and I have chickpeas. I will definitely make this salad! Love this flavor combo!

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    1. I made this salad and everyone loved it so much! It's our new favorite!

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  30. I love chick peas, especially sweetened chick peas as dessert haha. But I'm trying this soon on my own too.

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  31. This check peas really look like tuna. I would love to try this recipe. Is different.

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  32. This sounds lovely. I happen to have all the ingredients in my home at the moment so I might make this for lunch!

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  33. I would love to try that! It looks really good!!

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  34. This sounds great! I'm a vegetarian with a SERIOUS addiction to chickpeas lol Not a bad addiction to have, if I do say so myself... However, I'm constantly looking for new ways to incorporate them into my meals. I'm definitely going to have to give this a try!

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  35. I need to add a bit of nori to my tuna sandwich, too! I usually eat as is!

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  36. It's really hard to go vegan especially when you don't use to it. But because of your allergy, it must be hard. I hope you feel better now. Aside from it, this looks healthy and delicious. A must try salad!

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  37. Sounds delicious. I have a lot of cans of tuna. I will make this tomorrow.

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  38. This seriously looks and sounds amazing. These are all of my favorite things!

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  39. It is absolutely one of the healthiest ideas, but equally original ... yummy

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  40. Yum - that sounds amazing!! We're going out this weekend, and I might have to make these, and put them in the cooler! :)

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  41. Oh wow it would have never occur to me to add chickpeas that is very original.

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  42. seems nice. I always love tuna, I might give this a try as I'm currently looking for vegan food recipes.

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  43. I love this! The ingredients are looking so fresh, delicious and of course, healthy!

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  44. What a tasty lunch idea. It looks so healthy and delicious.

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  45. I never though of using chickpeas in replace of tuna. This is definitely a recipe I will have to try.

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  46. That's a very good suggestion to use nori seaweed to simulate the taste and smell of tuna.

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  47. I need to check my cabinets to see if I have any chickpeas! I'd love to see if my kids can tell the difference between this and real tuna.

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  48. I'm not much of a fan of tuna salad but I do love seeing chickpeas used in the recipe. Thanks so much for sharing this with all of us!

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  49. I've always like tuna salad; but I LOVE chickpeas even more. I can't wait to try making this!

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  50. That was an interesting read, I couldn't have ever imagined that you could replicate the taste of tuna with vegan ingredients.

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  51. This tuna salad recipe sounds amazing! Can't wait to try it!

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  52. I can't wait to try this recipe! I love chickpeas and tuna. So this is going to be amazing.

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  53. This recipe was awesome! I added a little mustard some red onion and some sliced black olives. Mmmmmm! I’ve been vegan fours years now, and I struggle to find replacements for meat meals. Tuna salad was always my go to quick meal or snack and I really missed it. So thank you so much for this recipe.

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  54. This looks absolutely delicious! I wonder if I could kick this up a notch and add curry powder to it?

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    1. That does sound delicious,I will have to try that

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  55. This looks so yummy, I wish I had everything on hand to make this right now.

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  56. I am already a big fan of this tuna. I am vegan so a new sandwich like this sounds perfect.

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  57. Chickpeas are so useful. I love versatile they are. Cannot wait to try this.

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  58. This looks really good. I'm definitely going to try making this. I'm really interested to see how it tastes.

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  59. I'm not a fan of chickpeas, but I LOVE tuna salad. Will have to give this a spin.

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  60. It sounds so good! I've been looking for vegan dishes! Thank you for sharing it!

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  61. Sounds great to eat this instead of real tuna. And I love chickpeas!

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  62. Vegans will definitely love this, it looks so good! Thanks for sharing.

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  63. This looks delicious! I love chickpeas and would always order chickpea and avocado salad when it's available in restaurants. I'll try this vegan tuna salad soon.

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  64. Thsi is being added to my list of things to try. I am also trying to go to a full plant based diet but it is hard sometimes when you have meat lovers in my household too!

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  65. Vegan dishes are as boring as it is made to look like. I am not vegan, but I am definitely trying this

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  66. That salad is making me drool. I love tuna but I have not tried preparing it with cheakpeas. I can't wait to try your recipe. -LYNNDEE

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  67. Tuna salad is my favorite and I love chickpeas! This is a must try salad for sure!

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  68. I never knew food allergy blood test existed until now! 😟 I need to do mine asap! Also, this tuna salad looks absolutely delicious and healthy 😍

    Everything Enchanting

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  69. We are vegetarian, and I have purchased a similar salad from the health food store. It would be great to be able to make it at home. I'd love to try your recipe!

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  70. This vegan tuna salad looks delicious I need to make it.

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Thanks for the comment.

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