Crunchy BBQ Chickpea Salad Sandwich

This BBQ Chickpea Salad Sandwich is so easy to make with only a few ingredients! Made with canned chickpeas, your favorite mayo and BBQ sauce, red onion, packaged coleslaw, and panko bread crumbs. In just a few minutes you’ll have a crunchy, tasty, high-protein sandwich on the table that the whole family will enjoy!

So what makes a good sandwich a really awesome sandwich? Is it the bread you hold in your hands while bringing the delicious sandwich filling to your mouth? Or is it the filling itself – the stuff it’s made of? 

While I do love a nice crusty soft hunk of bread, I’d say what’s in the sandwich is the winner with this recipe! It’s a little crunchy, and little sweet and savory, and a whole lotta yum! Add a homemade vegan burger bun and you’ve got an amazing plant-based sandwich!

This Crunchy BBQ chickpea salad sandwich was inspired by an egg salad sandwich made with chickpeas and a curried chickpea salad sandwich. If you love this one, you’re going to want to try my others!

• Best Vegan Egg Salad with Chickpeas or, 
• Curried Chickpea Salad

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Ingredients you’ll need to make this chickpea salad sandwich:

(There is a handy printable recipe card below if you continue scrolling. On this recipe card, you will find exact measurements and directions. Please read through the following tips section to learn more about making this BBQ Chickpea Salad Sandwich.)

• canned chickpeas
• your favorite mayo – I used Best Foods Vegan Mayo
• your favorite BBQ sauce – I like a sweet sauce 
• red onion or shallot – diced
• coleslaw – make your life easy and buy the already prepared and bagged coleslaw!
• panko bread crumbs
• You’ll also need to use an immersion blender or potato masher.

Steps to make this recipe:

Start by chopping the red onion or shallot quite small. I really like using a shallot because half a shallot piece yields just about the right amount. With a red onion, you will have a lot leftover. Just wrap and refrigerate for another use.

Set your chopped onion aside. You will use it after combining the chickpeas, BBQ sauce, and mayo.

This recipe uses canned chickpeas. Just open, drain, and put into a bowl.

Add in your favorite BBQ sauce and mayo of choice. I prefer Best Foods Vegan Mayo. You will want to choose a BBQ sauce that tastes best to you. Keep in mind that the flavor of the sauce will strongly influence the flavor of the chickpea salad whether it be hickory flavored, spicy, or sweet. I prefer a sweeter sauce for this recipe.

Take an immersion blender or potato masher and smoosh the chickpeas and sauces together. Don’t mash it entirely. You will want to leave a few whole/half chickpeas for texture.

Next, add in your chopped onions and coleslaw. I use prepackaged tri-color coleslaw. If you would like to cut your own coleslaw, that works too! If you choose to make your own, slice the green cabbage very thin, and incorporate some shredded carrots and purple cabbage as well for a total of one and a half cups of slaw.

The last and final step is the panko breadcrumbs. I add these for texture – otherwise, your chickpea salad will be too mushy. 

If you don’t want to eat breadcrumbs, you may choose to incorporate cornflake crumbs, almond meal, or just leave it out. It will be quite mushy and soft though if you don’t use something to absorb the liquid. 

FAQS

What Vitamins and minerals do chickpeas have?

Click here to read about the health benefits of chickpeas from Healthline.com. But yes, chickpeas provide some decent protein and fiber. They are rich in folate and magnesium and are fairly low in calories.

Are chickpeas high in protein?

Chickpeas are considered a good quality protein for plant-based eaters. One can has about 21 grams. I honestly don’t worry overly much about my protein anymore. I eat a variety of plants, nuts, seeds, and legumes and just let nature take of it. But this is a personal choice. For more information about protein and the plant-based diet, watch this video by Dr. Neal Bernard.

Are you supposed to peel chickpeas?

I have heard of such things. But no, you aren’t supposed to peel your chickpeas. And I have to wonder why one would…

Someone once told me that when you peel your chickpeas it makes for a smoother hummus. And I suppose… I don’t peel chickpeas when I make my Oil-Free Hummus and it’s fine. Certainly, for this recipe, there is no need to peel your chickpeas because we are adding in coleslaw and chopped onions which both provide lots of texture. So no, unless you have way more time on your hands and just have nothing better to do; please don’t bother to peel your chickpeas!

Are canned chickpeas okay to use?

That’s what I use! Feel free to soak and cook your own though. They are less expensive that way I’ve been told do have a creamier texture – which is totally not necessary for a recipe such as this as they are blended with different textured ingredients anyway.

Are chickpeas already cooked?

Canned chickpeas have already been cooked. There is no need to cook them further. I have read recipes in which people cook the canned chickpeas. That is totally unnecessary. You can use the chickpeas right out of the can!

You can make this recipe whole food plant-based and super healthy!

Start by replacing your bun with a whole-grain bun. Or better yet, serve on a bed of lettuce! 

Replace the commercial store-bought vegan mayo (which is full of oil) with this amazing Tofu Cashew Mayonnaise from A Plantiful Path.

Replace the bottled BBQ sauce which is full of processed sugar with my Healthy Homemade BBQ Sauce.

Serving Suggestions:

• Serve on a bun, sandwich bread, pita, or rolled in a tortilla. But go ahead and add more BBQ sauce if you’d like. That would make it extra yummy!
• Take for your lunch in a small container along with some crackers or veggie chips.
• Roll in a large piece of butter lettuce for a lettuce wrap,
• Or serve as a salad on a bed of lettuce.

And now for the recipe: