This 20-minute avocado chickpea salad with basil and lemon is perfect to serve at potlucks, summer cookouts, picnics and barbecues. The healthy avocado dressing is deliciously creamy, healthy and made without mayonnaise or dairy.

close-up of chickpea salad

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Why We Love This Chickpea Avocado Salad Recipe

This creamy delicious avocado and chickpea salad is a great side dish recipe to make all summer long! You don’t have to follow a vegan diet to fall in love with the tender garbanzo beans, crunchy fresh veggies, creamy dressing, fresh basil and lemon. I am so excited to share this easy vegan chickpea salad recipe, and I cannot wait to hear what you think. So stir up a big batch and enjoy!

Recipe Highlights

  • Perfect for so many occasions: Makes a great side dish or vegetarian main for a potluck, picnic or backyard barbecue. Easy enough to go with a weeknight dinner. Leftovers are hearty enough for a weekday lunch any time of year.
  • Balance Your menu: pairs perfectly traditional grilled meats and a nice alternative to three bean salad
  • Meat Eaters and Vegans Will Love it: Everyone at the table can enjoy it because it is plant-based and gluten-free
  • Healthy: It also serves as a great source of plant-based protein, high in fiber and loaded with veggies
  • It can be made ahead and sits well and once it is stirred together it doesn’t become soggy

This easy tasty recipe makes a great side dish for Grilled Lemon Marinated Chicken or goes along with Burgers or grilled pork tenderloin.

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Ingredient Notes For Avocado Chickpea Salad

ingredients for the salad with labels

Canned Chickpeas

I used canned chickpeas, also called garbanzo beans, for this recipe so that it would come together super fast. Since canned chickpeas are already cooked it is ready in less time than cooking from scratch!

Avocado

I wanted to make this salad both creamy and vegan, so I used avocado in the dressing to make it thick and creamy (like mayonnaise) but still plant-based. Look for a black-skinned and soft avocado, that is not too mushy or past ripe.

Basil, Parsley and Lemon

For amazing flavor, you’ll need a half cup of chopped fresh basil. This goes right into the food processor with the avocado and it makes the dressing so good!

The dressing also has fresh lemon juice and zest from a whole lemon. Look for organic lemon when using lemon for zesting to avoid pesticide residue. Zest the lemon first before cutting it in half to juice it.

I also used a considerable amount (1 cup) of chopped fresh parsley to bulk up the serving and add freshness. If you are a fan of fresh dill you could add in a teaspoon or so, depending on your personal taste.

Fresh Vegetables

I also used red bell pepper, red onion and cucumber. Here’s how to dice onion if you need a refresher. You can also use finely sliced green onions or scallions instead of red onion.

The crunch of the crisp cucumbers is a really nice aspect of this recipe, so to prevent the cucumber from becoming watery, cut it in half lengthwise, and then scoop out the seeds with a spoon. You can use English cucumber or Persian cucumbers, which have very few seeds in them to begin with. Once you remove the seeds, chop the cucumber. If you do not care for red pepper, you can swap in green pepper or use a cup or so of cherry tomatoes (cut into halves) instead.

This recipe is really flexible, so if you happen to have extra veggies that you are hoping to use up, go ahead and chop them and add them in.

How To Make Simple Chickpea Salad with Avocado Dressing

Step 1

Puree the avocado with the garlic, lemon, lemon juice, olive oil, basil and salt until it is smooth. You can use a food processor or mini-prep to do this. If you don’t own one, you can also do this by hand, but make sure to chop the basil as fine as possible so that it really blends the flavors into the dressing.

the dressing after being pureed in the food processor

Step 2

Combine the drained chickpeas, chopped bell pepper, cucumber and red onion in a bowl with the parsley.

the chickpeas and veggies in the bowl

Step 3

Mix the creamy dressing into the chickpea salad and stir until it is completely coated with the dressing. Taste and add salt and pepper to taste if necessary.

dressing and chickpea mixture once it is mixed together
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FAQs and Expert Tips

How many cups does this make and what is the serving size?

This recipe makes seven cups total, for seven one-cup side dish servings. To serve this as a plant-based main course, you can double the portions.

Can I make this recipe ahead of time?

The best way to make this ahead is to chop the veggies and keep them separate. Once it is stirred together it should be served within four hours.

The dressing keeps well in an airtight container with a layer of plastic wrap pressed against the surface. It may darken slightly but the flavor will be good. Note that the flavors may be slightly muted, so make sure to season with salt and pepper just before serving. If you are concerned about the appearance, it is best to make the dressing and use it within four hours.

How To Store Leftover Chickpea Salad

Keep leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator up to three days. Stir well and serve with a slotted spoon if it becomes watery.

Can I use dried chickpeas instead of canned chickpeas?

Yes! If you like to cook your beans from scratch you can do that instead. Instructions are below in the expert tips section. You can also use your Instant pot to cook dry chickpeas without soaking. To make this salad with dried chickpeas, do the following:

  1. Start with 1 cup of dried chickpeas.
  2. Soak them overnight on the countertop in plenty of cool tap water.
  3. Drain, cover with fresh water in a large saucepan, and simmer until they are tender.
  4. Make sure to monitor the level of the water so that it doesn’t get too low.
  5. Cooking times vary from 1 1/2 to 2 hours.
  6. Drain well and cool the chickpeas with cool running water before adding them to the salad.
  7. Season with additional salt as the canned chickpeas would have been salted.

Do canned chickpeas need to be cooked?

Canned chickpeas are already cooked and do not need to be cooked further. Once you open the cans, drain the liquid by pouring them into a strainer. Then rinse off any excess canning liquid with cool tap water. Rinsing and draining help reduce the amount of sodium in the recipe.

Should I wash canned chickpeas?

We always recommend draining and rinsing canned chickpeas and other beans because this helps to remove any excess canning liquid and additional sodium. The only exception to this is if a recipe specifically calls for the canning liquid.

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What other kinds of dressings goes well with chickpea salad?

My lemon vinaigrette or this tarragon vinaigrette would both be good alternatives to the lemon basil avocado dressing. You can also use balsamic vinaigrette instead of these other two options. Use 3/4 cup dressing per batch of salad. Make sure to taste and adjust the seasoning too!

Variations To Try

  • Instead of the avocado dressing, use our Lemon Tahini dressing and add in black olives and feta cheese for a Mediterranean-inspired combination.
  • Sub in a blend of other tender herbs for some or all of the basil such as dill, cilantro, tarragon or chervil.
  • Swap out the raw onion, cucumbers and red bell peppers and add in roasted veggies instead. A blend of onion, pepper and either eggplant or zucchini would be lovely.
  • Add in sun-dried tomatoes, or cherry tomatoes, and artichoke hearts.
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At Healthy Seasonal Recipes, we specialize in cooking with fresh veggies and creating weeknight meals. Sign up HERE to get more produce-forward dinner ideas for FREE! If you make this recipe, please come back and leave a star rating and review. I would love to hear what you thought! Happy Cooking! ~Katie

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overhead of bowl of chickpea salad with herb sprigs to garnish

Chickpea Avocado Salad Recipe

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5 from 14 reviews

  • Author: Katie Webster
  • Total Time: 20
  • Yield: 7 cups 1x
  • Diet: Vegan
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Description

This easy tasty vegan chickpea avocado salad with basil and lemon is so delicious! We love the creamy avocado dressing. It is a great protein source for plant based diets and is perfect to serve at potlucks, summer cookouts, picnic and barbecues.

Ingredients

Units Scale
  • 1 avocado
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 1 lemon, zested and juiced
  • 1/2 cup chopped basil
  • 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 2 15–ounce cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed
  • 1 small cucumber, peeled, seeded and diced
  • 1 small red bell pepper, diced
  • 1/3 cup chopped red onion
  • 1 cup chopped parsley

Instructions

  1. Puree avocado, garlic, lemon zest and juice, basil, olive oil and salt in a food processor or mini prep.
  2. Combine chickpeas, cucumber, red pepper, red onion and parsley in a large bowl.
  3. Pour the dressing over the salad and toss to combine. Serve immediately, or chill up to 4 hours.

Notes

MAKE AHEAD INSTRUCTIONS

The best way to make this ahead is to chop the veggies and keep them separate. Once it is stirred together it should be served within four hours. The dressing keeps well in an airtight container with a layer of plastic wrap pressed against the surface. It may darken slightly but the flavor will be good. If you are concerned about the appearance, it is best to make the dressing and use it within four hours. 

  • Prep Time: 20
  • Category: Side Dish
  • Method: No cook
  • Cuisine: American

Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 1 cup
  • Calories: 209
  • Sugar: 5 g
  • Fat: 11 g
  • Carbohydrates: 24 g
  • Fiber: 6 g
  • Protein: 7 g

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