This Buffalo Chickpea Salad is robustly flavored, packed with good-for-you ingredients, and ready in a flash! We combine chickpeas, veggies, and creamy buffalo sauce to create a hearty and satisfying sandwich filling.
Try some of our other favorite sandwich recipes made with chickpeas including Vegetarian Tuna Salad, Chickpea Salad Sandwich, or Pesto Chickpea Sandwiches.
This Buffalo Chickpea Salad is a part of our Back-To-School Lifesavers — a series of recipes that are intended to have little (or no) veggie chopping, minimal prep time, around 10 ingredients or less (not including pantry staples), and use kid-friendly ingredients. Click here to see all the recipes in the series!
Buffalo Chickpea Salad Sandwich
This is the best Buffalo Chickpea Salad — not only flavor-wise but also in how straightforward it is to make! And while it’s meatless, it makes for a very filling meal. Chickpeas are a great source of plant-based protein and fiber–this will help you feel fuller for longer.
Paired with some healthy fats (avocado) and complex carbs (wheat bread) and you’ll be amazed how filling this vegetarian sandwich is!
Buffalo Chickpea Salad Ingredients
- Chickpeas: also called garbanzo beans — they’re one and the same!
- Matchstick carrots: To save chopping time, we use shredded carrots from the grocery store’s produce section. They’re usually right by baby and/or full-sized ones.
- Celery: To save time, pick already-washed celery stalks.
- Green onions: A shallot can be used instead here.
- Mayo: Use good, creamy, full-fat mayonnaise. We recommend Hellman’s/Best Foods®.
- Buffalo sauce: Instead of making our own sauce, we rely on a store-bought sauce for the primary flavor of this Buffalo Chickpea Salad — Frank’s® RedHot Wings Buffalo sauce is a reliable! Frank’s makes quite a few sauces; be sure to use the one labeled “buffalo,” not the cayenne pepper sauce!
- Seasonings: some garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper go a long way in adding loads of flavor!
Variations
To make Buffalo Chickpea Salad vegan, use a vegan mayo!
Buffalo Chickpea Salad Tips
- Thoroughly rinse and drain the chickpeas. Wet or watery chickpeas will dilute the mixture and make it less flavorful. It is satisfying to using a salad spinner to completely dry the chickpeas before adding them to the food processor completely.
- Don’t over-pulse the chickpeas. We still want some coarse texture and for the chickpeas to be pretty chunky.
- Add seasoning. Additional salt and pepper make the flavors sing. Canned chickpeas contain different amounts of salt, so you may want less or more than what is indicated on the recipe card.
Quickest Possible Prep
To keep this Buffalo Chickpea Salad Recipe as simple as possible, we throw everything in the food processor to do the work for us instead of finely chopping a bunch of veggies. (It is worth giving them a quick coarse chop to measure before throwing them in.)
- Pulsing the veggies and chickpeas in a food processor takes mere seconds! If you don’t have a food processor, the veggies will need to be finely chopped and then a potato masher or even a fork can break and crush the chickpeas.
Serving Suggestions
- We like this buffalo chickpea salad sandwich filling best on hearty toasted wholegrain bread. home cooks enjoy adding fresh, ripe avocado, and lettuce; and sometimes I’ll throw on purple cabbage.
- Make a Buffalo Chickpea Salad Wrap by adding some lettuce, ripe avocado, and this sandwich filling into a tortilla. For a low-carb meal, replace the tortilla wrap with a lettuce wrap.
- Layer the chickpea filling on small toasted whole grain rolls for a fun appetizer or side dish.
More Chickpea Recipes
- Air Fryer Chickpeas with a reliable seasoning blend
- Sweet Potato Coconut Curry Soup with kale and chickpeas
- Sausage and Chickpeas made on one sheet pan
- Vegetarian Gyros with a reliable from-scratch Tzatziki Sauce
- Chickpea Soup with loads of veggies
