Your classic chopped salad gets a boost of BBQ tang in this delicious vegan version, which adds extra substance with smoky-sweet chickpeas. Coated in a homemade spice blend and air-fried to crispy perfection, these little nuggets of flavor are amazing as a salad topper but also quite tasty on their own. The base of lettuce, corn, quinoa, tomatoes, and bell pepper is enhanced with a creamy avocado dressing that’s so good you’ll be licking the plate clean. Enjoy this colorful salad as a light lunch or serve alongside a cup of classic tomato soup to turn it into a bigger meal.
For more hearty salads, check out these tasty ideas:
By Nancy Macklin, RDN ,
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon + ⅛ teaspoon paprika
- 1½ teaspoons ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon packed brown sugar
- 1½ teaspoons garlic powder
- 1½ teaspoons onion powder
- 1¼ teaspoons dry mustard
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more for garnish
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1½ 15-oz. cans no-salt-added chickpeas, rinsed and drained (2¼ cups)
- 2 tablespoons lime juice
- 6 cups chopped romaine lettuce
- 2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
- 1 cup fresh sweet corn kernels (from 2 ears)
- 2 cups cooled cooked tricolor quinoa
- ½ cup chopped red bell pepper
- ¼ cup chopped red onion
- 1 avocado, halved, seeded, and peeled
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
- ⅓ to ½ cup unsweetened, unflavored plant-based milk
- Sea salt, to taste
- Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- To make BBQ Spice Blend, stir together 1 tablespoon paprika, 1 teaspoon garlic powder, 1 teaspoon onion powder, and 1 teaspoon dry mustard, ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, the cumin, brown sugar, cayenne pepper, and cinnamon in a small bowl. Store in an airtight container. Makes about 3 tablespoons.
- For BBQ chickpeas, preheat an air fryer to 360°F. In a medium bowl toss together chickpeas, 1 tablespoon of BBQ Spice Blend, and 1 tablespoon lime juice. Place half in air fryer. Air-fry 10 to 15 minutes or until browned and crisp, stirring occasionally. Transfer to a rimmed baking sheet to cool. Repeat with remaining chickpeas.
- In a bowl combine romaine lettuce and the next five ingredients (through red onion). In a blender combine the remaining 1 tablespoon lime juice, the avocado, parsley, remaining ½ teaspoon each of garlic powder, onion powder, and dry mustard, and remaining ⅛ teaspoon paprika. Cover and blend until smooth, gradually adding milk to reach drizzling consistency. Drizzle over salad; toss to coat. Season salad with salt and black pepper. Top with chickpeas.
Nutritional Information:
Per serving (¼ of recipe), 404 calories, 67 g carbohydrates, 16 g protein, 10 g total fat, 1 g saturated fat, 220 mg sodium, 14 g fiber, 10 g sugar
Note: Nutritional information is provided as an estimate only.
I liked this a lot. Made half portion and ate myself. Thank you for a good recipe. I did it in Airfryer.
It’s bland? Oh, come on.
Second to last ingredient:
Sea salt, TO TASTE!
Good tasty salad. The chickpeas should be baked for 40 minutes or more in a convex oven for a truly crunchy texture. I always double the spices in fok salad dressing recipes. Doubled the spices and added more lime juice at the end. I think the entire salad dressing recipe could be doubled for such a large salad for more flavor.
Bland and very wet – needed more salt and lemon, less almond milk
Takes more like 2 1/2 hours or so. It is a little bland – it needed more salt and a little more lemon in the dressing.
A bit bland. Will use my own spice blend next time and try to figure out how to give the dressing more flavor