Chickpea Salad with Dill Pickle Salt
The bright, sunny flavor of Dill Pickle Salt required a dish that would let its flavors shine, and we wanted to keep things light and airy. We thought about grilled salmon, shrimp cocktail, and chicken wings, and to be fair it would be terrific on all of those foods. Then we thought of a classic tuna salad. Only, we didn’t use tuna.
We decided to go vegan, and made this recipe with ground chickpeas and a cashew “mayo” dressing. The chickpeas deliver a hearty, almost meaty feeling, the dressing is creamy, and the salad is packed with loads of satisfying crunch. It hits all the right notes. We gave it a fun retro vibe by serving it in a tomato, but you can put your own twist on it by putting it in romaine lettuce and serving chickpea tacos, or loading it into a pita with some fresh tomato and cucumber. It’s great for summer, since no dairy means it’s potluck friendly.
Dressing:
½ cup unsalted cashews
4 Tablespoons lemon juice
1/4 cup water, plus more if necessary
2 Tablespoons Dijon or stone ground mustard
2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
1 garlic clove, finely minced
Salad:
2 15-ounce cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed
3 celery ribs, chopped to ¼ inch dice
¼ cup red onion, chopped in ¼ inch dice
2 Tablespoons Dill Pickle Salt
4 ripe, red beefsteak tomatoes
1. Make the dressing. Put all ingredients into a small, smoothie-size blender or in a standard blender. Set aside for 15 minutes to allow the cashews to soften.
2. After 15 minutes, blend dressing until it is smooth. Add more water if necessary, but the texture should be relatively thick and creamy, like mayonnaise.
3. While cashews are soaking, prepare the salad. Put drained, rinsed chickpeas in a food processor and pulse until they are all broken, but still flaky and crumbly. Do not turn it into a paste; the flaky texture is important.
4. Put ground chickpeas into a large bowl, and toss with celery, red onion, and Dill Pickle Salt. Add finished dressing to the salad, and stir to thoroughly combine.
5. To stuff the tomatoes, cut them into quarters, but don’t cut all the way through. Leave about ¼ inch of the bottom of the tomato uncut. Gently pull the tomato quarters open, leaving them attached at bottom, and scoop the salad into the tomatoes. Top with some extra Dill Pickle Salt, if desired. Serve with crackers or pita.
