These Instant Pot Chickpeas are SO easy and there’s no soaking required! Read on for my bonus favourite smashed chickpea salad recipe.
Ingredients and substitutions
- Water – vegetable broth is a great substitute that will add even more flavour.
- Chickpeas – cannellini beans might also work.
Smashed chickpea salad
- Light mayo – the only replacement for mayo would be vegan mayo. If you’re in a pinch, you can use sour cream, but I highly recommending using the mayo for this recipe.
- Lemon juice – fresh or bottled lemon juice can be used. Lime juice will also work if you don’t have lemon juice on hand.
- Dijon mustard – use regular yellow mustard, spicy brown mustard or stone-ground mustard.
- Turmeric – cumin, ginger, curry powder or garam masala are the best substitutes here.
- Curry powder – mix ground cumin with coriander powder to replace the curry powder.
- Dried dill – substitute for 1 tbsp. fresh dill instead.
- Salt – to taste.
- Onion powder – substitute for onion salt, minced onion or garlic powder if you don’t have any onion powder on hand.
- Celery stalks – cucumber, carrots and jicama will all give a similar crunch factor.
- Green onions – leave these off if you don’t have any on hand.
How to cook chickpeas in the Instant Pot
- Prep your ingredients.
- Cook the chickpeas on high pressure for 50 minutes.
- Stir the liquid.
- Assemble the salad ingredients.
- Mix everything together.
- Serve and enjoy!
What are chickpeas good for?
Chickpeas are a protein-packed legume that have become increasingly popular in vegetarian and vegan dishes. If you’re looking to incorporate chickpeas into your meal plan, here are some ways you can enjoy this high-fibre, plant-based superfood:
- Salads: Try the recipe in this blog post for a filling chickpea salad. You can also create Mediterranean-inspired chickpea salads with cucumbers, feta cheese and more. Another option is to roast the chickpeas and add them as a topping to kale salad.
- Snacks: Roast your chickpeas with your favourite seasonings and munch on them whenever you’re craving a protein-rich crunchy snack.
- Bowls: Add chickpeas into Buddha bowls to make your lunch even more satiating. Check out an example of a delicious bowl here.
- Dips/Sauces: Mash together your chickpeas with tahini and other spices to make hummus! You can also blend it to create a plant-based spread for sandwiches or vegan white sauce for pastas.
Frequently Asked Questions
Typically, when cooking legumes from bulk, you need to soak the beans overnight to rinse them before cooking. This softens the beans and allows them to be more easily digested. Pre-soaking adds hours to the prep time. Luckily with an Instant Pot, it only takes 50 minutes to cook chickpeas and you get to avoid the pre-soaking stage that comes with the regular cooking methods.
Chickpeas are super healthy and are rich in nutrients. They’re high in fibre, folate, manganese, copper and iron. They’re also high in plant-based protein, which will leave you feeling full for longer.
Chickpeas are high in carbs, so if you’re on a low-carb diet, you probably want to steer clear of them.
Storing and reheating
This chickpea salad is going to be such a hit at BBQs and picnics, but in case you make too much, you can keep the leftovers for later! Store any leftover chickpea salad in an airtight container or individual meal prep containers in the fridge for up to 3 days. You won’t want to keep this salad in the fridge for too long since it’s made with mayo. When you’re ready to eat your salad, just pull it out of the fridge and dig in.
Can you freeze chickpeas?
You can freeze the cooked chickpeas before turning them into a salad for up to 3 months in an airtight container or freezer-safe Ziploc bag. When you’re ready to use them, let them defrost in the fridge overnight then use them for whatever recipe you need. Keep in mind that once you’ve made the chickpeas into a salad, you won’t be able to freeze the salad.
More Instant Pot chickpea recipes
Meal prep tools for this recipe
- Grab some glass meal prep bowls if you plan on turning this recipe into your weekly lunches.
- Use this tool to lightly mash your chickpeas.
Instant Pot Chickpeas {No Soaking}
Ingredients
- 6 cups water
- 1 lb dry chickpeas
Smashed chickpea salad
- 1/3 cup light mayo
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 tbsp dijon mustard
- 1 tsp turmeric
- 1 tsp curry powder
- 1 tsp dried dill or 1 tbsp fresh
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 2 celery stalks, diced
- 2 green onions, sliced
Instructions
- Add water to the Instant Pot, then dried chickpeas.
- Place lid on Instant Pot and make sure valve is set to seal. Press the pressure cook button and set to high, then cook for 50 minutes. Instant Pot will take about 5-10 minutes to come to pressure then pressure cook for 50 minutes.
- Let the Instant Pot do a natural pressure release. Open the lid when pressure gauge has dropped and the lid opens easily. Drain the remaining liquid from the chickpeas, then serve and enjoy!
For the smashed chickpea salad
- Let the chickpeas cool for 30 minutes on the counter, then chill for at least 30 minutes in the fridge.
- Meanwhile, mix together all the ingredients listed under the Smashed chickpea salad heading in a large bowl. Once chickpeas are cool, add them to the bowl, then mash them with a potato masher until roughly mashed. Keeps in the fridge up to 5 days. Enjoy!
