Spicy Chickpea Cucumber Salad Recipe

Spicy Chickpea Cucumber Salad is a great option for meal prep. Jam packed with veggies and protein, this dish will fill you up without weighing you down. Serve it alongside some grilled chicken or on it’s own with pita bread chips. Either way you’re gonna love it!

Lately I’ve been trying to get back to meal prepping on the weekends. Baby Gavin has started to crawl and I just can’t seem to grasp that fact that we now have two boys on the move (and both are plowing FULL-STEAM-AHEAD in different directions). I used to see these parents with leashes on their children while out in public. I now fully understand why those were necessary.

My hubby usually takes the boys to a nearby park on Sunday afternoon, so I’ve been taking advantage of a quiet house by knocking out a few make-ahead items for the week ahead.

Say hello to my current obsession: Spicy Chickpea Cucumber Salad.

I’ve always been a big fan when it comes to chickpeas. They’re pretty much my go-to bean (or should I say legume?) when I’m looking to add a little extra somethin’ to a recipe. Oh, and if you haven’t tried roasting them yet, that’s something you need to add to your cooking agenda ASAP.

This versatile recipe is totally customizable… so get ready to use whatever you have on hand! My hubby and I are obsessed with spicy goodness, so obviously I had to add fresh jalapeños, cayenne and red pepper flakes to this recipe. Not a fan of heat? No problem. When I’m making this for our boys I skip those ingredients and add crumbles of creamy feta, vibrant green bell peppers and fresh tomatoes. I’d be lying if I said that they ate every bite, but most ends up in their mouth (and not the floor)… so that’s a winning situation in my opinion.

Spicy Chickpea Cucumber Salad Recipe

Prep time

1 hour 10 mins

Total time

1 hour 10 mins

Serves: 4

Ingredients

1 can Chickpeas, drained & rinsed
½ Large English Cucumber, thinly sliced (about 2 cups)
1 Fresh Jalapeño, seeded & sliced
½ small Red Onion, thinly sliced
1 clove Garlic, minced
2 tbsp. minced Fresh Cilantro*
2 tbsp. chopped Fresh Dill*
3 tbsp. Olive Oil
2 tbsp. White Wine Vinegar
½ tsp. Paprika
½ tsp. Cayenne
1 tsp. Kosher Salt
¼ tsp. Freshly Cracked Black Pepper
Pinch of Chili Flakes, optional garnish

Instructions

Toss all ingredients in a large mixing bowl until well combined.
Refrigerate for at least an hour to let flavors blend.
Garnish with additional cilantro, dill and red pepper flakes, if desired before serving.
Store leftovers in a sealed container, refrigerated, for up to 3 days.

I’ll often serve this with a batch of my Chili Pepper Pita Bread.

Sometimes we mix the two together on one plate and create our own version of a Panzanella Bread Salad. Yum. To make the pita bread:

Preheat oven to 425F.
Cut the pita bread into bite-sized wedges.
Place the wedges in a mixing bowl and toss with 1 – 2 tbsp. olive oil, 2 tsp. Cayenne (or more, to taste) and 2 tsp. red chili flakes.
Pour wedges onto a baking sheet in a single layer. Bake for roughly 8 minutes, or until crispy and browning.