--- title: Crispy Chickpea Vegan Caesar Salad description: This vegan Caesar salad recipe features a briny, creamy, and rich homemade dressing over crisp romaine and crunchy croutons. Top it all with chickpeas fried until just crispy and tossed with savory spices, and you have a delicious salad-as-a-meal in less than 30 minutes. image: https://www.bean-queen.com/hubfs/vegan-caesar-salad-chickpeas-2.jpg --- [![Bean Queen Logo](https://www.bean-queen.com/hs-fs/hubfs/bean-queen-logo-royal-font-psd-resize.png?width=500&height=86&name=bean-queen-logo-royal-font-psd-resize.png "Bean Queen Logo")](https://www.bean-queen.com) ** Edit BG Image # Crispy Chickpea Vegan Caesar Salad Posted by [Erin McCarthy](https://www.bean-queen.com/blog/author/erin-mccarthy) One question we get a lot as vegans is “Where do you get your protein”? An even meat to beans swap is easy to explain, and easy to execute for new vegans. This vegan Caesar salad is a perfect example. Caesar salad consists of just three main building blocks - dressing, lettuce, and croutons - which means the key to a great one is super high quality ([read: homemade](https://www.bean-queen.com/blog/homemade-salad-dressing)) ingredients. The chickpeas in this recipe are cooked in vegetable oil until the outside is just crispy, and then tossed in savory spices - onion, garlic, and some nutritional yeast to add depth and umami. The briny, creamy, and rich vegan Caesar dressing is tossed with crisp romaine and topped with crunchy homemade croutons and chickpeas, making this a hearty salad-as-a-meal lunch or dinner option. This homemade dressing features capers in place of anchovies and vegan Worcestershire, giving that distinctive Caesar dressing flavor and color. This is super easy to put together [from your pantry](https://www.bean-queen.com/how-to-build-a-vegan-pantry#introduction), and you won’t even be able to tell it’s vegan. It's husband-approved! ![vegan chickpea caesar salad](https://www.bean-queen.com/hs-fs/hubfs/vegan-caesar-salad-chickpeas-2.jpg?width=1080&height=722&name=vegan-caesar-salad-chickpeas-2.jpg) **Servings: **4 **Time: **25 minutes ## Ingredients ### Dressing - 6 tablespoons vegan mayo - 1 ½ tablespoons nutritional yeast - 2 tablespoons lemon juice - 1 ½ tablespoons capers - 1 teaspoon red wine vinegar - 2 teaspoons vegan Worcestershire sauce - 1 garlic clove, minced - ½ teaspoon Dijon mustard - ½ teaspoon salt - ½ teaspoon pepper - ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil ### Salad - 4 (preferably thick) slices of bread or one baguette (baguettes are perfect for croutons) - Olive oil for brushing - 4 teaspoons nutritional yeast - 1/8 teaspoon garlic powder - 1/4 teaspoon dried minced onions (found in the spice aisle) - 1/4 teaspoon salt - 1/4 teaspoon pepper - 1 cup vegetable oil for frying the chickpeas (I use grapeseed here because it’s less expensive than olive oil, has a neutral flavor, and does well with high heat) - 2 15 oz. cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed (3 cups cooked) - 1 head romaine, chopped, rinsed, and dried ## Instructions - Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. - Brush both sides of slices of the bread with olive oil and lightly season with salt and pepper. Cut into bite size cubes. - Cook for 5 minutes, then stir with a spatula. Cook for another five minutes or until golden. Remove from oven and set aside to cool. - Make the dressing by adding all the dressing ingredients to a blender. Blend until thick and creamy, about one minute. Set aside. - Combine nutritional yeast, garlic powder, dried minced onions, salt and pepper in a large bowl. - Add oil to a dutch oven and heat on medium-high until oil is shimmering. Add the chickpeas, cover, and cook for 10-12 minutes until golden and crispy. - Remove chickpeas with a slotted spoon and let drain on a paper-towel covered plate for a minute or two. - Add the chickpeas to the spice mixture in the bowl, and toss until coated. Set aside. - Toss the lettuce with dressing to coat (whether or not you use all of the dressing depends on how big the head of lettuce is and how much dressing you like). Divide into four portions, top each with ¼ of the croutons and chickpeas, and serve. ## Serving Serve this just as is for a great lunch or light dinner. Caesar salad also pairs quite well with soup. Or, try serving this is as a Caesar salad wrap with a side of veggies or oven fries. ## Storing This isn’t going to store well, so eat it all now :) ![vegan caesar salad with chickpeas](https://www.bean-queen.com/hs-fs/hubfs/vegan-caesar-salad-chickpeas-4.jpg?width=1080&height=722&name=vegan-caesar-salad-chickpeas-4.jpg) ### Spread the word! Facebook Twitter Facebook Google+ LinkedIn [Email](mailto:?body=https://www.bean-queen.com/blog/crispy-chickpea-vegan-caesar-salad) ### Filed Under: [Salad Recipes](https://www.bean-queen.com/blog/topic/salad-recipes), [Chickpea Recipes](https://www.bean-queen.com/blog/topic/chickpea-recipes) SIGN UP FOR EMAIL TO GET THE LATEST BEAN QUEEN UPDATES IN YOUR INBOX [![SUBSCRIBE TO EMAIL](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/24749/d4c2baaf-0c38-4618-87a6-a5f7cb745d17.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/24749/d4c2baaf-0c38-4618-87a6-a5f7cb745d17) ### Comments ### Search ### RECENT POSTS [Mushroom and Cabbage Vegan Quesadillas with Parsley dipping sauce](https://www.bean-queen.com/blog/mushroom-and-cabbage-vegan-quesadillas-with-parsley-dipping-sauce) [Spicy black beans and collards](https://www.bean-queen.com/blog/spicy-black-beans-and-collards) ### Get new posts in your inbox ### SHARE Facebook Twitter Facebook Google+ LinkedIn [Email](mailto:?body=https://www.bean-queen.com/blog/crispy-chickpea-vegan-caesar-salad) [Tweets by togethernourish](https://twitter.com/beanqueenrecipe?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) ### [Instagram](https://www.instagram.com/beanqueenrecipes/) > [ > > > > > > > > > > > > > > View this post on Instagram > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > ](https://www.instagram.com/p/BhMN_JrgIUe/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_medium=loading) > > [This vegan kidney bean pie recipe is inspired by traditional kidney pie flavors - tomato paste, bay leaves, Worcestershire sauce - but swaps out the meat for kidney beans. It also adds in all the “hearty” vegetables - mushrooms, potatoes, carrots, and onion. Instead of just, you know, a pie full of meat (or in this case, beans). Link in profile! 😊](https://www.instagram.com/p/BhMN_JrgIUe/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_medium=loading) > > A post shared by [ Bean Queen](https://www.instagram.com/beanqueenrecipes/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_medium=loading) (@beanqueenrecipes) on Apr 5, 2018 at 6:45am PDT ## Affiliate Info Some product links on the site are affiliate links, which means that if you buy something after clicking through  a link, The Bean Queen might receive a tithe percentage of the sale (at no additional charge to you). We'll never recommend anything to you that we wouldn't recommend for free anyway. Thanks for your support! ## Privacy Policy We'll never give your email to anyone else, we'll only use it to send you email from The Bean Queen. It's easy for you to unsubcribe at any time. We think spammers belong in dungeons too! ```json // ```