Shawarma Salad
Ingredients
Chickpeas
- 1 15 oz. can Chickpeas drained, rinsed, and dried
- 1 tbsp. Olive Oil
- ¼ tsp. Fine Sea Salt
- ½ tsp. Ground Black Pepper
- ½ tsp. Garlic Powder
- ½ tsp. Ground Allspice
- ¼ tsp. Ground Cinnamon
- ¼ tsp. Ground Cloves
- ¼ tsp. Ground Nutmeg
- ¼ tsp. Ground Cardamom
- ¼ tsp. Chili Powder
- ¼ tsp. Dried Oregano
Dressing
- ½ cup Plain Vegan Yogurt
- 1 tbsp. Lemon Juice freshly squeezed
- 1 tbsp. Tahini
- 2-3 medium cloves Garlic pressed, depending on taste preference
- 2 tbsp. fresh dill diced
- 5 fresh medium mint leaves diced
- ⅛ – ¼ tsp. fine sea salt depending on taste preference
Salad
- 1 large head Romaine Lettuce
- ½ cup fresh parsley chopped
- ¼ cup fresh mint optional, chopped
- 2 cups Cherry Tomatoes halved
- ½ English Cucumber sliced into half moons
- ⅓ medium Red Onion thinly sliced
Instructions
Chickpeas
- Preheat oven to 350 F (177 C).
- Combine all spices (except for the salt) and set to the side.
- Wash and dry the chickpeas. Remove as many skins as possible. Toss with olive oil and salt, and place on a nonstick baking sheet.
- Bake for 40 – 50 minutes, stirring them halfway through baking. They’re finished when they look golden or when they are crispy when touched.
- Remove from the oven and sprinkle the spice mixture over top of the warm chickpeas. Stir to coat the chickpeas in the spices. If you wait too long to add the spice mixture, it will have a hard time sticking to the chickpeas. You can spray a little oil on the chickpeas to help the spices adhere. Taste, and adjust for salt preference.
- Let rest for 10 minutes before topping the salad with them.
Dressing
- In a medium sized bowl, mix all ingredients together.
Salad
- Layer the lettuce, then the rest of the vegetables, and top with the chickpeas. Drizzle the dressing on top.
Notes
To get the chickpeas crispy, it’s so important to fully dry them and then remove as many of the skins as you can.
This recipe is written to get the chickpeas really crispy, almost like croutons. If you don’t want them that crispy, you can skip removing the skins, coat them in all the seasonings before baking, and bake them for 20 – 30 minutes.
Depending on how thin your vegan yogurt is, you may need more citrus juice. Add additional citrus juice or water to get the consistency you like.
The mint in the salad is totally optional. It adds a nice layer of freshness that I think balances out the flavor of the seasoned chickpeas really well, but I don’t necessarily think it’s for everyone. If you look at the ingredient list and think that it’s something you wouldn’t like, I’d leave it out and just use the mint in the sauce.
This recipe makes 2 full meal sized salads, or 4 side salad sized portions.