Chickpea Salad with Red Pepper, Mint, and Sumac

Chickpea Salad with Red Pepper, Mint, and Sumac is so delicious; if you haven’t tried Sumac, get some soon and make this tasty salad that’s vegan and gluten-free!

PIN Chickpea Salad with Sumac to try it later!

When you see Chickpea Salad with Red Pepper, Mint, and Sumac, I’m hoping it’s the word Sumac that jumps out at you. If you’re not familiar with it, Sumac is a middle eastern spice made from the dried berry-like fruit of some species of the Sumac plant. (Don’t confuse it with the invasive Sumac that grows wild in some places and causes a skin reaction similar to poison ivy; this is a different variety of Sumac.)

This recipe was inspired by Spanish Chickpea Salad I saw on The Taste Space, and to me the recipe seemed like it was meant to have Sumac (affiliate link) which I used it to spice up the chickpeas and the dressing. Of course you can certainly make the salad without Sumac, but I highly recommend getting some if you don’t have it on hand. I also used some dried mint in the dressing, plus fresh mint in the salad but if you don’t have dried mint this salad will still be delicious without it.

This vegan chickpea (garbanzo bean) salad that has red pepper, mint, and Sumac has some of my favorite salad ingredients, and this is perfect for a tasty meatless dinner on a hot summer day.

What is Sumac?

I’m a long-time fan of Sumac, which is a reddish-purple ground spice that’s commonly used in middle eastern cooking. It has a lemony flavor that’s good on so many foods and I’ve used Sumac on hummus, in Fattoush Lebanese Salad, in salad dressing, on eggs, and even on Cauliflower Rice. It’s often used on dishes with garbanzo beans, and it adds a nice flavor to this salad. Sumac also one of the components of Za’atar, a middle eastern blend of spices. Read more about Sumac if you’re not familiar with it.

I had known about Sumac for years when a reader sent me a great recipe for Fattoush and I learned the trick of mixing Sumac into the dressing for a flavor boost that’s really delightful, and I’ve been using it that way ever since. Then I went to Istanbul and met Zerrin, and she gave me some wonderfully fresh Sumac from Turkey. And when I read that Sumac is one of the ten most popular spices used in Turkish Cuisine, and I knew I wanted to encourage you to use more Sumac in your kitchen!

How to Make Chickpea Salad with Red Pepper, Mint, and Sumac:

(Scroll down for complete recipe with nutritional information.)

First, here’s a picture of the Sumac (affiliate link) that adds so much flavor to this salad. Saute the rinsed and drained chickpeas in olive oil, with a teaspoon of Sumac stirred in. Whisk together lemon juice, ground Sumac, dried mint (If using), salt, finely minced garlic, and olive oil to make the dressing. When the chickpeas are nicely browned, put them in a bowl, pour dressing over, and let them marinate in the dressing while you prep other ingredients. Chop up the drained red peppers and mint and slice the green onion (or chop red onion). When chickpeas are cooled to room temperature, mix in the red pepper, mint, and green onion and season salad with salt and fresh ground black pepper and serve. This salad can be refrigerated before you serve it, and it will keep for a day or two in the fridge, although I like it best when it’s freshly made.

Make it a Meal:

This would be great with Very Greek Grilled Chicken or Greek Seasoned Grilled Pork Chops for a low-glycemic meal, or serve it with something like Spicy Grilled Eggplant for a vegetarian meal.

More Tasty Recipes Using Sumac:

Twice-Baked Sweet Potatoes with Feta and Sumac from Kalyn’s Kitchen

Ottolenghi’s Fried Beans with Sorrel, Feta, and Sumac from David Lebovitz

Fattoush (Lebanese “Crumbled Bread” Salad) from Kalyn’s Kitchen

Lebanese Sumac Chicken from Apple Pie, Patis, and Pate

Black-Eyed Pea Hummus with Olive Oil and Sumac from Kalyn’s Kitchen

Weekend Food Prep:

This recipe has been added to a new category called Weekend Food Prep to help you find recipes you can prep or cook on the weekend and eat during the week!

Print Chickpea Salad with Red Pepper, Mint, and Sumac Yield About 6 servings Prep Time 30 minutes Cook Time 10 minutes Total Time 40 minutes If you haven’t tried Sumac, get some soon and make this Chickpea Salad with Red Pepper, Mint, and Sumac! Ingredients Ingredients: two 15.5 oz. cans chickpeas (see notes)

1 T olive oil

1 tsp. ground Sumac (see note)

12 oz. jar roasted red bell peppers, drained (or use 3 red peppers and roast them yourself - see note)

1/2 chopped fresh mint (more or less, to taste)

3 T sliced green onions (see notes) Dressing Ingredients: 2 T fresh-squeezed lemon juice

1 tsp. ground Sumac (see note)

1 tsp. dried mint (optional but good)

1/4 tsp. salt

1 tsp. finely minced garlic

3 T extra-virgin olive oil Instructions Put chickpeas into a colander placed in the sink and rinse with cold water until no more foam appears. Let chickpeas drain well, or pat dry with a paper towel if you want to speed it up a bit. Heat 1 T olive oil in a large frying pan, add drained chickpeas, sprinkle with 1 tsp. ground Sumac (affiliate link), and saute chickpeas until they are lightly browned. This will take about 10 minutes, turning the chickpeas several times so they get browned on all sides. While chickpeas are cooking, put roasted red peppers into a colander and let them drain well. Whisk together the lemon juice, ground Sumac, dried mint (If using), salt, finely minced garlic, and olive oil to make the dressing. When chickpeas are nicely browned, put then in a bowl and combine with about half the dressing. Let the chickpeas marinate while you prep the other ingredients. Wash mint, spin dry or dry with paper towels, and chop. When red peppers are well drained, chop them into small bite-sized pieces. Thinly slice the green onion. When chickpeas have cooled to almost room temperature, combine them with the diced roasted red pepper, chopped mint, and capers in a medium-sized salad bowl. Stir in enough dressing to lightly moisten all ingredients. The salad can be served immediately, or it can marinate all day or even overnight in the fridge. Notes You can use about 4 cups freshly cooked chickpeas if you prefer. If you don't have Sumac (affiliate link), you could substitute Za'atar Spice Mix (affiliate link) if you have that. Use my method for roasting your own red peppers if you want to use fresh peppers instead. Use chopped red onion if you don't have green onions. This recipe adapted from Spanish Chickpea Salad at The Taste Space. Nutrition Information: Yield: 6 Serving Size: 1

Amount Per Serving: Calories: 251Total Fat: 13gSaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 10gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 131mgCarbohydrates: 28gFiber: 7gSugar: 7gProtein: 8g Nutrition information is automatically calculated by the Recipe Plug-In I am using. I am not a nutritionist and cannot guarantee 100% accuracy, since many variables affect those calculations.

Low-Carb Diet / Low-Glycemic Diet / South Beach Diet Suggestions:

Chickpea Salad with Roasted Red Pepper, Mint, and Sumac is too high in carbs to be suitable for strict low-carb diets. However, everything in this salad is a low-glycemic ingredient that would be approved for the original South Beach Diet. Dried beans are limited to 1/3 – 1/2 cup serving for Phase One and I would definitely serve this as a side dish salad for South Beach if you’re actively trying to lose weight.

Find More Recipes Like This One:

Use Salad Recipes to find more recipes like this one. Use the Recipes by Diet Type photo index pages to find more recipes suitable for a specific eating plan. You can also Follow Kalyn’s Kitchen on Pinterest to see all the good recipes I’m sharing there.