I love quick fixes because I am busy and if something takes me more than 15-30 minutes to prepare, chances are I’m not going to do it, especially if it’s not my day off. So this Pesto Chickpea Salad was the perfect answer to lunch this week. It only takes about 10 minutes to make, it’s so creamy and delicious, and you can eat it a number of ways. Everything about this chickpea salad is my style!
Originally posted 12-5-2012, updated 6-3-2021.
How to Serve Pesto Chickpea Salad
This super simple chickpea salad can be enjoyed several ways. You can serve it as an appetizer with crackers for dipping, like in the photo above, it can be a side dish with dinner, or you can use it as a filling for a sandwich (toasted whole grain bread, a hearty bun, or in a wrap). …Or, if you’re like me, you’ll find yourself just digging into the bowl with a fork. ;)
What Kind of Pesto is Best?
There are a lot of different types of pesto on the market, offering a little something for everyone. If you’re looking for the most budget-friendly, ALDI makes a super affordable basil pesto that I use in a lot of recipes. Today I happened to be shopping at a different store, so I went with Filippo Berio Classic Pesto, which was still pretty affordable and it had a really incredible flavor. Barilla also makes a very affordable pesto. And since pesto is the main flavor in this recipe, you definitely want to go with a pesto that you know you like.
How Long Does the Salad Keep?
This Pesto Chickpea Salad will stay good in the refrigerator for about four days, making it great for meal prep!
Soak Your Onions for a Softer Flavor
If you’re sensitive to red onions, here’s a trick that will make life so much more enjoyable. Soak your sliced onions in cold water for about five minutes before adding them to your recipe. The water pulls out that super sharp flavor, leaving a nice mild hint of red onion that will flavor your dish without hurting your stomach. :)
Pesto Chickpea Salad
Servings 4 ¾ cup eachIngredients
- 1/4 cup mayonnaise ($0.40)
- 1/4 cup basil pesto ($1.30)
- 1 Tbsp lemon juice ($0.06)
- 1/8 tsp freshly cracked pepper ($0.01)
- 2 15oz. cans chickpeas ($1.10)
- 1/4 cup red onion ($0.10)
- 1/4 cup fresh parsley ($0.17)
Instructions
- Stir together the mayonnaise, pesto, lemon juice, and pepper in a bowl.
- Rinse and drain the chickpeas. Roughly chop the parsley. Finely dice the red onions (soak the red onions in cold water for 5 minutes for a milder onion flavor). Add the chickpeas, parsley, and onion to a large bowl.
- Pour the dressing over the chickpeas, parsley, and onion. Stir to combine. Serve as is or slightly mash the chickpeas for a thicker consistency. Serve immediately or refrigerate until ready to eat.
See how we calculate recipe costs here.
Nutrition
Video
Love chickpea salads? Check out my Scallion Herb Chickpea Salad, Curry Chickpea Salad, or Sriracha Chickpea Salad Wraps!
How to Make Pesto Chickpea Salad – Step By Step Photos
Start by making the creamy pesto dressing. In a bowl, stir together ¼ cup mayonnaise, ¼ cup basil pesto, 1 Tbsp lemon juice, and ⅛ tsp freshly cracked pepper.
Rinse and drain two 15oz. cans of chickpeas, then place them in a bowl. Roughly chop about 1/4 cup fresh parsley. Finely dice about ¼ cup red onion (soak for 5 minutes in cold water if you want a milder onion flavor).
Add the dressing and stir to combine. You can either serve the salad just like this, or…
Or you can slightly mash the chickpeas in the bowl to make it hold together a little more like a potato salad. You can use a potato masher to do this, or just mash some of the beans with a fork against the side of the bowl.
Serve immediately or refrigerate until ready to eat!
So much flavor, so little effort. ;)
I had some leftover freshly made pesto as I sometimes make extra to have on hand and realized I had all the other ingredients to make this. Only difference is I only had one can of chickpeas and used vegan mayonnaise. I liked it better with one as I prefer to have more of the sauce and feel like it would have been lacking with two cans of chickpeas. Once chilled, this is a great quick summer lunch salad!
FYI, I can’t speak to the quality of it, but I saw pesto the other day at the Dollar Tree!
I buy Dollar Tree’s pesto and can vouch for it. I can’t tell the difference between it and Aldi’s. 🤷🏻♀️
I can’t believe I’ve passed over this recipe for 8+ years. I don’t eat raw onion, but like crunch in these sorts of salads, so subbed some finely diced celery, and used whole milk plain Greek yogurt as others have suggested in order to cut fat calories–there’s still plenty of oil in the pesto. I coarsely mashed some of the beans with a fork to make it more spreadable and used whole grain bread, lettuce, and tomato for sandwiches–very delicious, and today’s lunch a big hit at my house!
Made this for lunch today as a I work from home. It was quick and easy to pull together and was quite satisfying wrapped in a toasted tortilla with some fresh greens.
I have been searching for quick, cheap but unique and fresh meals for a while. There was jar of pesto in my cupboard and I just went on here to see if there was anything I could do with it. This recipe came up and I realized I had everything! It took less than 5 minutes and it was delicious. I substituted sour cream for mayo and added tomatoes but my wife loved it. She even wondered how we incoperate pesto into other dishes and this whole time I thought she hated pesto.
This is amazing! I REALLY don’t like mayonnaise, so I subbed Greek yogurt instead and it tastes delicious. Definitely my go-to lunch if I want to prepare something quick and simple!
Made it for church potluck Sabbath, came home with an empty bowl!
If you are a Costco member, they have a larger jar of pesto than what you can buy in the grocery store. I haven’t bought it a while, so am not sure of the price…$6 range, maybe. After you use it for a recipe you can freeze the rest of the jar in ice cube trays to be thawed and used later. My daughter loved this recipe and I plan on trying it this week!
The best thing to do is keep an eye on the product price, over weeks and months if necessary, and buy special offers when the opportunity strikes!
Delicious as always!
wow… looking tasty… i never had taste this… but now i would try to make this salad :)
This is my new favorite salad! I always shop at Aldi, and on their current product rotation, they have a killer pesto (for only $1.99!).
I just wanted to let you know that in a desperate attempt to only eat out of our freezer and pantry for a month we were running out of ideas. I had all these ingredients so I thought I would try it. No joke my picky 8 year old, 11 year old and 1 year old are all devouring it as we speak! They love it and the older kids want it in their lunch rotation :) Thank you for all the great budget friendly meals!
I’d love to make this, but I’m not a mayonnaise (no eggs) or parsley/raw onions person. Could I cut the pesto with olive oil and up the lemon juice? Maybe throw in some artichoke hearts instead of the onions?
Yes, that sounds delightful! I think it’s great to go with your gut feeling and experiment with recipes. :)
I’ve made this, but substituted plain yogurt for the mayo.
A good recipe. I liked it even better with some chopped Hass avocado.