Chickpea Tuna Salad Avocados (Printable)

Creamy avocados stuffed with a zesty chickpea mixture for a fresh, protein-packed meal.

# What You'll Need:

→ Chickpea Tuna Salad

01 - 1 can (15 oz) chickpeas, drained and rinsed
02 - 1/4 cup vegan mayonnaise
03 - 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
04 - 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
05 - 1 small celery stalk, finely diced
06 - 1/4 small red onion, finely diced
07 - 2 tablespoons dill pickle, finely chopped
08 - 2 teaspoons capers, drained and roughly chopped
09 - 2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
10 - 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
11 - 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
12 - 1/4 teaspoon black pepper

→ For Serving

13 - 2 large ripe avocados, halved and pitted
14 - Mixed salad greens, optional
15 - Lemon wedges, optional

# How to Make It:

01 - In a medium mixing bowl, mash the chickpeas with a fork or potato masher until mostly broken down while maintaining some texture.
02 - Add the vegan mayonnaise, Dijon mustard, lemon juice, celery, red onion, dill pickle, capers, parsley, garlic powder, salt, and black pepper to the mashed chickpeas. Stir until well combined.
03 - Taste the mixture and adjust seasoning as needed for optimal flavor balance.
04 - Cut the avocados in half and carefully remove the pits. Scoop out additional flesh from the center of each half to create a larger cavity for filling, if desired.
05 - Generously fill each avocado half with the prepared chickpea tuna salad mixture.
06 - Arrange the stuffed avocado halves on a bed of mixed greens and serve immediately with lemon wedges on the side.

# Expert Tips:

01 -
  • It comes together in 15 minutes, making weeknight lunches feel less like a chore and more like self-care.
  • The combination of chickpeas and bold flavors like capers and dill pickles actually fooled my seafood-loving partner into thinking it was the real thing.
  • You can eat it with your hands, which somehow makes everything taste better.
02 -
  • Assemble this right before eating because avocado oxidizes quickly—brush the exposed flesh with lemon juice if you need to make it even a few minutes ahead.
  • The salad itself actually gets better after sitting for an hour or two in the fridge as flavors meld, so prep the filling in advance and add it to avocado only when you're ready to eat.
03 -
  • Buy avocados a few days before you plan to make this—they'll be at perfect ripeness when you need them, and you won't waste money on ones that go from hard to brown overnight.
  • Keep extra lemon juice on hand because it's the ingredient that transforms bland into balanced, and you'll find yourself reaching for it constantly as you taste and adjust.
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