I've been meaning to make tuno salad with chickpeas for years. I first encountered it in the 1990s at the Sri Chinmoy bakery in Queens, NYC. Interesting sect of people...they sure make some great vegetarian food! Unfortunately, their mock tuna salad was made with real mayo, so I never got to try it. They have a couple of actual restaurants with some real tasty vegetarian food, so if you ever find yourself in Queens, I advise you try them! Oneness Fountain Heart is one...it's painted all blue...and it's yummy.
Here's my vegan version...really easy. Makes me wish I'd tried it much, much earlier. Next time, I'll try fresh chickpeas, though I suspect that "canned food" flavor is part of why it tastes so much like mom's tuna sammys from back in the day!
Mock Tuna Salad
1 can chickpeas
3 tbs vegan mayo
1 tbs sweet relish
2 tsp nutritional yeast
1 tsp dijion mustard
2 tsp lemon juice
2 stalks celery, chopped in small pieces
1 tbs red onion, finely chopped
salt and pepper to taste
fresh dill to taste
tiny pices of nori to (desired fishy) taste
Mash chickpeas a bit with potato masher. Add mayo and mash until a slightly chunky consistency.Stir in remaining ingredients. This recipe is quite personal and can be adjusted any way you want in order to resemble the tuna you remember. Add bits of carrot, scallions, raisins...whatever!
