Easy, flavorful, and packed with plant protein, these sesame chickpeas are a vegan chickpea recipe that make for a quick and delicious dinner the whole family will love. They’re ready in just 15 minutes and are great to meal prep for the week.
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I have a thing for super easy dinners. These sticky sesame chickpeas, sesame noodles, chana masala and these Mexican stuffed sweet potatoes are my favorites at the moment.
But I’m partial to these vegan sesame chickpeas because they literally take 15 minutes to make and have so much flavor your taste buds are going to explode.
Plus, this sesame sauce can be used on so many things. From chickpeas, to tofu, tempeh, salmon, chicken, noodles, cauliflower, or any kind of buddha bowl! It’s a versatile recipe that is loaded with flavor.
Orange Chickpeas, General Tso’s Chickpeas, Peanut Chickpeas, I just love chickpeas!! This is the perfect recipe to use up those canned chickpeas that have been sitting in your pantry for months on end!
Instructions
Drain and rinse the chickpeas until no bubbles remain. Set them aside as you prepare the rest of the ingredients.
Mince the garlic (I like using this garlic press so it’s very finely minced) and add to a saute pan with 1 tbsp avocado oil. Saute until the garlic is slightly golden brown and very fragrant.
Whisk together the arrowroot powder and 2 tbsp vegetable broth in a bowl and set aside. We’ll be using this in a minute to help thicken the sesame sauce. You can also use chicken stock or water instead.
To the pan with the garlic, add the sesame oil tamari (or soy sauce if not GF), maple syrup, ginger, rice vinegar, and the remaining vegetable broth. Whisk together.
Re-whisk the arrowroot mixture to make sure no clumps formed at the bottom and add to the saute pan with the rest of the sauce. Whisk together.
Cook over medium/low heat until the mixture starts to bubble.
Once it is bubbling around the edges, give it a quick stir and add in the chickpeas and carefully fold the sauce over the chickpeas until they are well coated.
The sauce will start to thicken, keep stirring so the sauce covers the chickpeas. Let the chickpeas cook until the sauce is nice and thick. The chickpeas will also darken as they absorb the sauce, this is good since it yields major flavor!
After 5 or so minutes or once the sauce is thick, turn off the heat and allow all of the flavors to blend together for an additional 5 minutes.
Serving Suggestions
My favorite way to have this vegan chickpea recipe is with my instant pot rice, steamed broccoli, and scallions or chives to top it all off!
It’s also delicious with quinoa, bok choy, sautéed spinach and a sprinkle of sesame seeds on top. You really can’t go wrong. This sesame sauce can also be reused for chicken, salmon, tofu, cauliflower, or any other protein.
You can even add it to my peanut noodles, or sesame noodles with extra veggies of choice.
Make it into a stir fry with tons of veggies, rice, quinoa, cauliflower rice, or anything you have on hand.
Tips, tricks and notes
- Be sure to use a high quality toasted sesame oil. Not all sesame oils are created equal and you want to make sure you have one that is very flavorful!
- Once prepared, this vegan chickpea recipe will keep in the fridge for about 5 days. You’ll know it’s gone back when it starts to smell! Beans give off a pretty bad stench in the fridge, so you’ll want to throw them out if they get to this point!
- To reheat this recipe, add it to a pan with a splash of veggie broth or oil so it gets nice and saucy.
- Chickpeas, also known as garbanzo beans, are naturally gluten free, and so is this whole recipe! Be sure to use tamari (gluten free soy sauce) if you have a gluten intolerance or allergy.
- You can use cornstarch or tapioca starch in place of the arrowroot powder. A neutral flour like brown rice flour should also work, but I have only tried this recipe with arrowroot powder and cornstarch.
- If using chickpeas cooked from fresh, sub every 1 can with 1.5 cups cooked chickpeas. Canned chickpeas do not need to be soaked or cooked, but I do suggest soaking raw chickpeas before cooking them.
- This sesame sauce does need a bit of sweetener to really round out the flavors. I usually opt for maple syrup or honey, but you can also try brown sugar or coconut sugar. If you want a lower sugar option, you can cut back to 1-2 tbsp in place of 3. I don’t recommend cutting out the sugar entirely because it does help make the sauce sticky.
Try these dinner recipes next!
- Mushroom Broccoli Rigatoni with Lemon Garlic Cream Sauce
- Easy Dairy Free Pesto with Pasta
- Mexican Quinoa Stuffed Sweet Potatoes
- Sheet Pan Sesame Tofu and Vegetables
- 15 Minute Sesame Noodles
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Vegan Sticky Sesame Chickpea Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 cans chickpeas
- 3-4 large cloves garlic
- 1 tbsp avocado oil or olive oil
- 1.5 tbsp toasted sesame oil
- 1/3 cup low sodium tamari or soy sauce
- 3 tbsp maple syrup
- 2 tsp rice vinegar
- 1/2 tsp ground ginger or 2 tsp fresh grated ginger
- 1 tbsp arrowroot powder
- 4 tbsp low sodium vegetable broth water (divided)
Instructions
- Drain and rinse the chickpeas and set aside.
- Mince the garlic and add to a sauté pan with the avocado or olive oil. I suggest using a garlic press so it’s very finely minced and you don’t end up with any large pieces in the sauce.
- Sauté for a few minutes or until the garlic is very fragrant.
- In a small bowl combine the arrowroot powder and 2 tbsp of the vegetable broth and mix until no clumps remain. Set aside.
- To the sauté pan with the garlic, add in the low sodium soy sauce, sesame oil, maple syrup, rice vinegar, ginger, and the additional 2 tbsp of vegetable broth. Whisk together.
- Add in the arrowroot mixture and stir.
- When bubbles start to form, add in the chickpeas and stir until they are well coated.
- Cook on low heat until the sauce becomes thick and sticky, about 5 minutes. stirring occasionally.
- Remove from the heat and let sit to allow the chickpeas to absorb all of the flavor.
- Serve with steamed broccoli, quinoa, or my instant pot rice and enjoy!
BFC
Stumbled upon this recipe through Pinterest and so happy I did!! Absolutely delish – even my 8 year old was a fan. Made with brown jasmine rice and steamed broccoli.
Claire Cary
Yay! Nothing is better than when kids approve of my recipes 🙂 So happy it was a hit!
Katy
I made this recipe this week and it is DELICIOUS!! I can’t wait to try more of your recipes, thank you!
Claire Cary
Thanks Katy! Can’t wait to hear what you think of some others 🙂
Morven Wardhaugh
Yum!!! Just made this for dinner for me and my dad, easy to make and absolutely delicious! I’m trying to have more vegetarian days and this will certainly feature lots!! I already want to eat it again tomorrow!!
Claire Cary
Right?! It’s almost addicting, but in the best way! I’m so happy you liked it and thank you for the feedback 🙂
Andrea Conway
My family loved this recipe! I used 3 cans of chickpeas and doubled the sauce ingredients. We like lots of sauce! Will definitely make this again.
Claire Cary
More sauce is always a good idea! Thanks for the feedback Andrea!
Lynn
I had these over a salad – so delicious
Brooke Nisky
This recipe is fantastic! All four of my kids loved it, and it was so quick to make! Thank you so much for such an awesome recipe!
Claire Cary
Thank you for the feedback, Brooke! I’m so happy everyone loved it. I grew up in a family with 4 kids and it was a rare day when we all liked the same meal!
amber graham
This is amazing. My son who tends to eat with his eyes, loved it and gobbled it up. I love making vegan meals to change it up (and health reasons). This will definitely be made again!
Claire Cary
Thanks for the feedback Amber! I always love when kids approve of my recipes 🙂
Grão de Bico
I love this recipe, delicious
Claire Cary
So glad you love it! Thanks for the feedback 🙂
Sue
This looks absolutely delicious! Would it still be yummy if I cut the maple syrup in half?
Claire Cary
Yes! I’ve made these with only a splash of maple syrup and they are still delicious!
Vanessa
Thanks for sharing! Does it keep long?
Claire Cary
Should be good for about 3-5 days! Just heat them up with a touch of veggie broth so the chickpeas don’t dry out 🙂
Suzanne
This looks so good! What a great lunch meal prep for the week!
Claire Cary
Thanks Suzanna! My favorite meal prep recipe!
Jonny
Recipe is quick and easy, which is nice. I do think that the sauce leaves something to be desired though. I would add more garlic and ginger next time and try substituting the maple syrup for honey. It just lacked some defining flavour for me and the soy sauce really dominates the flavour profile. That being said, I would definately make again.
Carolyn
My “if it doesn’t have meat it’s not a meal” husband called this recipe a “keeper” and had a second full serving! I call that a win! My kids enjoyed it too. Thanks!!!
Claire Cary
I love that!! So glad it was enjoyed by all! 🙂
Jen
My new favorite recipe. Its so yummy!
Claire Cary
I’m so happy to hear that! Thanks Jen 🙂
Renee
I have made this weekly for the last three weeks because when I first did my husband said, “We MUST keep this in the dinner rotation for every single week!”
It is absolutely delicious. Husband AND kids all approved!
Claire Cary
I’m SO happy to hear that Renee! I love when the whole family approves of my recipes! Thanks for the feedback 🙂
Cheri
I made this for dinner tonight and it was awesome! My husband loved it too. Thank you so much. I can’t wait to make it for my adult children.
Claire Cary
I’m so glad to hear that, Cheri! Thanks for your feedback and I hope your children love it too!
Camille
Hi. I’m making this tonight for dinner. Have you tried freezing it?
Claire Cary
I haven’t, and I’m not so sure how well that would turn out. Hope you love the recipe 🙂