Peanut Chickpea Bowl

Name: Peanut Chickpea Bowl
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 8 min
Total time: 28 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 1 can (19oz) chickpeas, drained and rinsed (2 cups); 1 tbsp olive oil (15 mL); 1 tbsp garlic powder; 4 cups cooked basmati rice or long grain white rice (approx. 800 g); 1 fresh mango, cubed; 1 cucumber, diced; 1 red bell pepper, cut into chunks; salt and pepper, to taste; 1/2 cup light coconut milk (125 mL); 2 tbsp peanut butter (30 mL); ½ tsp Siracha Sauce (5 mL); squeeze of fresh lime juice, optional

posted: 08/13/21 — updated: 01/07/23 by Deryn Macey Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links.

Jump to Recipe· 5 from 1 review

These healthy vegan peanut chickpea bowl feature rice, mango and veggies and make a great option for meal prep!

Bowl of chickpeas, mango, rice, bell pepper, cucumber and sauce.

Table of Contents

Recipe Features

Dietary Needs: Vegan, gluten-free, can be nut-free, can be gluten-free.
Nutrition Features: Under 500 calories per serving with 13 g of protein and 7 g of fiber.
Stores well for a healthy meal prep recipe.
Mix and match with various grains like rice, quinoa or another carbohydrate like sweet potato.
Easy to make in less than 30 minutes with simple, everyday plant-based ingredients.

Ingredient & Substitution Notes

Visual ingredient list for making a peanut rice chickpea bowl.

Chickpeas: Canned chickpeas work fine or 2 cups of cooked chickpeas.
Olive Oil: This is used for sautéing the chickpeas to add a little more flavour and texture to the bowls. For an oil-free recipe,
Rice: Any cooked rice you enjoy works. Rice can be swapped for quinoa, farro or cooked sweet potato.
4 cups cooked basmati rice or long grain white rice (approx. 800 g)
Mango: Use fresh mango. If not available, you can leave it out or swap it for mandarin slices, pineapple or additional veggies like steamed broccoli, grated carrot or chopped snap peas.
Coconut Milk: Light coconut milk is recommended but you can use full-fat if you like. If you’re not a big fan of coconut, I’d suggest this peanut sauce recipe, my almond satay sauce or my cashew mayo recipe.
Peanut Butter: Use natural peanut butter with no added oil or sugar. For a peanut-free recipe, use almond butter. For a nut-free recipe, use sunflower seed butter.

How to Make this Recipe

Step 1: Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the chickpeas, garlic powder, salt and pepper and cook for 6-8 minutes until the chickpeas are starting to brown.

Quick Tip: If you’re pinched for time or just want to keep it extra simple, you can skip the garlic chickpeas and just use canned drained and rinsed chickpeas.

Step 2: While the chickpeas are cooking, prepare the mango, cucumber and bell pepper, cutting them all into bite-sized cubes.

Quick Tip: Don’t have these ingredients on hand? Try swapping the mango for mandarin slices or pineapple and the veggies for steamed broccoli, grated carrot, any colour of bell pepper or snap or snow peas.

Chopped mango, cucumber and bell pepper on a cutting board.

Step 3: In a small bowl or jar, stir or whisk together the peanut butter, coconut milk and sriracha until smooth and creamy.

Quick Tip: For a peanut-free recipe, swap the peanut butter for almond butter. For a nut-free recipe, swap the peanut butter for sunflower seed butter. You could also check out my regular peanut sauce, almond satay sauce or spicy mayo for alternative dressings.

Whisking a creamy sauce in a small bowl.

Step 4: Prepare 4 bowls or meal prep containers:

If you’re serving right away, start with 1 cup cooked rice per bowl then divide the rest of the ingredients between each serving and top with dressing.
If you’re making this for meal prep, prepare 4 storage containers and fill each with 1 cup of cooked rice. Divide the chickpeas, mango, cucumber and bell pepper between each container. Store the sauce separately in 4 small containers ready to go.

Quick Tip: Additional serving ideas include a wedge of fresh lime, chopped fresh cilantro, sesame seeds or thinly sliced green onion.

Overhead view into a bowl with chickpeas, mango, bell pepper, rice, cucumber and a drizzle of sauce.

Chickpeas, veggies and rice in a glass food storage container.

Recipe Variations

Instead of mango, try mandarin orange slices or pineapple tidbits.
Different veggies that work are steamed broccoli, spinach, massaged kale, snow peas, snap peas, grated carrot, green bell pepper, green onion.
Alternative sauce options include this peanut sauce, almond satay sauce or spicy cashew mayo.
Garlic chickpeas can be swapped for plain cooked edamame, marinated baked tempeh or baked tofu.

Forkful of rice, cucumber, chickpeas and bell pepper.

Storage Tips

The dressing can be prepared up to 5 days in advance.
Prepared bowls can be stored up to 4 days in a sealed container in the fridge.
Not suitable for freezing.

Did you try this recipe? I’d love to hear about it! Scroll down to the comment section to leave a star rating and review.
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