Chickpea Tahini Salad | Everyday Dorie

Why have I not put together a chickpea tahini salad instead of blending all the same ingredients to make hummus? Good question. We are, by and large, creatures of habit. Venturing out beyond our comfort zone could be disquieting. When we let loose our imagination, sometimes we may find goodies out there. Always, Dorie’s notion of using chickpea whole in the form of a salad takes us one step further — outside the box

Deliciousness in food, to me, means complexity, texture and mouthfeel besides just tasting good. What makes a chickpea salad exciting to the taste buds? In this recipe, the dressing delivers the flavor. Make a bottle of the tahini dressing and lather it liberally on fresh vegetables, grains and beans. I’ll be a happy camper.

To make the tahini dressing, start with about 1/3 cup of tahini. You may need to add some warm water or broth and whisk until it becomes smooth. Grate the zest of one lemon, then squeeze and whisk in the juice of one to two lemons. Add seasonings and spices to taste: minced garlic, freshly grated ginger, ground cumin, smoked paprika and cayenne pepper. Dorie says: you don’t want a timid dressing. So be bold!

I tend to prefer to have the salad dressing on the side instead of having the salad fully dressed. That way, I have the option of turning up the volume, if I like. Therefore, the bolder the dressing, the better — as long as I have control of the lever.

For the salad, the key ingredient is the cooked chickpea. For a quick salad, I use chickpea from a can. There are a lot of other salad ingredients that’d go well with chickpea. Think cucumber, celery, cabbage, pomegranate seeds, rather than the bell pepper and red onion that Dorie recommends. Whatever you put into the salad, you can’t beat the fresh cilantro or dill to top it off for some added brightness. Make it a habit — it’s all good.