Cilantro Lime Chickpeas
This nourish bowl with cilantro lime chickpeas makes for a wholesome vegan meal. The perfect easy dinner recipe loaded with flavorful chickpeas, rice, and fresh veggies.
These chickpeas are insanely flavorful and only use very simple ingredients. No fancy equipment either. They remind me of some of my other favorite easy dinner recipes like Lemon Basil Tofu and Cilantro Lime Quinoa Salad. Each bowl is bursting with fresh citrusy flavors and herbs, but super easy to make.
Recipe Inspiration
I decided to go with the cilantro lime flavor combination because of 2 reasons:
- It reminds me of sofrito. And sautéing all these herbs along with fresh citrus always makes me think of my mom’s Dominican kitchen. The nice part is that there is no blending or food processing necessary. All you need is a knife to make this recipe.
- Before becoming vegan, cilantro lime chicken was a go to flavor combo for me. And really the main reason I loved this dish so much was because of the flavors coming from the herbs, spices and citrus. So why not bring this flavorful marinade to some of my favorite beans.
Key Ingredients
- Beans: I used a combo of chickpeas and some white beans I had leftover in the fridge, but you can make it just one type of bean if desired.
- Marinade: A combination of tamari, garlic, cilantro, lime juice, maple syrup and spices that help give this dish a great depth of flavor while tasting fresh.
- Rice: Our grain of choice, but feel free to swap in with your favorite grains like quinoa, farro or millet.
- Fresh Produce: Use chopped cucumbers, tomatoes and avocado for your bowls to enjoy with your main component. But feel free to change these veggies out to meet your preference.
How to Make Cilantro Lime Chickpeas
Add all of your marinade ingredients to a medium bowl and whisk together to combine. To the bowl, add your rinsed and drained chickpeas and fold them into the marinade.
Preheat a large skillet and then pour in your chickpeas with the marinade into a pan and allow them to simmer and cook for about 5 minutes to cook off some of the liquid.
Remove from heat and top with extra cilantro. To assemble your nourish bowl, add rice, your cilantro lime chickpeas, freshly diced tomatoes, fresh chopped cucumbers, and fresh avocado to a bowl and enjoy.
Tips for the Perfect Nourish Bowl
- Make sure you use a sharp knife when cutting your cilantro. Using a dull knife or chopping it too finely can cause the flavor of your cilantro to seep out into your cutting board making you lose some of the flavor overall in your dish.
- If planning this bowl for meal prep, prepare and store each component separately. This makes sure that your nourish bowl doesn’t get soggy over time and also helps to allow you the option to mix and match your favorite ingredients to help create some variety meal to meal.
Frequently Asked Questions
Just make sure that the stems are cut finely like the leaves of the cilantro. The stems have just as much flavor as the leaves. If you’d prefer not to use the stems, you can also reserve them to cook with your rice for more flavor or you can blend them into different sauces.
Store leftover beans in airtight containers and place in the fridge for up to 4-5 days. You can prep additional items like the rice in advance to use for easy prep. If using watery vegetables, cut them up for the bowl the day you plan to enjoy or replace with hearty vegetables that will last pre-chopped in the fridge.
Cilantro as well as other herbs are not only flavor bombs, but provide a very concentrated amount of nutrition as well. They are high in vitamin C, K, beta-carotene, potassium, leutin and zeaxanthin (two nutrients great for eye health). Plus, cilantro has a number of antioxidants associated with reduced cancer risk and improved skin health.
Make It a Meal
These chickpeas were created with the intention of being used in nourish bowls. If you are not familiar with a nourish bowl, they are plant-forward or fully plant-based bowls that include items like beans, rice, fresh vegetables, and healthy fats in the form of avocado or dressings. Think of these bowls as a nutrient dense puzzle where the focus is on variety and having multiple elements in your dish to help fully nourish you.
This nourish bowl includes the following:
- Cooked rice
- Fresh cut tomatoes
- Freshly chopped cucumbers
- Sliced avocado
- Cilantro lime chickpeas
Swaps and Add Ins
The best part about a nourish bowl is the fact that it is so customizable. Use my bowl as a guideline, but feel free to add in and swap out whatever you like to create your own customized meal.
- You can opt out of cooking your chickpeas with the marinade and instead marinade your beans for an hour in the fridge then serve in your bowl.
- Swap out the rice for some quinoa, millet or farro. You can also replace the grains all together with some roasted potatoes or grilled corn.
- Change up your veggies. You can swap in some greens like spinach, baby kale, or lettuce. You can even replace the cucumbers and tomatoes with some roasted vegetables of your choice.
- Even though this bowl has avocado, feel free to add in a sauce of your choice to enjoy with this bowl as well.
- Lastly, if you fall into the category of individuals that can’t stand the taste of cilantro (totally genetic!) then you can absolutely replace it with some of your other favorite herbs. This dish would be amazing as well with fresh thyme and rosemary.
More Nourish Bowls to Try
- Latin Nourish Bowl
- Black Bean Nourish Bowl with Ginger Sriracha Dressing
- Almond Miso Chickpea Nourish Bowl
Cilantro Lime Chickpeas
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 6 servings 1x
- Category: Main Dish
- Method: Stove Top
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegan
Description
This nourish bowl with cilantro lime chickpeas makes for a wholesome vegan meal. The perfect easy dinner recipe loaded with flavorful chickpeas, rice, and fresh veggies.
Ingredients
Cilantro Lime Chickpeas
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tbsp tamari or coconut aminos
- 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 1 tbsp maple syrup
- 1/2 tsp ground cumin
- 1/2 tsp coriander
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/2 small red onion, finely diced
- 1/2 cup cilantro
- Juice and zest of 1 lime
- 2, 15 oz cans of chickpeas, rinsed and drained or white beans
For Each Nourish Bowl
- Cooked rice or quinoa
- Cucumbers
- Tomatoes
- Avocado
Instructions
- Add all of your marinade ingredients to a medium bowl and whisk together to combine.
- To the bowl, add your rinsed and drained chickpeas and fold them into the marinade.
- Preheat a large skillet and then pour in your chickpeas with the marinade into a pan and sauce for about 5 minutes to cook off some of the liquid.
- Remove from heat and top with extra cilantro and adjust salt and pepper to taste.
- To assemble your nourish bowl, add your rice, your cilantro lime chickpeas, freshly diced tomatoes, fresh chopped cucumbers, and fresh avocado to a bowl and enjoy.
Notes
Make sure you use a sharp knife when cutting your cilantro. Using a dull knife or chopping it too finely can cause the flavor of your cilantro to seep out into your cutting board making you lose some of the flavor overall in your dish.
If planning this bowl for meal prep, prepare and store each component separately. This makes sure that your nourish bowl doesn’t get soggy over time and also helps to allow you the option to mix and match your favorite ingredients to help create some variety meal to meal.
Did You Try This Recipe?
Then let me know what you thought in the comments below! Share your creations by tagging me on Instagram with the hashtag #plantbasedrdeats
★ Catherine
Hands down one of my favorite recipes of yours! I’ve shared it with friends and coworkers who all love it, too! I make it as written, except instead of two cans of chickpeas, I use 1 can of chickpeas and 1 can of black beans. Such a simple and delicious recipe!!