Sticky Sesame Chickpeas

Name: Sticky Sesame Chickpea
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 15 min
Yield: 6
Cuisine: Asian
Ingredients: 2 cans (28 ounces) chickpeas; 6 cloves garlic (minced); ½ tbsp ground or grated ginger; 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil; 2 tbsp rice vinegar; 2 tbsp toasted sesame oil; 6 tbsp vegetable broth (divided); ⅓ cup soy sauce or tamari (low sodium); 1 ½ tbsp corn starch or arrowroot powder; 3 tbsp honey or maple syrup

Swarna & AshmitaJune 9, 202208.9K views

This Sticky Sesame Chickpea is a crowd pleaser! Quick, easy, and delicious, this easy chickpea recipe is an epic 15 minutes simple vegan recipe! It’s a great quick family dinner recipe for those busy nights your family will love to have on repeat!

Vegan Sticky Sesame Chickpea Recipe

I can’t get over how easy and quick this vegan sticky sesame chickpea recipe is! It took me no time to put everything together, and it tastes incredible, and everyone in my family loves honey sesame chickpeas.

Though I think we can all agree that you cannot go wrong with the sticky sesame sauce, there isn’t much room for the outcome to not be delicious!

This sticky sesame sauce is so delicious and versatile that you can use this sauce on so many things. From chickpeas to tofu, chicken, salmon, shrimp, cauliflower, or even dressing over any Power bowls.

But if you want to try some more protein-rich bowls recipe, I would love to encourage you to consider these healthy and easily customizable recipes. So many delicious vegan recipes to try!

These vegan sticky chickpeas do not require much kitchen skills, and you likely have many of these ingredients already in your pantry or fridge.

Why You’ll love Sticky Sesame Chickpeas

Vegan, dairy-free, gluten-free, and vegetarian
Great budget-friendly meal prep mains recipe
Tossed in an easy 5 minutes sticky sesame sauce
Made with wholesome plant-based healthy ingredients
A super quick meal that’s great for lunch and dinner
Easily adaptable, you can use any vegetable or protein instead of chickpeas
Bursting with sweet and tangy flavor

Ingridents for vegan sticky Chickpeas

Chickpeas: Chickpeas are packed with plant-based protein, a great meat-free substitution. Feel free to check out my other easy chickpeas recipes for more inspiration.
Soy sauce or tamari: if you want to make a gluten-free version of this recipe, make sure to use certified gluten-free tamari instead of soy sauce.
Rice vinegar: rice vinegar contributes a mild sweetness to the recipe.
Maple syrup or honey: To give a healthy touch to this sticky sauce, use maple syrup or honey instead of refined sugar.
Oil: sesame oil is the best, but you can also use extra virgin olive oil.
Sriracha sauce: Sriracha adds extra depth and subtle spice to the chickpeas. You can also use garlic chili sauce or hot sauce.
Garlic: make sure to use fresh minced garlic
Ginger: finely grated ginger or ground ginger
Cornstarch or arrowroot powder: cornstarch will help thicken the sticky sesame sauce.

How to make vegan sticky sesame chickpeas

First, drain and rinse a can of chickpeas until there is no bubble. Set the chickpeas aside and start preparing the sticky sesame sauce.

For homemade sticky sesame sauce, mince some garlic cloves ( you can use a garlic press for even pieces) and add to a saute pan with 1 tbsp olive oil. Saute until the garlic is slightly brown or fragrant, just like my Kung pao tofu recipe and Kung pao cauliflower recipe.

Now, take a small bowl and add cornstarch (or tapioca starch or arrowroot powder) and 2 tbsp water or vegetable broth, whisk it until smooth and set it aside. The cornstarch slurry will be used to thicken the sesame sauce. You can add chicken stock if you want to make it a bit flavourful.

To the pan with sauteed garlic, add sesame oil, soy sauce, or tamari (for GF version), maple syrup (or coconut sugar), chopped ginger, rice vinegar, and water or remaining vegetable broth. Mix them properly.

Now, whisk cornstarch slurry to ensure no lumps remain at the bottom of the bowl and add to the pan with the rest of the sauce. Whisk everything together.

Make sure to cook over low flame until the sauce starts to bubble.

Once the mixture starts bubbling in the middle, give it a nice stir and add the rinsed chickpeas (or boiled chickpeas), and carefully cover the chickpeas with the sesame sauce until nicely coated.

The sticky sauce will start to thicken; keep it stirring, so the sauce covers the chickpeas. Let the chickpeas cook until the sauce turns dark and nicely thick. The chickpeas may turn dark as well as they start absorbing the sauce.

Also, check out my other Canned Chickpeas Recipes!!

Tips and Variations

You can use honey or maple syrup for sticky sesame sauce, but honey does get a bit of a sticker, which is excellent for this sauce.
Cornstarch can be substituted with arrowroot starch or tapioca starch. If you do not have any of these three, you can use rice flour; it will also work.
Do not overcook the garlic, as garlic does not take much time to cook, and it takes only 40 sec to 1 minute. Burnt garlic tastes bitter and spoilt the overall flavor of the sticky sesame chickpea.
The leftover sticky sesame chickpea will last in the fridge for up to 3 to 4 days if stored well in an airtight container. To extend the shelf life, I would recommend freezing it; you need to keep the sticky sesame sauce and chickpea in a separate airtight container, and it will last anywhere from 3 to 4 months.
You can quickly reheat the chickpeas, toss everything into the saucepan and add a few tablespoons of vegetable broth or oil, so it gets perfectly saucy and sticky.
This recipe is naturally vegan and gluten-free, but use certified gluten-free tamari if you want to make a gluten-free sticky chickpeas recipe.
This sticky sesame is an excellent addition to any buddha bowl or a burrito bowl. You can make your own using this sticky chickpea. Add rice or quinoa, roasted veggies, roasted tofu, and sticky sesame chickpeas. Enjoy your buddha bowl along with a refreshing drink!

More Easy Dinner Recipes!