Garbanzo beans are an ideal substitute for canned tuna when it comes to creating a health-promoting “Tu-no” salad. You can serve this by itself or atop a green or spinach salad, spooned into romaine leaves, or as a filling in steamed corn tortillas.
Tu-No Salad
Prep time:
Total time:
Serves: 4 to 6 (makes 1 cup dressing and 5 cups salad)
Ingredients
- For the salad:
- 2 cans cooked garbanzo beans (15 ounces each; about 3 cups total), drained and rinsed
- 3 ribs celery, sliced or chopped (about 1 cup)
- ¼ cup finely chopped red onion
- ¼ cup finely chopped fresh basil
- 1 medium, ripe avocado, chopped (optional)
- Cashew-Mustard Dressing:
- ½ cup water
- 2 ounces raw, unsalted cashews (about ½ cup)
- 3 tablespoons lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons mustard (I like Dijon or stone ground)
- 2 teaspoons vinegar (I like apple cider)
- 1 medium clove garlic, sliced
- 2 to 3 teaspoons kelp granules (optional; see Notes)
Instructions
- Place all of the dressing ingredients (water, cashews, lemon juice, mustard, vinegar, garlic, and kelp, if using) into a blender, and set aside for at least 15 minutes (so the cashews can soften).
- Place the garbanzo beans into a food processor and pulse until the beans are broken but still flaky (do not overblend). Transfer the beans to a large bowl and add the celery, red onion, basil, and avocado (if using).
- Blend the dressing ingredients until smooth. Stir the dressing into the salad. Serve as is or see the serving suggestions above.
Notes
Adding kelp granules lends a seafood flavor to this salad (although it’s great without it, too). You can find kelp granules in the spice aisle or Asian cooking section of the grocery store.
For a lower-fat dressing, substitute a little over ½ cup cooked white beans (any type; drained and rinsed) for the cashews.
For a lower-fat dressing, substitute a little over ½ cup cooked white beans (any type; drained and rinsed) for the cashews.
Nutrition Information
Serving size: ⅙ recipe, ¾ cup Calories: 203 Fat: 6.1g Saturated fat: 0.9g Carbohydrates: 26.6g Sugar: 2.4g Sodium: 105mg Fiber: 6.3g Protein: 9.3g Cholesterol: 0
I have served the salad in warmed corn tortillas as well as wrapped in steamed collard greens, with avocado as a garnish.
If you make this recipe and enjoy it, please share a comment below or on my Facebook page. If you’d like to print this recipe, use the green “Print” button near the top-right of the recipe. Learn more about the Straight Up Food Cookbook here. Thank you!
This recipe is almost exactly the same as the Tu-no Salad Wraps from drmcdougall.com. Whose recipe is it?
Hi Karen, it’s my recipe; I teach for the McDougall Program, so they share it on their site too. The slight difference is that I used to put in parsley (as well as basil) and I changed it when I published my book in 2016 and left out the parsley. 🙂