Your favorite takeout Kung Pao dish, gone vegan!! Hearty, satisfying, and deliciously spicy… you’ll be amazed at the fantastic flavor of this dish!
Just because you are eating vegan, that doesn’t mean your meals have to be boring… these Kung Pao chickpeas will amaze you with their bold, delicious flavor!
One of the things I love about this meal is the affordability. Think about the cost of chicken compared to the cost of 1 can of chickpeas… cha-ching! That’s more money in your pocket 🙂
This Kung Pao meal also comes together really quickly. Aside from the marinating time, you can cook this meal in about 10 minutes. For real!
I tossed my chickpeas in the marinade and cooked my rice while they were marinating, that way I had the whole meal together in about 40 minutes, including marinating time!
Once you’ve marinated the chickpeas, add some oil to a large skillet (or wok if you have one), then toss in your chickpeas, garlic, ginger, red pepper flakes, and stir. Pour in your Kung Pao sauce and saute for about 6-10 minutes, until they get as caramelized as you’d like. Serve over rice if you want.
As far as garnishes go, it’s up to you! The night we ate this, I kept it simple and did sesame seeds, green onions, and some extra peanuts.
For leftovers the next day (which are equally amazing, by the way), I went with some sliced red Thai peppers, cilantro, sesame seeds and shredded red cabbage.
The spicy, sticky sauce is just amazing. You will hardly even notice you’re eating chickpeas!I found this recipe via Brandi on SheKnows.
Did you make this? Be sure to leave a review below and tag me @the_chunky_chef on Facebook and Instagram!
Ingredients
- Marinade:
- 2 Tbsp reduced-sodium soy sauce
- 2 Tbsp rice wine vinegar
- 1 lime zested and juiced
- 1 Tbsp agave or honey
- 1 Tbsp coconut oil melted (or vegetable oil)
- 1 Tbsp cornstarch
- 14.5 oz can chickpeas drained and rinsed well
- Stir-Fry:
- 2 Tbsp coconut oil or vegetable
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1 inch section of fresh ginger grated
- 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper
- 1/2 cup peanuts
- 1 cup bottled kung pao sauce
- Garnish:
- Green onions thinly sliced
- Thai chili peppers sliced
- Peanuts
- Cilantro
- Red cabbage
- Sesame seeds
Instructions
- Combine all the ingredients for the marinade in a bowl. Add the chickpeas to the marinade, and stir. Cover and marinate for at least 30 minutes.
- In a large skillet or wok over medium heat, add the coconut oil, the marinated chickpeas and the remaining stir fry ingredients.
- Sauté for about 6 to 10 minutes, until the chickpeas have caramelized to your liking.
- Serve over rice and garnish as desired.
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Nutrition Disclaimer
The Chunky Chef is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories can vary quite a bit depending on which brands were used.
sandy says
You might want to amend your ingredients list. Your can of garbanzo beans in the marinade section calls for 1 ounce of beans. Either its 1 can OR 14.5 ounces. Thought you might want to know.
The Chunky Chef says
Yes there seems to be an update to a plugin that’s causing an issue… it’s one 14.5 oz can. I’ll see if I can get it to show up correctly.
Linda says
Doc suggested two bean dinners a week to replace meat dinners to keep my LDL down. I’ve used other stir fry recipes/sauces and this one will be added to my list. I think the chef needs to update the instructions to state clearly to drain the marinade. I’m glad I was able to find the note in the comments, but I shouldn’t have had to search for the info. I would also suggest adding the crushed red pepper at the end if it’s not hot enough for you. I used the Panda Express sauce, and I think it would have been plenty spicy for us without an additional 1/2 tsp of the crushed red pepper. I used olive oil and pecans as substitutions.
Debbie says
This was a really tasty dish! I didn’t have time to marinade the chickpeas but it was still great. I also don’t have a bottle of kung pao sauce so I found a recipe online and made this from scratch which was really quick and easy. All in all, a great meat-free recipe that I would make again when I’m in the mood for some spicy food!
Kia says
Do I put the marinade with the chickpeas to cook? Or do I drain them from the marinade first?
The Chunky Chef says
Drain them first 🙂
Mallory says
So glad I found this recipe! Accidentally forgot the lime, used Panda Express Kung Pao Sauce, and added Brown Sugar (tried to kill the heat….and was successful)! Thank you for a great recipe!
Lindsey Burch says
Wow! Fantastic post, Thanks, Amanda! Chickpeas for some reason have always been that one food that I would avoid trying. My only experience is the dreaded cold, wet chickpeas from the salad bar. When I finally tried cooking with them at home I was so pleasantly surprised. They are so creamy and contain almost a meatiness which makes them such a great meat substitute in vegan dishes. I cant wait to try this recipe, I am intrigued by the pairing of asian flavors with the chickpeas. Thanks for sharing!
Carrie Milne says
I love chickpeas and this recipe is the bomb. So good!!
Lisa @stylesofcooking says
Well your photos certainly do your food justice as this looks delicious. Love chickpeas and they are so versatile for different meals and textures. Thanks for sharing. Popping by from Veggie Wednesday.
The Chunky Chef says
Thank you Lisa!! I’m definitely going to be exploring new and exciting ways to use chickpeas in recipes 😀
Alyce @ The Culinary Mama says
This looks amazing, and I am definitely going to try it, I’m a huge fan of chickpeas. I found you at Fiesta Friday, I have a link party on my blog, Veggie Wednesday for vegetarian and vegan recipes if you feel like those linking those up 🙂
The Chunky Chef says
Thank you so much Alyce! 🙂 Chickpeas are definitely a hidden gem, so many great ways to use them! Oh awesome, I’ll stop on by, thank you for the invitation! 🙂
Petra says
What a delicious recipe! I love chick peas and this looks so light and great, just my kind of food! 🙂
The Chunky Chef says
Thank you so much Petra!! It’s nice to lighten some food up and enjoy it guilt-free 🙂
Sandhya says
What a great idea! Looks so yummy!
The Chunky Chef says
Thank you Sandhya!! I was so happy with how it turned out 🙂
Caroline says
Looks and sounds tasty. Chickpeas are great at taking on flavor from a good sauce.
The Chunky Chef says
Thank you Caroline!! 🙂