Appetizers Italian-inspired

Vegan Chickpea Tuna with Nori and Capers

Coarsely mashed chickpeas with torn nori, capers, soy sauce, mustard and lemon: a no-cook vegan tuna for sandwiches, ready in about ten minutes.

NF Q
Tag key
  • NF Nut-Free
  • Q Quick
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Total 10 min
Prep 10 min
Cook 0 min
Marination —
Servings 4
Difficulty Easy

Ingredients

Watch the video

Instructions

  1. Break the nori sheets into small pieces with your fingers.

    Fingers tearing dark nori sheets into small flakes on a wooden board

  2. Roughly chop the capers.

    A knife chopping capers on a wooden board

  3. Put the drained chickpeas in a bowl and mash them with a potato masher, leaving a coarse texture. Alternatively, chop everything together, as the original recipe suggests.

    Chickpeas being coarsely mashed with a potato masher in a glass bowl
    Tip: Stop while you can still see pieces of chickpea: the idea is to turn the chickpeas into tuna, not to erase all the evidence.

  4. Add the nori, capers, soy sauce, olive oil, mustard, lemon juice and salt, and mix everything together well.

    Mashed chickpeas, nori flakes and mustard being whisked together in a glass bowl

  5. Taste and adjust the salt and lemon if needed. Serve it in sandwiches, on canapés, in a salad or in a pasta dish.

    A piece of bread topped with yellow chickpea tuna speckled with nori, held in two open hands

Storage & Meal Prep

Keep in a closed container in the refrigerator and eat within 3 days.

FAQ

Does it really taste like tuna?

The nori gives it a sea flavour, the capers and soy sauce add salt and savouriness, and the coarse chickpeas give it the flaky texture of canned tuna. It is not identical, but it plays the same role in a sandwich.

Should I chop or mash the chickpeas?

Either works. The original recipe chops everything together; in the video the chickpeas are mashed with a potato masher and the rest is mixed in. What matters is keeping the texture coarse rather than smooth.

Is it gluten-free?

Not as written, because standard soy sauce contains wheat. Serving it on bread also adds gluten.

Interactive Nutrition Map

Recipe ingredients

  • canned chickpeas200 g
  • nori2 sheets
  • capers1 tbsp
  • soy sauce1 tsp
  • extra-virgin olive oil1 tsp
  • mustard1 tsp

Per serving

85kcalCalories
4.2gProtein
12.2gCarbs
2.2gFat
3.4gFiber
Sodium296 mg13% DV
Potassium179 mg4% DV
Calcium29 mg2% DV
Iron1.7 mg9% DV
Magnesium29 mg7% DV
Vitamin C1.3 mg1% DV
Vitamin A5 µg1% DV
Vitamin K35.7 µg30% DV
Folate88 µg22% DV
Vitamin B120 µg0% DV

Estimated per serving from ingredients with nutrition data. Ingredients excluded from calculation are not represented. Missing data may understate values. Daily Values (DV) are based on 2,000 calories.

The Story Behind This Dish

Canned chickpeas, a couple of nori sheets and a spoonful of capers: this vegan tuna is ready in about ten minutes and needs no cooking. The nori brings the taste of the sea, the capers and soy sauce the savoury saltiness, and a little mustard, oil and lemon bring it all together.

The only rule is the texture. Mash or chop the chickpeas coarsely so they flake like tuna instead of turning into hummus. Spread it on bread as in the video, or use it in sandwiches, on canapés, in a salad or in a pasta with tuna.

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