Tender chickpeas are browned in sautéed garlic olive oil and mixed into a thick, cheesy sauce with a mustard kick. This meal takes 15 minutes to whip together, making it an easy, protein-packed breakfast for a morning on-the-go.
At the end of July, we sent out an email and asked one of those question things on Instagram pondering what recipes you guys want to see from us in August. Happily, you guys lended us tons of exciting suggestions! Thus, we’ll be covering recipe recommendations submitted by you guys for most of August, and this one is no exception. One such follower, Elaine, had a simple request for us: a breakfast that doesn’t contain eggs but is still packed with protein.
We can do that.
Kim and I aren’t naturally the biggest fan of chickpeas – I mean, they’re just kinda dry, flavorless, and weird on their own, but over the past couple of months, we’ve discovered a few ways to transform chickpeas into something delicious. If you’re wondering “why use them in the first place if you don’t like them??” then I’ve got two answers: 1. Aquafaba 2. Not wanting to waste what’s leftover. That’s it.
This dish disguises the chickpeas by making them fluffy, moist, and intensely flavorful, but I’ll spare the details for the recipe. I hope you guys enjoy this chickpea scramble, it’s:
- Packed with protein
- Cheesy & savory with a sharp mustard kick
- Silky & moist with a tender bite
- An easy, 15-minute, 1-pan breakfast
- Easily doubled for meal-prep
- Vegan, Plant Paradox-friendly, & gluten-free
If you like what your tastebuds are tellin’ ya, leave behind a nice rating, share your thoughts with us in the comments, or show us your creations by tagging @noeggsorham on Instagram.
Go Forth & Devour,
Ryan
1-Pan Cheesy Scrambled Chickpeas (vegan, Plant Paradox-friendly, & gluten-free)
Fluffy mashed chickpeas browned in sautéed garlic olive oil, held together with a robust, silky cheese sauce.
Ingredients
Silky Cheese Sauce
- 4 oz (1/2 c) full-fat coconut milk
- 2 tbsps nutritional yeast
- 1 tsp tapioca or arrowroot starch
- 1 tsp rice vinegar or lemon juice
- 1/2 tsp dijon mustard
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp turmeric
- 1/4 tsp onion powder
Toasted Garlic Chickpeas
- One 15 oz can of chickpeas, drained (use Eden’s Beans for lectin-free)*
- 3 medium garlic cloves, finely minced
- 1 1/2 tbsps olive oil or buttery coconut oil
- pinch of salt
Topping
- Chives, finely minced
- paprika or cayenne (optional)
Directions
- In a personal-sized blender cup or mason jar, shake or blend together all of the Cheese Sauce ingredients until smooth. Set aside for now.
- Add drained chickpeas to a bowl and mash with a potato masher or a fork until the mixture is mostly smooth with a few whole chickpeas throughout.
- Heat a medium-large nonstick pan over medium-high heat. Add in olive oil and garlic and allow to cook until the edges of the garlic begin to brown.
- Add in mashed chickpeas, a medium pinch of salt, and stir/fold with the garlic oil. Once combined, evenly spread chickpeas out across the pan and allow to cook – without stirring – until lightly browned; about 3 minutes. Then, stir around and allow to cook until browned again.
- Stir in sauce mixture and cook, stirring occasionally, for 3 minutes; the consistency should resemble moist scrambled eggs.
- Serve with a sprinkle of fresh chives and a dusting of paprika or cayenne if desired. Enjoy while fresh or store leftovers in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Re-heat with a touch of olive oil and splash of water in a pan over medium-high heat until hot.
*Eden’s Beans are pressure-cooked in the can thus ridding them of their harmful lectins.
NO EGGS OR HAM 
Love how you went through the effort of making a cheesy vegan sauce. The chickpeas look super flavourful too. Would be perfect after a workout at the gym!! (:
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Looks good. I didn’t get around to answering your survey, but what I wanted was a substitute for scrambled tofu. This seems a reasonable one.
What sort of “non-stick” pan do you use? I’m afraid of most coatings.
Also, have you tried making coconut milk from dried coconut? I’m wanting a process I can control because, although I know we can get BPA-free cans, who knows what else is lurking in that plastic coating?
Thanks!
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Hey Cara,
We’re glad we kind of answered your request without even knowing it! It’s possible that hemp tofu could be transformed into a scramble as well, but it would probably require more work than this one.
We use an 11 a ceramic titanium ScanPan. I’m not exactly sure about all the details on the coating, but it’s by far the best non-stick pan we’ve ever had.
As for coconut milk, we have made our own using dry coconut before, but I’ve never found it to be that enjoyable. It’s always come out a little watery with a solid layer of fat on top; it’s never as creamy as canned (or even boxed) coconut milk. But, if you do want to give it a try, just blend 1.5 cups dried, desiccated coconut shreds with 4.5 cups of hot water for a few minutes then strain and squeeze through and nut-milk bag or cheesecloth.
Hope thus helps!
Best,
Ryan
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I love this recipe! I love how you guys think out of the box an come up with wonderul new things. I love how this can be even better than what those other folks settling for scrambled eggs are eating. And I love that you came up with a recipe for me. Thanks!
elaine
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Hey Elaine,
We’re so happy you enjoy the recipe! We we hope you enjoy eating it even more :)
Cheers!
Ryan
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