Garbanzo Bean Egg Salad – WFPB

One of the foods I do miss from time to time since going whole food plant-based is eggs.  It’s hard to find a substitute that has egg flavor, that is, until you find a little item called Himalayan Black Sulfur Salt.  Smells just like deviled eggs and tastes rich, savory and eggie.  I’m sure there are other brands on the market, but my naturopath suggested this stuff because she swears it’s good for you.  Approach the open jar with caution – my first whiff impression was “holy moly that is sulfury!” and it is, but it’s the perfect addition to avocado toast, fresh sliced tomatoes or in this application egg salad.  I mean, really good.

So, most of the WFPB world knows about using garbanzo beans mashed to imitate tuna salad, funny how you can almost taste the tuna.  Garbanzo beans are bland, so they take on flavorings well.  And they mash without becoming paste, another good feature.  Really, when we miss a flavor it’s typically the spices that we miss – such as BBQ or Italian, we want the garlic, the vinegar, the tomato, the herbs, all which can be made WFPB and used with a plant-based protein.

I used my favorite egg salad additions here, minced onion and celery, a little Dijon mustard, lots of fresh dill, the sulfur salt and a bit of the aquafab from the beans for moisture.  For those who are unfamiliar with “aquafab” that’s the liquid the beans were canned in.  Folks swear you can whip this liquid into a dessert cream and I tried, honestly it made me shutter.  But hey, let me know if you have a good recipe for some aquafab specialty as I was not impressed.

Use this “egg” salad on a bed of lettuce or good whole-grain bread.  I bet you’ll be pleased with the flavor.  Enjoy!

Makes 2 servings

• 1 – 14.5 Oz Can Low Sodium Garbanzo Beans (low sodium is important here because you’ll be adding salt)
• 1 Stalk Celery, Minced
• 1/2 Cup Onion, Minced (I used a Vidalia sweet onion which I prefer because I find it less irritating to my eyes)
• 1 Tsp Dijon Mustard
• 1 Tablespoon Fresh Dill Minced
• 2 Tablespoons Aquafab (as needed) -or- you could use Veganaise if you prefer though it is not considered WFPB
• 1/2 Tsp Black Sulfur Salt
• Black Pepper (as desired)

Drain the beans, reserving the liquid and place beans in a medium-sized bowl.  Using a fork or potato masher, mash them to your desired consistency (I like to mash some fine and then leave the rest relatively intact for texture).  Stir in the celery, onion, Dijon, dill, sulfur salt and pepper to taste.  Add aquafab as needed to reach a consistency that holds together (if you are putting this on a bed of lettuce, aquafab is likely not necessary).  Serve on a bed of greens or whole grain bread.  Enjoy!