Potato Salad with Bell Pepper, Chickpeas & Capers
Chickpea liquid does the work of an egg yolk here. Three tablespoons whisked with mustard and lemon juice turn into a thick, creamy dressing — no dairy, no mayo. The salad underneath is halved baby potatoes, boiled and drained while still warm, with garden peas added in the last four minutes of the same pot.
Bell pepper strips, scallion, and two tablespoons of capers bring the crunch and the brine. The full bowl delivers 656 kcal with 23g of fiber across chickpeas, potatoes, peas, and bell pepper in a single 15-minute lunch.
Chickpea liquid does the work of an egg yolk here. Three tablespoons whisked with mustard and lemon juice turn into a thick, creamy dressing — no dairy, no mayo. The salad underneath is halved baby potatoes, boiled and drained while still warm, with garden peas added in the last four minutes of the same pot.
Bell pepper strips, scallion, and two tablespoons of capers bring the crunch and the brine. The full bowl delivers 656 kcal with 23g of fiber across chickpeas, potatoes, peas, and bell pepper in a single 15-minute lunch.
Ingredients
- baby potatoes 227 g
- garden peas (frozen) 140 g
- bell pepper 1
- scallion 1
- garlic 1 clove
- chickpeas 112 g
- yellow mustard 10 g
- lemon juice 5 ml
- olive oil 23 ml
- capers 20 g
Method
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Wash and halve the baby potatoes. Boil until tender in about 10 minutes. Add the peas in the last 4 minutes and drain everything.
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Meanwhile, dice the bell pepper into small strips. Finely chop the scallion and garlic.
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Drain the chickpeas and save some of the liquid in a separate container. Rinse the chickpeas.
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Take a small bowl and add 3 tablespoons of the chickpea liquid, mustard and lemon juice, along with a pinch of salt and pepper. Stir well with a fork. Add the olive oil and finally the garlic. Mix well.
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In a large bowl, mix the cooked potatoes, peas, bell pepper, scallion, chickpeas and capers. Drizzle the dressing over the salad and gently toss.
Whisk the chickpea liquid with the mustard and lemon juice before adding the olive oil — not after. The natural proteins in the liquid trap the oil into a creamy, stable dressing. Same reason bakers use aquafaba to replace egg whites in meringue.
Why This Works
Behind this recipe
Is 23 grams of protein enough from plant sources?
Research on per-meal protein utilization found that the body can use well above the commonly cited 30-gram ceiling. At 23 grams from chickpeas, peas, and potatoes, this meal delivers a solid protein dose from three complementary plant sources.
Read the full evidence reviewWhy save the chickpea liquid instead of draining it?
The liquid — also called aquafaba — contains dissolved proteins and starches that act as natural emulsifiers. When whisked with mustard and lemon juice, those proteins trap the olive oil into a thick, creamy dressing without dairy or egg.
Does this salad work as meal prep?
Cold potatoes develop more resistant starch than freshly cooked ones — a structural change that happens as the starch cools and crystallizes. The salad holds well in the fridge, and the dressing soaks further into the potatoes overnight.
Read the full evidence review
