Coronation Chickpea Sandwich (Curried Chickpea Salad Sandwich)

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We have veganised an all-time favourite British classic – a Coronation Chicken Sandwich! And it is AMAZING, with the creamy curried chickpea filling, bursting with flavours of cumin, lime, sweet sultanas and a hint of chilli heat! Our Vegan Coronation Chickpea Sandwich is a wonderful quick lunch option or something to pack for a filling snack on the go!

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The Roots of Coronation Sandwich Filling

The British love a good sandwich. It has been a go-to lunch option, a snack and even part of a posh afternoon tea for years! Coronation Chicken was first created in 1953 for the banquet of the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II, however, variants of the dish, known as jubilee chicken and the deviled chicken were known years before that! It was a little while later that Coronation Chicken became a sandwich filling though.

Why is Vegan Coronation Chickpea Filling Better Than Chicken?

For our vegan chickpea sandwich version, we substituted traditional chicken with a humble chickpea but kept all the other flavours and textures to retain the authentic flavours of the original. We used tinned chickpeas to make this recipe effortless, but if you wish, you can use dried chickpeas. BBC Good Food article here shows various ways to cook your dried chickpeas.

We love this Curried Chickpea Salad Sandwich because:

We simply love chickpeas.
It is quick and easy to make, yet tastes better than any other vegetarian or vegan sandwich we had.
It has lots of interesting flavours and textures working in perfect harmony.

Curried Chickpea Sandwich cut in half on a wooden chopping board.

However, if you don’t fancy a sandwich, make it into a coronation salad. Simply toss your favourite green leaves, some cucumber and sliced peppers, then top with the Coronation chickpeas! Not impressed? How about a lovely Jacket Potato with creamy Coronation chickpea topping?

Method

Prep the Veg & Nuts

Separate and wash gem lettuce leaves. You may want to remove or thin the thick stalks of the lettuce. Slice the cucumber into rounds.

If using, toast your almond flakes in a dry pan, until slightly browned and starting to smell all nutty. Set aside for later. The almonds are completely optional and are used for extra texture and some nutty flavour.

Fry the Chickpeas

Then drain the chickpeas and run some cold water through them to remove any excess sodium and starch.

Heat a large frying pan with a drop of oil, curry powder, add chickpeas and cook stirring continuously for 3 minutes, until all chickpeas are well coated and warmed through. Leave aside to cool slightly.

Make the Chickpea Sandwich Filling:

Finely chop the coriander (including the stalks) and chilli. You can use any chilli you like, but if you can’t handle the heat, remove the seeds.

In a large bowl, mix vegan mayo (or yoghurt) with mango chutney, lime juice, sultanas, chopped chilli and coriander. Season with salt and pepper. It may look like a lot, but if you make your sandwiches with a large bread roll it will make sure your sandwich isn’t dry.

Ingredients for the sauce on a wooden chopping board. — Ingredients for the Sauce for Chickpea Filling

Then add the cooled chickpeas to the coronation dressing and mix well. Crush some of the chickpeas with a fork to thicken the sandwich filling up a bit.

Assemble The Sandwiches

Cut your bread rolls in half lengthways. Place some gem lettuce leaves on the bottom bread roll half, then spoon the coronation chickpea mixture and sprinkle with toasted almonds. Top with sliced cucumber and place the other half of the bread on top.

Bread with a layer of lettuce, creamy chickpea filling and cucumber on top.

What Goes Well With This Curried Smashed Chickpea Sandwich?

If you want a substantial meal, serve the Coronation Chickpea Sandwiches with crisps or some french fries for an ultimate vegan British-style lunch! However, these are great to have on their own – moist and filling, they can stand as great lunch on their own!

These delicious vegan sandwiches are perfect the next day to take to work for lunch too!

Recipe FAQs:

What Bread Do You Recommend for An Ultimate Sandwich?

The answer is simple: your favourite bread! For us, it is ciabatta rolls or seeded granary sliced bread! And if you want to make a Scandi-style open sandwich, toasted sourdough is perfect!

Can These Chickpea Sandwiches Be Made With Usual Egg-based Mayo?

Absolutely! If you are not following, a plant-based diet, regular mayo works just fine in this recipe!

I’ve Run Out of Mango Chutney. Can I Substitute It With Anything Else?

This may be a controversial thing to suggest, but we tried making this chickpea sandwich filling using apricot jam… Yes, it worked!

Other Vegan Recipe Suggestions

We hope you loved our Vegan Coronation Chickpea Sandwich as much as we do. For other plant-based recipe ideas, have a browse through our vegan recipe collection here, including: