Cooking without an oven: choose the dish and method
Plan a meal with a pan, a saucepan or cold preparations instead of converting an oven recipe blindly.
Home cooking · Salad
Chickpea, tomato and cucumber salad
A no-cook salad using already cooked chickpeas, crunchy vegetables and a lemon dressing.
15Preparation · min
0Cooking · min
4Servings
Step-by-step preparation
- 01
Drain the already cooked chickpeas, rinse if wanted and let drain thoroughly. The 500 g is drained cooked weight, not dry weight or the total weight of a can.
- 02
Wash the tomatoes and cucumber. Dice the tomatoes and cut the cucumber into half-rounds, removing some watery centre if necessary. Finely slice the red onion.
- 03
Mix lemon juice, a little salt and pepper in a bowl, then add the oil. Add chickpeas, vegetables and parsley and mix gently.
- 04
Taste and adjust. Serve immediately for crunch or refrigerate until the meal. For advance preparation, add tomatoes and dressing near serving time to reduce released liquid.
Indicative times for the original quantities. Side dishes are prepared separately. Adjust cookware and batches when changing servings.
Use cooked chickpeas
Dry chickpeas do not fit the stated 15 minutes: they need separate preparation and cooking. Use the drained weight on the package to calculate how much to buy.
Keep the salad crisp
Ripe tomatoes add flavour and may release water. Cut near serving time or drain some juice before mixing. Small pieces distribute vegetables without turning the salad into a purée.
Choose variations
Another fresh herb can replace parsley. Diced peppers add crunch. Feta is a separate variation adding milk and salt, so check seasoning. Bread and other sides are excluded.
Frequently asked questions
Can I prepare it the day before?
Keep prepared components separately in the refrigerator following storage guidance and combine near the meal. Salted tomatoes and cucumber release more water.
Does chickpea weight include the liquid?
No. Use 500 g of cooked chickpeas after draining.
Explore further
Explore further
Cooking for two: quantities, smaller pans and leftovers
Scale ingredients, then adjust equipment and shopping so half-used packages have a planned purpose.
Building a pantry meal from what you have
Choose a base, texture and seasoning before buying extra ingredients.