Chickpea stir fry comes together in under 30 minutes with simple ingredients. This Chinese-inspired recipe is a delicious plant-based alternative for anyone who prefers not to use tofu. Made with onions, red bell peppers, and mushrooms, it's easy to swap in your favorite vegetables and make it your own.
I absolutely love stir fry. It's quick, flexible, and perfect for weeknights served with coconut rice or your favorite grains.
While I often cook with tofu, like in my crispy orange tofu, sometimes I like to switch things up with a different plant-based protein. Seasoned with ginger, garlic, and tamari, this chickpea stir fry might just become your new favorite.

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Delicious stir fry! Lots of flavor especially from the ginger and red pepper. Loved, loved, loved it!
- Sara H.
Ingredients
For the stir fry:
- Chickpeas (garbanzo beans)
- Tamari (or soy sauce if you're not gluten-free)
- Onion
- Red bell pepper
- Mushrooms
- Green onion
For the sauce:
- Fresh ginger
- Fresh garlic
- Coconut sugar or your favorite sweetener
- Cornstarch or arrowroot powder
- Tamari (or soy sauce if you're not gluten-free)
- Rice vinegar
- Crushed red pepper flakes
Please see the recipe card at the bottom of this post for the complete ingredients, measurements, and instructions.
How to make chickpea stir fry

- Marinate the chickpeas in a little tamari for extra flavor. If you're limiting sodium, you can skip this step.
- Whisk together the sauce ingredients in a small bowl and set aside.
- Stir fry the vegetables in a few tablespoons of water in a large skillet until tender-crisp.
- Add the chickpeas and sauce. Continue to cook, stirring, until heated through and the sauce has thickened. Serve right away with rice, your favorite grain, or in lettuce cups.
Made this recipe or have a question? Please leave a comment below. 💙 For even more recipes, join the Veggies Save The Day community. It's less like a newsletter and more like emails between friends.
Love and Veggies,
Amy

📋 Recipe

Chickpea Stir Fry
Ingredients
For the stir fry:
- 1-15 ounce can chickpeas, rinsed and drained (about 1½ cups)
- 1 Tablespoon tamari, (or soy sauce)
- 1 cup onion, diced
- 1 red bell pepper, diced (about 1 to 1½ cups)
- 1 cup mushrooms, sliced
- 1 green onion, sliced (for garnish, optional)
For the sauce:
- 6 Tablespoons water
- 3 Tablespoons rice vinegar
- 3 Tablespoons tamari, (or soy sauce)
- 1 Tablespoon coconut sugar
- 1 Tablespoon cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon fresh ginger, minced
- 1 teaspoon fresh garlic, minced
- ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, (or to taste)
Instructions
- Marinate the chickpeas in the tablespoon of tamari for 15 minutes. Set aside.1-15 ounce can chickpeas, 1 Tablespoon tamari
- Mix the sauce ingredients together in a small bowl and set aside.6 Tablespoons water, 3 Tablespoons rice vinegar, 3 Tablespoons tamari, 1 Tablespoon coconut sugar, 1 Tablespoon cornstarch, 1 teaspoon fresh ginger, 1 teaspoon fresh garlic, ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- Heat a non-stick skillet over medium heat. Add about 2 tablespoons water. Add the onion and red bell pepper and stir fry a few minutes until the onion is slightly translucent.1 cup onion, 1 red bell pepper
- Next add the mushrooms to the skillet and stir fry for a couple more minutes.1 cup mushrooms
- Add the chickpeas and stir fry until they are heated through.
- Give the sauce a good stir, then add it to the skillet. Stir until the sauce has thickened and the chickpeas and vegetables are well coated. Garnish with sliced green onion, if desired.1 green onion
- Serve immediately with coconut jasmine rice or your favorite grain.
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Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is an estimation only.








Kathleen says
This was good. It was quick and filling. I might use a little less vinegar next time.
Amy Katz says
Thanks Kathleen! You can definitely tweak the sauce to suit your taste.
Sara Hilmer says
Delicious stir fry! Lots of flavor especially from the ginger and red pepper. Loved, loved, loved it!
Amy Katz says
I'm so happy to hear it, Sara! I appreciate you coming back to leave a comment and rating. 🙂
Marge Teilhaber says
How about subbing coconut aminos for the tamari? A lot less sodium in aminos. I have 2 jars (different brands) but haven't tried it yet. Think it'll work in this gorgeous stirfry?
Amy Katz says
Hi Marge, Yes, you can absolutely sub coconut aminos. Enjoy!
Dottie says
Gluten free soy sauce is now available! Yea!
Marie says
I served it in bowls with jasmine rice and we scooped it onto romaine lettuce leaves and it was delicious and so filling! I will definitely be making it again. Thanks for the recipe!
Gerry says
Lovely recipe. I will double the sauce next time. You can never have too much sauce! I've tried a similar dish to this one but it was way too sweet. This was just right. And the coconut rice was delicious. Thanks so much.
Amy Katz says
Thank you, Gerry! Great idea to made extra sauce!
Jennifer W Dotson says
Thank you so much. I look forward to trying this recipe. It sounds delicious.
Jennifer W Dotson says
What could I substitute for the cornstarch? Maybe, Agar powder or arrowroot? Your ideas? Thanks so much!!
Amy Katz says
Hi Jennifer, Arrowroot is the perfect substitute. You can use the same amount.
Stephanie says
This was absolutely amazing. I doubled the recipe and tripled the amount of sauce because well, you can never have too much sauce! I did up the ginger and garlic by quite a bit because I love them so much. The coconut rice was absolutely perfect! Quick, simple but really deep, rich flavors. Everyone was literally moaning! It was so good! Thank you. This will be made often in my house!
Amy Katz says
Wow! I'm so happy everyone enjoyed the dishes, Stephanie!
Brenda says
I am new to eating plant based and am in the process of finding recipes that are great and this chickpea stir-fry takes it over the top. Can't wait to try the burritos tomorrow.
Amy Katz says
I'm so glad you enjoyed it, Brenda!
ANDREJA SWEENEY says
Mmm, delicious. Any veggie made as stir fry is tasty.
Love the recipe, Andreja
Amy Katz says
Thanks so much, Andreja!
Linda says
Just made this. It is very good! I think I will substitute tofu in place of the chickpeas next time to make it a more authentic asian-style dish, if you think that would work. Thanks for another great recipe!
Amy Katz says
I'm so glad you enjoyed it, Linda! This recipe works really well with tofu, too.
Emily says
Tasty, quick and easy! Not soy-free though, because of the tamari. Just in case someone has an allergy.
Amy Katz says
I'm glad you enjoyed it, Emily!
Melissa says
Great recipe! It has the flavors of a Chinese ginger and garlic dish, without all of the extra fat you’d get from takeout. I found it was a bit too much ginger for me, so I added 1 1/2 tsp of honey to temper the spice. I think next time I’ll add broccoli and more veggies. But overall it was a yummy dish I’ll add to my repertoire. 😋 Thank you!
Amy says
So glad you enjoyed it, Melissa! Thanks for the feedback.