Easy Vegetarian Chickpea Gyros
These chickpea gyros are a quick vegetarian dinner that takes just 10 minutes to cook on your stovetop and only a few minutes to prep. That means you can walk in the door and be sitting at the table eating dinner within 15 minutes! It’s got all your favorite Mediterranean flavors with a vegan twist!
You Will Love These
- They take less than 15 minutes from start to finish. It’s HARD to find healthy, vegetarian recipes that are filled with this much flavor that can be thrown together so quickly!
- These vegetarian gyros have all your favorite flavors of falafel with a fraction of the work! No food processor, no waiting for the falafel mixture to chill, no frying in hot oil!
- You can enjoy them as a pita sandwich or make a big, fresh salad with the crispy spiced chickpeas! Remember, my recipes are always blueprints which means you can give each meal your own touch! Toss these spiced chickpeas on a Greek salad or my Whipped Feta Dip for a perfect meal prep lunch for the busy work week!
Ingredients and Substitutions
- Olive Oil — I like a good, organic, cold-pressed olive oil for the depth of flavor that it adds, but you can use whatever cooking oil you have on hand for these chickpeas.
- Chickpeas — Chickpeas are such a great source of plant-based protein that I just always have a can (or two) on-hand. You could substitute Great Northern beans in a pinch, but you’ll miss some of the buttery, nuttiness from the chickpeas.
- Cumin — If you’re fresh out of cumin, coriander is the standard substitute.
- Paprika — You can use any ground pepper powder in place of paprika, but make sure you know what flavors you’re working with. Ancho powder is the best, because the flavor is mild, but it’s not a very common pantry staple. Cayenne is a popular substitute for paprika, but you might want to use less than ¼ teaspoon since it brings more heat.
- Garlic Powder — Fresh out of garlic powder? Mince up two fresh garlic cloves instead (one for every ⅛ teaspoon)!
- Pita Bread — Is there anything more heavenly than soft, pillowy pita bread? You can usually find it whole wheat or gluten-free—whatever you need!
- Dill Yogurt Sauce — Don’t skip the homemade Dill Yogurt Sauce for these chickpea pita sandwiches! It ties everything together and adds a layer of fresh, cool, tangy flavor!
Instructions
Dry chickpeas thoroughly on a clean kitchen towel.
Heat oil in a large pan over medium-high heat.
Add chickpeas to the pan and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring frequently for 8 minutes.
Add cumin, oregano, paprika, garlic powder, and another pinch of salt and pepper. Toss to coat the chickpeas evenly.
Then cook for another minute or two until the chickpeas are crispy but not burned. Serve your spiced chickpeas on a warm pita filled with cucumber, tomato, red onion, homemade yogurt sauce, fresh dill and crumbled feta.
Tips
- Make sure to dry the chickpeas thoroughly before sauteing them. Eliminating as much moisture as possible will ensure that they get perfectly crispy and crunchy.
- After you add the spices to the pan, be sure to watch the chickpeas closely so they don’t burn. These zesty little beans can go from crispy to burnt real quick, so stir them frequently after you’ve coated them in the spices.
- Creamy Dill Yogurt Sauce really makes this dish shine. The cool, creamy sauce really balances out the crisp, spiced garbanzo beans. You can buy tzatziki at the store if you’re in a pinch but my homemade creamy yogurt sauce is suuuuuuper easy and tastes fresher than fresh!
FAQ
A gyro is typically a Greek dish made of gyro meat (a cone of spiced meat on a verticle rotisserie, which can be lamb, chicken, pork, or beef – or a combination) folded in a pita with a variety of toppings. Falafel is a Middle Eastern combination of chickpeas and seasonings, formed into a ball or patty, and fried. Falafel is often served in a pita pocket with a variety of toppings.
The number of calories in a veggie gyro will vary depending on which recipe you’re using. However, veggie gyros typically have fewer calories than traditional gyros because they use a base of vegetables rather than meat. Most veggies gyros will be around 200-400 calories. Additional toppings will add more calories, but the veggies and beans in a chickpea gyro are going to fill you up and fuel you through your day!
Yes! Gyros are a traditional Greek cuisine. They have a long history as a popular food served by street vendors in Greece. This vegetarian gyro recipe is a twist on a traditional gyro, using a combination of Mediterranean-inspired flavors and chickpeas to replace the traditional meat filling.
Favorite Mediterranean Dishes
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Chickpea Gyros
These chickpea gyros are a quick vegetarian dinner that takes just 10 minutes to cook on your stovetop and only a few minutes to prep. That means you can walk in the door and be sitting at the table eating dinner within 15 minutes! It’s got all your favorite Mediterranean flavors with a vegan twist!
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 15 minutes
- Yield: 4 gyros 1x
- Category: Main Dish
- Method: Stove Top
- Cuisine: Mediterranean/American
- Diet: Vegan
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 (15 oz.) can chickpeas, drained
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon oregano
- 1/4 teaspoon paprika
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- Kosher salt
- fresh cracked pepper
For serving:
- pita bread
- creamy yogurt sauce
- sliced cucumber
- sliced tomato
- red onion
- fresh dill
- crumbled feta
Instructions
- Dry chickpeas thoroughly on a clean kitchen towel.
- Heat oil in a large pan over medium-high heat.
- Add chickpeas to the pan and season with salt and pepper.
- Cook, stirring frequently for 8 minutes.
- Add cumin, oregano, paprika, garlic powder, and another pinch of salt and pepper.
- Toss to coat the chickpeas evenly.
- Then cook for another minute or two until the chickpeas are crispy but not burned.
- Serve with fresh pita bread, homemade yogurt sauce, cucumber, tomato, red onion, fresh dill, and crumbled feta.
Equipment
Buy Now → Notes
Make sure to dry the chickpeas thoroughly before sauteing them. Eliminating as much moisture as possible will ensure that they get perfectly crispy and crunchy.
After you add the spices to the pan, be sure to watch the chickpeas closely so they don’t burn. These zesty little beans can go from crispy to burnt real quick, so stir them frequently after you’ve coated them in the spices.
Creamy Dill Yogurt Sauce really makes this dish shine. The cool, creamy sauce really balances out the crisp, spiced garbanzo beans. You can buy tzatziki at the store if you’re in a pinch but my homemade creamy yogurt sauce is suuuuuuper easy and tastes fresher than fresh!
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 gyro
- Calories: 161
- Sugar: 0 g
- Sodium: 312.1 mg
- Fat: 9.3 g
- Carbohydrates: 15.6 g
- Fiber: 5.1 g
- Protein: 5.6 g
- Cholesterol: 0 mg
I’m excited to make this. In one of your pictures there’s what looks like a chickpea salad with artichokes and maybe couscous. Do you have that recipe anywhere?
Love the flavor of this recipe!
Alternate cooking method- we airfry ours for 15 min. @ 170 and they come out great.
I’d had this recipe tabbed up on my computer for quite some time and I finally made them- YES. WOW. YUM. 10/10. Can’t wait to make them again.
So delicious! Great recipe. Thank you for sharing!
My usually-carnivorous family ate these up! So fast and easy and delicious!
I made this today because wanted to make something different with chickpeas..This was easy and delicious..I didn’t make the Tzaziki sauce I used Trader Jo’s Tzaziki vegan sauce..which by the way is delicious but the seasoning for the chickpeas were perfect..I will defientlly be making this again.
The best!! Very clean and fresh tasting. I make my own chickpeas.
This was SOOOO delicious! I don’t know what I did wrong, but my chickpeas weren’t crunchy. I pressed them gently for awhile until a towel was pretty wet, but they still didn’t get crunchy in the pan and I was afraid of burning them.
Excellent recipe. Fast, easy and delicious.
Such a delicious recipe! That yoghurt sauce was absolutely amazing and super fresh, will definitely be making this dish again! Thank you for this great recipe
Made this tonight and it was delicious and so simple!!! So glad I found this recipe, will definitely be making it again.
I made the gyros as well as the yogurt sauce and absolutely loved it! Thank you for sharing this tasty meal that I can feel good about eating.
DELICIOUS. The dill yogurt sauce was lick-the-bowl tasty. The best part is you can use your extra veggies for a side salad, so the ingredients don’t go to waste!
Delicious and easy dinner! I made the gyros with all the fixings, including the yogurt sauce. The whole family liked them. Thank you for the meal inspiration!
That yogurt sauce is the cherry on top with these chickpea gyros! So glad your family enjoyed them, Summer. Thanks for leaving a review!!