Vegan Chickpea Meatloaf

Name: Vegan Chickpea Meatloaf (Gluten-Free Option)
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 55 min
Total time: 115 min
Ingredients: 1 ½ cups cooked wild rice; 1 small onion, chopped; 8 ounces baby bella or white button mushrooms, roughly chopped; 6 cloves garlic, minced; 1 small bunch green kale, stems removed, chopped; 2 teaspoons poultry seasoning blend; 1 teaspoon dried thyme (or 2 Tbsp chopped fresh thyme); ½ teaspoon smoked paprika; 2 (15 oz) cans chickpeas, rinsed, drained and patted dry (or 3 ¼ cups cooked chickpeas); ¾ cup raw walnut halves (or ⅔ cup raw sunflower seeds for nut-free.); 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar (or 1 ½ Tbsp apple cider vinegar); 3 tablespoons tamari (or soy sauce if not GF); 1 teaspoon fine sea salt; ½ to 1 teaspoon black pepper; ¼ cup flour such as spelt or whole wheat or chickpea or rice flour (for GF); 1 to 2 tablespoons vegan worcestershire ((not GF)); 1 to 2 tablespoons reduced, good quality balsamic vinegar (tap for recipe); equal parts tamari and maple syrup

Updated: 10/01/2023 · Author: Lori Rasmussen · This post may contain affiliate links

This vegan chickpea meatloaf is wonderfully hearty, wholesome, and packed with satisfying texture and flavor. Made with mushrooms, kale, walnuts, and wild rice, this festive chickpea loaf is a beautiful centerpiece for your holiday table and a healthy dinner any time of year! This healthy vegan meatloaf recipe is gluten-free and oil-free, whole-food plant-based (WFPB) and can also be made without nuts.

Two slices cut from a hearty chickpea meatloaf resting on a serving platter.

Why You'll Love It

This chickpea meatloaf is exactly the kind of main course I think of when I'm craving a home-cooked, whole-food, plant-based recipe for a special occasion.

It's packed with umami thanks to mushrooms, walnuts, and tamari, and it's not a mushy loaf, either! The chickpeas, wild rice, nuts, and mushrooms contribute varying textures and make it so satisfying.

This chickpea loaf is also gluten-free, depending on your choice of flour, made with nutritious ingredients, and easy to prepare.

Jump to:

Why You'll Love It
Ingredients
How To Make Chickpea Meatloaf
Optional Glaze
Rest Before Slicing
Serving Suggestions
Equipment Needed
How to Store Chickpea Meatloaf
Top Tip
You Might Like
Recipe
💬 Comments

Ingredients

Here's a quick overview of the ingredients you'll need.

Chickpeas - for simplicity, the recipe is written to use 2 (15 oz) cans of chickpeas, approximately 3 ¼ cups cooked chickpeas.
Wild Rice - you'll need 1 ½ cups of cooked wild rice. Prepare it in advance to save time.
Mushrooms - cremini, white button, or shiitake mushrooms are all great in this loaf.
Kale - I prefer regular curly kale in this recipe, but lacinato (Tuscan) kale is also an option.
Poultry Seasoning - this herb blend usually contains a combination of sage, thyme, onion, black pepper, marjoram, and celery seed. Make your own with this recipe for poultry seasoning.
Smoked Paprika - if you don't have smoked paprika feel free to omit it, or use regular, sweet paprika instead.
Walnuts - they add nice crunch and texture. For a nut-free option, raw sunflower seeds are great, or for a lower fat option, substitute ⅓ cup rolled oats.
Thyme - either fresh or dried.
Flour - this helps with binding. For WFPB diets, spelt or whole wheat are good choices. For gluten-free, use chickpea flour, rice flour, or a gluten-free flour blend.

See the recipe card below for amounts and full instructions.

How To Make Chickpea Meatloaf

Though this isn't a quick recipe, it's actually very easy to prepare! It breaks down into 4 basic steps: saute the veggies, process/chop the ingredients, combine, and bake the loaf.

2 photos showing sautéing vegetables for the loaf.

Sauté the onion and mushrooms until soft, about 10 minutes. Add the garlic, thyme, poultry seasoning, and paprika, and cook for another minute. Season with a pinch of salt and pepper.
Add the chopped kale to the pan, and cook until dark green and wilted, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat.

a 3-photo collage showing how to process the chickpea mixture.

In a large food processor pulse the chickpeas, walnuts, vinegar, tamari, salt, pepper, and flour just until chunky (about 7 or 8 pulses). Transfer to a large mixing bowl. Now add the sautéed vegetables to the food processor, and pulse just 5 or 6 times until the kale is shredded. Add the veggies to the mixing bowl.
Stir to combine the chickpea mixture and vegetables. Then stir in the cooked wild rice.
Transfer the mixture to a parchment lined loaf pan (see Equipment Notes below), and press down firmly so the mixture is compact. Bake in a preheated 375 degree oven for 40 to 45 minutes.

Optional Glaze

If you plan to serve the chickpea loaf with vegan gravy or cranberry sauce you may prefer to skip the glaze, but it's very easy to prepare and does look nice.

To add a glaze: at the 30-minute mark, remove the loaf from the oven and brush the top with your choice of vegan worcestershire (not gluten-free), balsamic glaze, or a combination of tamari and maple syrup.

Again, the glaze is totally optional and mostly for appearance. If you're a fan of balsamic vinegar, try this raisin-balsamic reduction. It only takes a few minutes to prepare and the flavor pairs nicely with the ingredients in this vegan loaf.

chunky vegan meatloaf filled with chickpeas, wild rice, and veggies on a white platter.

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Rest Before Slicing

This recipe is made with all gluten-free, whole-food ingredients (unless you use wheat flour). This means that it is naturally more fragile when you first remove it from the oven.

So it's important to let the loaf rest and cool for about 20 minutes before lifting it from the pan. Then let it cool for another 15 minutes before slicing.

Serving Suggestions

Chickpea meatloaf is delicious anytime, though it also makes a lovely main course for special occasions and holidays like Thanksgiving and Christmas.

Pair it with your favorite vegan appetizers, sides, and desserts. Here are some of our favorites:

Equipment Needed

A large food processor is important for the recipe. It's the easiest way to chop the ingredients uniformly. I use this 14 cup model by Cuisinart.

I used an 8.5-inch by 5-inch glass loaf pan (1.5 quart) during recipe testing. Glass, ceramic, or metal are all fine. If using a metal pan cook time will be reduced by a few minutes.

Note: If you use a 9x5 inch pan the loaf will be shorter and cook more quickly. So keep an eye on it during the last 5 to 10 minutes.

How to Store Chickpea Meatloaf

Store leftover chickpea meatloaf in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Reheat individual servings in a microwave or in a non-stick pan on the stovetop.

I haven't tried freezing the loaf yet, but all of these ingredients are freezer-friendly, so I suspect it will freeze well. We can't help but finish up the leftovers over the course of a few days!

Top Tip

It's important not to over-process the ingredients in the food processor, since the varying textures and chunky pieces of walnuts and chickpeas are part of what makes the loaf so enjoyable. But you also don't want pieces of veggies, beans, and nuts to be too large. Refer to the process photos above for help.

You Might Like

I hope you enjoy the chickpea meatloaf as much as we do! If you try the recipe be sure to comment below and give it a star rating to let us know how it turned out!

Recipe

two slices of chickpea meatloaf with glaze resting on parchment paper.

Vegan Chickpea Meatloaf (Gluten-Free Option)

Author: Lori Rasmussen, My Quiet Kitchen

This vegan chickpea meatloaf is hearty, wholesome, and full of flavor and texture. With mushrooms, kale, walnuts, and wild rice, it's a beautiful centerpiece for the holiday season. Gluten-free and oil-free, whole-food plant-based (WFPB) with a nut-free option.

Serves 5 to 7 people, depending on side dishes and appetites.

5 from 18 votes

Servings: servings

Prep Time: 20

Cook Time: 55

Resting time: 40

Total Time: 1 55

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Equipment

Ingredients

1 ½ cups cooked wild rice
1 small onion, chopped
8 ounces baby bella or white button mushrooms, roughly chopped
6 cloves garlic, minced
1 small bunch green kale, stems removed, chopped
2 teaspoons poultry seasoning blend
1 teaspoon dried thyme - or 2 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
½ teaspoon smoked paprika
2 (15 oz) cans chickpeas, rinsed, drained and patted dry - or 3 ¼ cups cooked chickpeas
¾ cup raw walnut halves - or ⅔ cup raw sunflower seeds for nut-free.
2 tablespoons white wine vinegar - or 1 ½ tablespoon apple cider vinegar
3 tablespoons tamari - or soy sauce if not GF
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
½ to 1 teaspoon black pepper
¼ cup flour such as spelt or whole wheat or chickpea or rice flour (for GF)

Optional Glaze (select 1 of the following):

1 to 2 tablespoons vegan worcestershire - (not GF)
1 to 2 tablespoons reduced, good quality balsamic vinegar - tap for recipe
equal parts tamari and maple syrup

Instructions

If you haven't already, cook wild rice according to package instructions, then set aside. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F, and line a 1.5 Qt. loaf pan with parchment paper (this makes it easy to lift the loaf out of the pan after cooking).
Preheat a large saute pan over medium heat. Dry sauté the onion and mushrooms until softened, about 10 minutes. Add the garlic, poultry seasoning, thyme, and paprika, and cook for another minute, stirring frequently. Season with a pinch of salt and pepper.
Add the chopped kale to the pan, and cook until dark green and wilted, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat.
In a large food processor pulse the chickpeas, walnuts, vinegar, tamari, salt, pepper, and flour just until chunky (about 7 or 8 pulses). Transfer to a large mixing bowl. Now add the sautéed vegetables to the food processor, and pulse just 5 or 6 times or until the kale is shredded. Transfer the veggies to the mixing bowl.
Stir to combine the chickpea mixture and vegetables, then stir in the cooked wild rice.
Spoon the mixture into the prepared pan, and use a large spoon or spatula to firmly and evenly press it down into the pan. Bake for 30 minutes. If adding a glaze on top, brush that on now. Return the loaf to the oven and bake for another 10 to 15 minutes or until the top edges are golden and the center of the loaf is hot and only slightly soft when pressed. *Total bake time is about 45 minutes.*
Let the loaf rest in the pan for about 20 minutes, then lift out by the parchment paper onto a cutting board or platter. Allow to cool for another 15 to 20 minutes, then slice and serve.

Notes

Tips

Try not to over-process the ingredients in the food processor. This chickpea meatloaf is especially hearty and rustic thanks to the varying textures, so you don't want to turn it into a puree. Refer to the process photos above for proper texture.

This recipe is made with gluten-free, whole-food ingredients (unless you use wheat flour). So it will be more fragile than a veggie loaf with gluten or other binders, especially right out of the oven. This is why it's important to let it rest before serving.

Storage

Store leftover chickpea meatloaf in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days or freeze for up to 2 months (thaw overnight in the fridge). Reheat individual servings in a microwave or in a non-stick pan on the stove.