Chickpea Salad & Fizz

Creating a salad during your lunch break may take a little longer, but if you make the right salad for yourself, the benefits are worth the little extra time or effort you put in.

The Chickpea is one ingredient I wanted to incorporate in this salad, I wanted to see how it would taste with a glass of Sparkling Wine, a Chickpea has a noticeable taste, so I wondered if a Sparkling Wine could do anything to it, I guess we’ll see a little further down this article, but first the Chickpea…

The Cicer arietinum or more commonly know as the Chickpea, Chick Pea, Bengal gram, garbanzo, garbanzo bean, or Egyptian pea, depending on what country you’re in, is part of the Fabaceae Family, it’s high in protein and can come in different colours like black, red, green and brown.

The oldest record of its cultivation was 7500 years ago in the Middle East, the Chickpea was spread across the world and enjoyed by ancient civilisations such as Egypt, Greece and Rome. Nowadays India is the largest producer of Chickpeas, with it accounting for 66% of global production in 2018.

The Chickpea is enjoyed all over the world but it is most common in Indian, Mediterranean and Middle Eastern cuisine, it is used as an ingredient in such things as hummus and chana masala and is eaten in curry, soups and stews.

The Sparkling Wine – Kerin

Set within the Posavska Wine Region of Slovenia, Kerin produces a sparkling wine ‘Maria’ along with a selection of still wines, you can find them on their Facebook page.

Kerin – Penina Maria Brut 2016 Tasting Notes

Aroma – “Creamy green herbal and green fruit aromas.”

Flavour – “A soft expression of green fruits and citrus flavours.”

This Slovenian Sparkling Wine Won a Bronze Medal in the Light & Fruity Category at The World’s Finest Glass of Bubbly Awards 2020.

The Chickpea Salad

Ingredients

• Chickpeas
• Feta
• Tomatoes
• Cucumber
• Mint Leaves

Paring Notes – “A fresh and healthy expression of flavours with the mint leave subtly underlying the meal, the Sparkling Wine comes in with citrus and green fruit flavour, it boosts the mint flavours and knocks the dryness from the Chickpeas while leaving a light creaminess from the cheese.” – Oliver Walkey

Pairing Notes – “Mid-length expression from the wine showing dry golden fruit flavours that mellows to allow savoury chickpea in the close. Both are fresh and clean in style, nicely matched.” – Christopher Walkey