CHICKPEA AND SCRIMP SALAD

Chickpea and scrimp salad is a fresh and tasty appetizer, perfect for the summer season. You can also arrange it in small glasses or buffet saucers, so as to serve it as a delicious finger food. It is prepared in a very short time and, in case you want something healthy, light, but complete from a nutritional point of view, you can also enjoy it as a single dish for a lunch by the sea or in the office: simply accompany it with a few slices of toasted bread, a boiled potato or a handful of white rice. You can enrich it with your favorite aromatic herbs, spices to taste, diced ripe avocado and yogurt dressing (or homemade mayonnaise). If you have little time available, you can use chickpeas already boiled and stored in glass jars: in this way they will be ready in just ten minutes.

INGREDIENTS:

300 g. Shrimp.
150 g. Dried chickpeas.
2 Celery stalks.
1 Radish.
1 Tuft parsley.
1/2  Lemon juice.
Extra virgin olive oil to taste.
Salt to taste.
Black pepper to taste.

PREPARATION:

Soak the dried chickpeas the night before with water and a pinch of baking soda. The following morning, rinse the chickpeas well, pour them into a large saucepan and cover with cold water; salt and cook for about 40 minutes starting from the boil. Once cooked, drain and leave to cool ①. In the meantime, carefully clean the prawns by removing the head and carapace. Cook them in a saucepan in boiling water for about 2 minutes; drain them and leave them to cool ②.

Clean the celery, cut it into slices and transfer them together with the chickpeas into a salad bowl ③. Add the prawns, the chopped parsley and the radish, cut into thin slices. Separately prepare an emulsion based on oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper, then pour it into the salad bowl ④.

Mix thoroughly, plate and serve ⑤.

ADVICE

The chickpea and prawn salad can be modified or enriched with what you like best. For example, you can replace radishes with cherry tomatoes, celery with courgettes and prawns with smoked salmon. If, on the other hand, you want the vegetarian version, try it with Greek feta cheese or diced tofu.

For this recipe, it is not essential to use dried chickpeas. If you have little time available, you can prepare the salad with pre- cooked chickpeas and preferably preserved in glass jars. Simply drain and rinse them under running cold water before adding them to all the other ingredients.

In addition to being served as an appetizer or main course, this salad is perfect as a condiment for pasta, couscous or already boiled quinoa.

STORAGE

You can store chickpea and prawn salad in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 2-3 days.