These Vegan Pita Bread Sandwiches with Harissa White Beans are quick and easy. The pita is filled with a super flavorful harissa white bean filling and plenty of veggies!
Easy and portable lunch recipes are key for my life. I'm often on the go, at work or busy working from home when lunchtime rolls around. So, I often just heat up some leftovers or throw whatever I have laying around into a big salad bowl. But, sometimes I don't have any leftovers and I need to whip something up really quick. And this Pita Bread Sandwich with Harissa White Beans is the perfect solution for those days.
What is Harissa?
Harissa is a Moroccan chili paste. It is full of flavor from chilis, garlic, olive oil and spices like coriander and cumin. Its smoky, a little spicy and full of flavor. And it gives the vegan white bean pita filling for this pita bread sandwich SO much flavor with minimal effort.
My grocery store has a few options for Harissa. The two brands I often purchase are Entube and Mina. These harissas are quite different from each other.
Entube is more of a spice paste while Mina is more of a fresh sauce. Both varieties of harissa work perfectly and make a delicious vegan pita filling. But you will use a slightly different amount based on the type of harissa you buy.
How to Make Harissa White Bean Pita Filling
This harissa white bean filling for this pita bread sandwich only takes about 10 minutes to whip together!
First, sauté the harissa in a little olive oil for about 1 minute. This bring out the flavors in the harissa. If you skip this step, the flavors will not be as well rounded, so don't skip it!
Then, add the drained white beans and cook until they are warm.
Thats it! Now pile then into your pita bread sandwich and eat.
Other than the harissa white beans, I like to use hummus, tabbouleh and plenty of veggies as fillings for the pita bread. My favorite veggies to add to this Pita Bread Sandwich are kale or lettuce, sliced cucumber and bell pepper.
This recipe can also easily be made gluten free. Instead of making it into a pita bread sandwich, wrap it all up in a gluten free wrap. The brand Seite makes a few varieties to choose from.
Since creating this Pita Bread Sandwich with Harissa White Beans recipe I've made them so many times both for lunch and dinner. My husband loves them because they are slightly spicy and have a ton of flavor. So if you're ready to jazz up your work lunch or fast dinner without spending a lot of time in the kitchen, here's the recipe:
Pita Bread Sandwich with Harissa White Beans
Equipment
- Skillet
- Cutting Board
- Knife
Ingredients
- 1 ½ tsp Olive Oil
- 1 ½ tsp Harissa Paste see note
- ¼ teaspoon Garlic Powder
- 1 15 oz Can of White Beans ( I used Navy beans) drained + rinsed
- 1 ½ tsp Lemon Juice
Toppings
- 3 Pitas
- ½ Cup Hummus
- Sliced Cucumber
- Sliced Tomato
- Tabbouleh or chopped lettuce
Instructions
- Heat a sauté pan over medium high heat. Once the pan is hot, add olive oil, harissa and garlic powder and cook, stirring constantly for 1 minute.
- Add the beans and stir to coat. Sauté the beans stirring occasionally for 2-3 minutes.
- Add lemon juice and stir, then remove from heat.
- To make the pita sandwiches, either cut the pitas in half to make pockets OR slice along the the top of the pitas to make a roll up. Then, spread each with about of hummus, and line the bottom with tabbouleh or greens, then cucumber slices and tomatoes. Then add the harissa white beans and enjoy!
Let me know how you liked this recipe and if there is anything you want to see me make next!
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