This Mediterranean Quinoa Salad is a stunning recipe. This chickpea salad combines all of my favorite flavors together in one scrumptious dish! Mouthwatering Mediterranean flavors like kalamata olives, crisp cucumbers, juicy tomatoes and more!
You are going to first prepare the quinoa per the instructions on the dry quinoa package. Typically, it involves 1 cup of quinoa and 2 cups of water. Then you usually bring to a boil, reduce heat or remove from heat, cover with a lid and let it steam. If your package doesn’t have easy instructions, you open up a google page and give it a search.
While your quinoa is cooking you can prepare a large bowl with your fresh ingredients. In that bowl, add in the kalamata olives, cherry tomatoes, cucumber, parsley, red onion, bell pepper and cooked chickpeas.
Combine the cooked quinoa and the bowl of fresh ingredients. Give the ingredients a big stir to combine.
Take that fresh lemon juice and drizzle it onto the quinoa salad. Stir the ingredients to blend well.
Next up, you are going to whip together the easy homemade salad dressing. Combine your oil of choice with some white wine vinegar and some salt and pepper! Whisk to combine and drizzle onto the salad!
ENJOY!
Notes
Ingredient Substitutes for Chickpea Quinoa Salad
Not loving some of the ingredients in this recipe? I understand! Check out some of these easy subs!
Sub Zucchini for Cucumber (sometimes cucumbers get soggy)
Sub in or add Snap Peas
Meat eater? Add sardines or anchovies for meat eaters
Love cheese? Add in Gorgonzola or Feta
Love herbs? Add in some fresh fill!
Tips on how to cook quinoa properly
Rinse quinoa before using
Use proper ratio of dry quinoa to water when cooking (1 cup quinoa to 2 cups water)
Use a fork to fluff
Use a rice cooker (if available)
How long will Mediterranean Quinoa Salad keep?
This salad recipe will keep for 2-3 days in the fridge! Just put into an airtight container and you are set! Because this recipe keeps for a few days, it makes it a great option for lunch prep! Make this ahead of time and then your lunch is ready for days!