A vibrant summer salad brimming with the season’s freshest vegetables and quinoa, with a simple, no-fuss dressing. Instead of mixing the dressing separately, the ingredients are added straight into the salad for maximum ease and flavor. Use crisp, fresh produce and high-quality olive oil for the best results.
A quick-to-make favorite in our home, this salad is both hearty and wonderfully satisfying.
Mediterranean quinoa salad
Ingredients
- 1 Cup Quinoa
- 1 Can Chickpeas drained and rinsed
- 1 English cucumber
- 1 Red pepper
- 2 Green pepper chopped i
- 1/2 Red onion medium sized
- 2 Handfuls Arugula optional
- 4 Tbsp Fresh parsley or parsley and dill, chopped finely
- 2 Tbsp Feta or Goat cheese crumbled
- 1 Lemon not a lime
- Salt to taste
- Crushed black pepper to taste
- 2-3 Tbsp Olive oil
- 1 Tsp Za’atar seasoning
- 1 Tbsp Preserved lemon finely chopped, Optional
Instructions
- Cook the quinoa in a rice cooker, or on the stove top as per package instructions.
- Spread the cooked quinoa in a wide salad bowl to cool.
- Meanwhile, chop the cucumber, red pepper, green pepper, and onion into small bite sized pieces, about 1/2” thick. Just make sure all the veggies are the same size.
- Once the quinoa has cooled to room temperature, lightly fluff it up with a fork.
- Add the chopped veggies, preserved lemon (if using), chickpeas, and Za’atar to the quinoa and mix together.
- Next, add the juice of half a lemon, salt, crushed black pepper, and the chopped herbs (reserve some herbs for garnish) and toss together.
- Add the arugula and cheese and mix gently, reserving some cheese for garnish.
- Taste the salad and adjust the seasoning and acidity.
- Chill for half an hour before serving garnished with the remaining cheese and herbs.
Notes
- You can use any mix of peppers, though I like to make sure there are at least two colors of pepper for a vibrant salad.
- You can switch out the garbanzo beans for fresh cooked corn kernels, or any other combination of cooked beans.
- The salad tastes extra refreshing, chilled for a few hours or overnight. But, in that case, add the arugula and cheese before serving, or you will have a lot of cheesy liquid at the bottom of the bowl and soggy lettuce.