Mediterranean Chickpea Salad (10 Minutes)
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Mediterranean Chickpea Salad is a healthy, quick, easy summer salad packed with fresh and delicious ingredients. It’s a bright and nourishing dish ready in 10 minutes or less. Perfect for lunches, picnics, and gatherings all season!
Love Mediterranean salads? Try this Mediterranean Chopped Salad, or this 15-minute Mediterranean Salad with rows of deliciousness!
About This Recipe
Suppose you’re looking for a healthy and refreshing meal packed with flavor. In that case, you will love this Mediterranean chickpea salad-a delicious blending of fresh vegetables, chickpeas, and flavorful herbs, tossed with lemon vinaigrette.
You can serve this easy-to-make salad immediately or make it ahead and store it in the refrigerator. Perfect for quick and convenient meals, work and school lunches, picnics, potlucks, or as a dinner side dish with grilled meats or fish.
What to Love About Chickpea Salad
One of the things I love about this Mediterranean chickpea salad is its versatility. You can customize ingredients to suit your taste preferences and dietary needs.
If you’re vegetarian or vegan, you can eliminate the feta cheese or use a plant-based alternative. Alternatively, add a spicy kick by incorporating some chopped jalapenos or red pepper flakes.
You can also substitute other vegetables, such as avocado, carrots, or zucchini, to add more nutrients and texture.
If you love healthy, nourishing food, this salad is for you. Discover how this salad fits into the Mediterranean Diet, a simple yet wholesome lifestyle.
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Key Ingredients
This simple salad comes together with a handful of fresh, Mediterranean-inspired ingredients you may already have in your kitchen. Each one adds flavor, texture, and nutrition to make this dish both wholesome and satisfying.
- Olive Oil & Lemon Juice: A classic Mediterranean vinaigrette base, simple yet full of flavor.
- Chickpeas (Garbanzo Beans): The protein-rich base of the salad, hearty and satisfying, and a staple in the Mediterranean Diet.
- Cucumber: Adds a refreshing crunch and balances the other bold flavors.
- Cherry Tomatoes: Juicy and sweet, they provide brightness and color.
- Red Onion: Sharp and slightly sweet, giving the salad a flavorful bite.
- Bell Pepper: Crisp and colorful, adding natural sweetness and crunch.
- Feta Cheese: Creamy and tangy, it complements the chickpeas and veggies (easily omitted for a vegan option).
- Fresh Parsley: Brightens the salad and ties together the fresh flavors.
- Optional Kalamata Olives: Briny and savory, they bring authentic Mediterranean flavor.
How to Make Mediterranean Chickpea Salad
This chickpea salad takes me about 10 minutes to make, and sometimes, even quicker. One of the shortcuts I often use to prep this salad is an inexpensive vegetable chopper with a larger chopping grid. If you don’t have one handy, a quick chop with a kitchen knife also works.
Begin by chopping the cucumber, bell pepper, tomatoes, and red onion, and set aside.
Then, rinse the canned chickpeas and toss them with the remaining ingredients. Drizzle your favorite lemon vinaigrette over the top (use as much or as little as you prefer), and then toss with crumbled feta cheese and fresh herbs again. Season with salt and pepper to taste… and it’s ready!
Serving Mediterranean Chickpea Salad
Chickpea salad is so delicious and versatile that there are endless ways to serve it. Here are a few ideas:
- Light Lunch Salad: This salad is perfect for lunch at work and school. It keeps well and is easy to make ahead!
- Summer Side Dish: Perfect for grilling parties, patio dining, or a Greek night at home. I love to serve this healthy salad with Greek Chicken Souvlaki or Beef Kofta, a Lebanese Street Food. But it’s equally delicious with Lemon Chicken Thighs too!
- Pita: For a heartier meal, it’s delicious tucked inside a pita, too!
Recipe FAQs
The Mediterranean Chickpea Salad can be made ahead and refrigerated in an airtight container; the chickpeas and vegetables hold up well, but for the best texture and flavor, the salad is best eaten within 1-2 days.
Yes - you can omit the feta cheese in the Mediterranean Chickpea Salad (or substitute a plant-based feta) and the salad remains flavorful and satisfying thanks to the chickpeas, fresh veggies, and lemon vinaigrette.
The dressing for the Mediterranean Chickpea Salad is a simple lemon vinaigrette made with fresh lemon juice, olive oil, salt, and pepper - you can also use a store-bought vinaigrette if you're short on time.
Yes - the Mediterranean Chickpea Salad is quite flexible: you can substitute or add vegetables such as zucchini, carrots, avocado, or chopped bell pepper, and even mix in jalapeños or red pepper flakes for a bit of heat.
The Mediterranean Chickpea Salad can work either way: serve it as a side dish alongside grilled meat or fish, or turn it into a vegetarian main by serving it over greens, in a pita, or with a side of warm bread.
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Mediterranean Chickpea Salad (10 Minutes)
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 15-ounce cans chickpeas , drained and rinsed
- 1 English cucumber sliced or chopped
- 1 bell pepper diced
- 1/4 cup red onion chopped
- 2 cups cherry tomatoes , halved
- 1/2 cup olives , pitted and halved (optional)
- 4 oz feta cheese , crumbled
- 1/4 cup fresh herbs , chopped (like parsley, oregano, basil, or your favorite)
- Lemon Vinaigrette , tossed with salad
Instructions
- Add chickpeas, cucumber, bell pepper, red onion, and cherry tomatoes to a large mixing bowl.
- Pour lemon vinaigrette over the salad and toss gently. Sprinkle feta and fresh herbs over the salad, and give it one more gently stir.
- Transfer the salad to a large serving bowl and enjoy!
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Last Sunday my husband said he’d like a chickpea salad. That afternoon I opened my 31Daily email and found this recipe. Today (Friday) I am making it for the third time (this one is to share.) Delicious, easy, so very summery and satisfying. Thank you for this timely reicpe!
I’m so happy you enjoyed it and it arrived in your inbox just in time! I love that it’s so light and perfect for the season.
Simple ingredients easy preparation and so versatile loved the many ways you can serve this salad
Hi Christine! That’s one of the things I love about it too! I’m so glad you enjoyed it.
This recipe is simple and it’s elegant and it worked for me thank you
Thank you for trying the recipe, Mary! I’m so glad you enjoyed it.