Mediterranean Chickpea Salad

Need a delicious lunch or a side dish for a party in 10 minutes?! This Mediterranean Chickpea Salad is made especially for you. This healthy recipe is full of flavor, high in protein and perfect to meal prep for the week.

Chickpea salads were one of the first recipes I added into my diet when I started to dip my toes into the whole-food diet based world. They taste good, they’re incredibly easy to make and one of the few types of salads that are actually satiating.

This vegan mediterranean chickpea salad is full of flavor, contrasting textures, fresh herbs, protein, optional feta cheese (or dairy free feta!)for richness, and actually gets better as it ages so it’s perfect for meal prep.

However, most Mediterranean salads are going to have kalamata olives. I left them out of this one because well, I hate them (!), but they do add extra flavor and some saltiness. They are written into the recipe, but feel free to add or subtract any ingredients that you don’t like, including the olives.

That’s the great thing about salads, you can really toss in or leave out whatever you do or don’t like.

Key Ingredients

Chickpeas. I used canned chickpeas because it makes life so much easier, but you are welcome to use chickpeas cooked from scratch! You will need 1 1/2 cups of cooked chickpeas for every 1 can./

Tomatoes. I used small grape tomatoes, but cherry tomatoes also work or even heirloom tomatoes chopped small if they’re in season!

Cucumber. You’ll need about 1/2 large cucumber for one batch of this salad.

Red Onion. Red onion adds a lot of flavor and color to this salad, but if you only have white or yellow onion, that will be fine as well!

Bell Pepper. You can easily leave this out and sub for more tomatoes, but it adds a nice crunch to the salad that I love.

Olives. Ok, I’ll be honest, olives are not my favorite, so I usually leave them out, but I had to include them in the ingredient list because they’re a staple in so many Mediterranean recipes!

Olive oil vinaigrette. The dressing for this salad is made with a base of olive oil, plus red wine vinegar, lemon juice, garlic, salt and pepper. Simple but SO good!

Fresh Basil & Parsley. What’s a salad without fresh herbs? The basil and parsley in this recipe add so much flavor. I usually add extra basil and go light on the parsley, but you can customize to your own liking!

Instructions

To make this recipe, all you need to do is drain and rinse the chickpeas and add them a bowl with all the chopped/diced veggies.

Next, whisk the ingredients for the dressing together in a bowl and pour on top of the salad. The dressing is a simple vinaigrette made with a base of olive oil, red wine vinegar, lemon juice and garlic for tons of flavor.

I like to use this salad dressing shaker to make sure everything is well incorporated. Mix well so everything is well coated. I like to add some extra basil on top, but this is totally optional.

This recipe is perfect for a school or work lunch, or a summer beach trip.

FAQ’s

How should I serve this? You can serve this salad exactly as prepared as a complete lunch on its own, toss it with more greens, with a side of pita and hummus, or as a side at a summer get together. While this recipe doesn’t call for avocado, I love adding some on top of this salad. The creaminess of the avocado mixed with the crunchiness of the cucumber and tang of the lemon pairs really well together.

Do you need to cook canned chickpeas? No! Canned chickpeas are already cooked so all you need to do is drain and rinse them really well which makes this a super easy salad to put together.

It’s perfect at room temperature, so no need to refrigerate before serving, but I do find the flavors only get better with time so it’s great to prep in advance.

What’s the difference between chickpeas and garbanzo beans? In case you didn’t know, chickpeas are the same as garbanzo beans, so if you see a container labeled garbanzo beans and not chickpeas, that’s exactly what you’re looking for! I don’t know why they’re called chickpeas, but it’s a cute name, so I’ll take it.

Do I need to rinse chickpeas? Yes! Make sure you wash the chickpeas really well before combining them with the rest of the ingredients. This will help prevent gas associated with eating beans.

Does it keep? This mediterranean chickpea salad will keep in the fridge for about 5 days. You’ll know it’s gone bad when the chickpeas start to smell. Trust me, it’s a smell you can’t miss!

Try these recipes next

• Chickpea ‘Tuna’ Salad Sandwich
• Mexican Three Bean Salad
• Heirloom Tomato Cucumber Salad
• Asian Edamame Crunch Salad

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