🫒🧀😋 This Mediterranean Quinoa Salad is ready in 20 minutes with Mediterranean-inspired ingredients, including chickpeas, Kalamata olives, artichokes, and goat cheese, to give layers of flavor and texture in every bite! It’s naturally gluten-free and vegetarian, too!
Mediterranean-Inspired Quinoa and Chickpea Salad
I love a good quinoa salad and always feel so healthy when I’m eating one.
- This quinoa salad is easy, ready in 20 minutes, and chock full of Mediterranean-inspired ingredients, including chickpeas, artichoke hearts, black Kalamata olives, and goat cheese.
- I also added fresh spinach to amp up the green level, red onion for a flavor boost, and lemon juice and apple cider vinegar to give the quinoa salad some tangy zest!
- Mix and match different ingredients to suit your preferences and use up any items you have on hand, and make an extra-large batch for meal prep.
Love Mediterranean flavors?
This Mediterranean Cobb salad is easy, healthy, accidentally vegetarian, ready in 15 minutes, and you can easily scale the recipe up if you’re making it for a larger group! And my Mediterranean baked crispy chicken and pasta is sure to impress everyone with its next-level flavors.
Ingredients in Mediterranean Quinoa Salad
This flexible quinoa salad recipe is made with everyday ingredients that you may likely have in your pantry and fridge.
To make this naturally gluten-free salad, you need to use:
- Extra virgin olive oil
- Veggies – Red onion, fresh spinach, and Artichoke hearts. I used one 15-ounce can of artichokes packed in water that I rinsed, drained, and quartered. If you have a Trader Joe’s in your area, I recommend their frozen artichoke hearts in a pale yellow bag; thaw and drain them, and use about 1 cup. I don’t recommend artichokes packed in oil for this recipe because I think it will make the overall quinoa salad taste greasy)
- Quinoa – It’s best to rinse quinoa before cooking to remove its natural coating, known as saponin, which can create a bitter taste
- Water
- Lemon juice
- Apple cider vinegar – Substitute red wine vinegar for a slightly different taste
- Chickpeas
- Kalamata olives
- Seasonings – Cardamom, kosher salt, and pepper
- Goat cheese (feta may be substituted) – The goat cheese is not absolutely necessary. If you’re trying to keep this vegetarian salad vegan, then go ahead and omit the cheese. Likewise, you can also substitute another type of cheese for the goat cheese, such as crumbled feta cheese, or even freshly grated Parmesan would be nice here. For me, cheese of most any flavor or type is always a great idea
Note: Scroll down to the recipe card section of the post for the ingredients with amounts included and for more complete directions.
How to Make Mediterranean Quinoa Salad
This quinoa and chickpea salad comes together in about 20 minutes and is hearty enough to enjoy as a main or as a side dish!
- Cook the onion in an oiled skillet until it softens.
- Add the dry quinoa to the skillet and toast for about 30 seconds before adding in the water, lemon juice, and apple cider vinegar.
- Cover and cook the quinoa, allowing it to simmer until all the liquid has been absorbed. All quinoa cooks slightly differently, and if during the cooking process your quinoa looks like it needs a bit more water in order to fully soften, feel free to add another one-quarter cup or so.
- Turn off the heat. Fluff the quinoa with a fork. Then, add the spinach and stir until it wilts before adding in drained chickpeas, artichokes, and black olives.
- Season with cardamom, salt, and pepper as desired. Add the goat cheese and gently toss to combine. Transfer to a large mixing bowl, and dig in! For me, the salad is great at any temperature. Serve it freshly made and warm, or serve it at room temperature. You can also let it cool completely and serve it chilled straight from the refrigerator. Your choice!
Tip!
If you want to keep the hunks of goat cheese more intact, as shown in the photos, and not have it melt into the quinoa, wait until the quinoa cools a bit before adding the cheese.
Recipe Variations to Try
As I mentioned above, this is a very flexible recipe. Try one or more of the following variations on this easy quinoa salad recipe:
- Add in some sliced almonds like I did in this Lemon and Sun-dried Tomato Quinoa Salad. Or, include pine nuts for a bit of crunch.
- Don’t have a red onion, but have white or yellow? Go for it.
- Leftover homemade poached chicken or a store-bought rotisserie chicken would amp up the protein content. Shrimp also tastes great! Or, try hard-boiled eggs.
- If you’re not a fan of olives, and I know they are a hotly contested food, just omit them.
- I love garbanzo beans and always have a can or more on hand, but another cooked white bean will work.
- Stir in fresh herbs like parsley, mint, or cilantro for a bright taste.
- Add extra veggies like red bell peppers, garlic, cherry tomatoes, etc.
How to Serve Chickpea Quinoa Salad
Mediterranean Quinoa Salad Recipe
Equipment
- 1 Large Skillet or Saucepan
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 medium red onion, diced small (white or yellow onion may be substituted)
- 1 cup dry uncooked quinoa, I used white; another color may be substituted
- 1 ½ cups water
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 2-3 cups fresh spinach, loosely packed (2 heaping handfuls)
- one 15-ounce can chickpeas, drained and rinsed (I use no-salt added)
- one 15-ounce can artichoke hearts*, drained and halved or quartered or 1 cup frozen that have been thawed and drained (See Notes)
- ⅔ cup pitted and drained black Kalamata olives, or as desired
- 1 teaspoon cardamom
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more to taste if desired
- ¾ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, or to taste
- 6 ounces goat cheese, crumbled (feta may be substituted)
Instructions
- To a large skillet or saucepan, add the olive oil, onion, and cook over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until onion has softened and just begun to barely brown, about 7 minutes.
- Add the quinoa and stir it into the onions and let it toast for about 30 seconds.
- Add the water, lemon juice, apple cider vinegar, reduce the heat to low, cover the pan, and cook for about 10 to 15 minutes, or until all liquid has been absorbed** (See Notes). While it’s simmering, prep and drain the remaining ingredients.
- When the quinoa is done, turn off the heat, add the spinach, and stir into the quinoa until it wilts, about 1 minute.
- Add the chickpeas, artichokes, olives, cardamom, salt, pepper, stir well to combine, and taste. If desired, add additional salt, pepper, cardamom, or for a tiny bit of heat, add a pinch of cayenne pepper.
- Add the goat cheese (wait until the quinoa has cooled if you don't want it to melt into the quinoa and disintegrate), stir to combine, and serve. Quinoa salad may be served warm and fresh, at room temp, or chilled straight from the fridge.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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More Easy Quinoa Salad Recipes:
Zesty Lemon and Sun-Dried Tomato Quinoa Salad — Fast, easy, and fresh! Bright flavors and loads of texture! This clean-eating salad keeps you full and satisfied! Healthy never tasted so good! (No mayo and great for outdoor events or lunch boxes!)
Butternut Squash Quinoa Salad — Easy and packed with big fall flavors! Maple syrup, squash, and cranberries were made for each other! Love it when healthy tastes so good!
Tomato, Mozzarella, and Basil Quinoa Salad (GF) — Trying to keep meals healthier and lighter? Make this easy, refreshing, and satisfying salad!
Garden Fresh Quinoa Salad – Loaded with everything fresh, light, healthy, and SUMMERY! Great for parties, potlucks, and lunch boxes because there’s no mayo!
Tabbouleh — Never had it? Think couscous or quinoa mixed with vegetables, herbs, lemon, and olive oil! Easy, no cooking required, healthy, and packed with so much flavor! (Great for outdoor events because there’s no mayo!)
Flavor Burst. Make it in 25 minutes.
5 star if I pressed correctly buttons. haha
Thanks for the 5 star review, Margaret, and I’m glad to hear this was a flavor burst and ready in 25 minutes for you!
great
I didn’t have cardamom so I substituted ginger, but it turned out DELICIOUS! A great way to lower my cholesterol and tasty too! Thank you! 😍🌹
I didn’t have cardamom so I substituted ginger, but it turned out DELICIOUS! A great way to lower my cholesterol and tasty too! Thank you! 😍🌹
Thanks for the 5 star review and glad this was delicious and that you were able to use ginger, too!
excellent recipe
excellent recipe
https://www.beckandbulow.com/lamb-koftas-recipe/
excellent recipe
Great