This zesty quinoa chickpea salad is fresh, flavourful and filling. It's packed with veggies and is great for a tasty healthy lunch.
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I've been a fan of quinoa for years! And one of my favourite ways to use it is by adding it to a salad. Whether it's a Halloumi Quinoa Salad or a Kale and Quinoa Salad I love adding this nutty-tasting seed to my salads.
I've been making this quinoa salad for years! The minute the weather starts warming up I'm in salad mode and this is the first salad recipe I turn to. It's full of flavour and is really filling, which makes it great for lunches!
Why You'll Love This Recipe
- It's so easy to make - there is hardly any cooking in this recipe, this is a real throw it all together kind of salad. Perfect for when you're busy!
- So much flavour! It's lemony, herby, salty and crunchy! My kind of salad!
- Great for making ahead - this is perfect for prepping ahead and having it for lunch all week! You don't have to have it every day but it does keep really well and is perfect for taking to work!
Ingredients Needed
- Quinoa - I used tricolour quinoa for this recipe but you can use plain if you like.
- Chickpeas - I use canned chickpeas, they're quick and easy. But you can use dried chickpeas if you want. Just cook them the day before, they will need to be cold for this salad.
- Raw Veggies - I use a mix of cucumber, celery, red onion, cherry tomatoes, courgette (zucchini) and avocado.
- Feta - the creaminess adds a lovely texture to this salad along with some saltiness. Look for a good quality Greek feta if you can.
- Almonds - chopped almonds add the crunch to this salad. You can use other nuts if you like, walnuts or pistachios work really well too.
- Other Ingredients - you will also need the following, fresh lemon, extra virgin olive oil, coriander (cilantro), garlic and salt and pepper.
How To Make Quinoa Chickpea Salad
1. Cook the quinoa - follow the packet instructions to cook the quinoa and leave it to cool.
2. Chop the veggies - chop all the veggies (except the avocado), then add them to a large serving bowl along with the chickpeas and garlic. Toss well.
3. Add the avocado and feta - gently toss the avocado, almonds, feta and coriander into the veggies.
4. Add the quinoa - Finally, add the quinoa, lemon juice, extra virgin olive oil, salt and freshly ground pepper and add the lemon juice. Toss well and serve.
Top Tips
- To get the best fluffy quinoa, once cooked leave the quinoa to sit in the pan covered for 10 - 15 minutes. This will dry out the quinoa. Then fluff it up with a fork.
- To get more flavour in your quinoa add half a vegetable stock cube when it's cooking.
- Ditch the dressing! As you will see there is no dressing as such for this recipe. There are so many flavours in this that I really feel it doesn't need a proper dressing.
- This is even better the next day, so cover it and pop it in the fridge and enjoy it cold! All the flavours merge together when you let this sit for a while.
Storage and Making Ahead Tips
- Store the finished salad in an airtight container in the fridge and use it within 3 days. You can store the salad in individual containers for lunches if you like.
- You can make the quinoa the day before if you like. You can also prep the veggies and have them ready to go.
Variations & Substitutions
- This is a very versatile salad, you can switch up the veggies and add more in if you like. We sometimes like to add in baby spinach, kalamata olives or raw peppers.
- If you don't like quinoa you can make this salad with couscous, bulgur wheat or even pasta!
- Don't like chickpeas? Swap them for black beans or edamame beans.
- Want to make it vegan? Just ditch the feta!
More Quinoa Recipes To Try
If like me, you love quinoa then here are some of my favourite quinoa recipes. These Quinoa Stuffed Peppers are so tasty and great for lunch or a light dinner. This Quinoa Lentil Salad is super fresh and great as a main or as a side dish. Finally, this Avocado Quinoa Salad with crispy chickpeas is perfect for when the weather heats up.
Quinoa Chickpea Salad
Ingredients
- 100 g / ⅔ of a cup of quinoa (dry weight)
- 1 x 400 g can of chickpeas (240g drained weight) / 1½ cups
- ½ a medium red onion finely chopped
- ½ a large English cucumber chopped
- 1 stalk of celery chopped
- 10 cherry tomatoes cut into quarters
- 1 small courgette (zucchini) chopped
- ½ a large avocado peeled, seed removed and chopped
- A small handfull of coriander (cilantro) chopped
- 90 g / 3oz feta cut into cubes
- 15 almonds roughly chopped
- 25 ml /⅛ of a cup of extra virgin olive oil
- ½ a large lemon, the juice of
- ½ tsp sea salt
- ¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper
- ½ a vegetable stock cube optional
Instructions
- Cook the quinoa. Add the dry quinoa to a saucepan cover with water and add the stock cube if using. Bring the water to a boil then reduce to a slow simmer and cover. Cook until all the water has evaporated.Turn off the heat and leave the quinoa to cool in the saucepan with the lid on for 15 minutes. Take the lid off then fluff it up with a fork. Leave the quinoa to cool.
- Add all the chopped vegetables, except the avocado, to a large serving bowl along with the chickpeas and garlic. Toss well.
- Add the avocado, coriander, almonds and feta to the vegetables and gently toss.Finally, add the quinoa, lemon juice, extra virgin olive oil, salt and freshly ground pepper and add the lemon juice. Toss well and serve.
Notes
- Quinoa - I used a tri-colour quinoa but plain quinoa works just as well. Leaving the cooked quinoa to sit in the pan covered for 10 - 15 minutes will help dry out the quinoa. Fluffing the quinoa with a fork will help separate the quinoa. I also add half a vegetable stock cube when the quinoa is cooking, this gives it more flavour.
- Storage/MakingAhead - Store the finished salad in an airtight container in the fridge and use it within 3 days. You can store the salad in individual containers for lunches if you like. You can make the quinoa the day before if you like. You can also prep the veggies and have them ready to go.
- Nutritional Information - is calculated using an online nutrition tool and is approximate.
- Weights and measurements - For US readers, I use Cuisipro measuring cups and spoons, and a Pyrex measuring jug for liquids. These are the industry standard. Cup/spoon volumes can differ from brand to brand, for accuracy, I recommend weighing all ingredients if possible for best results.
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