Mediterranean Salad with Crispy Quinoa
on Apr 02, 2025
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There are so many reasons why this easy Mediterranean salad is a must-make recipe, but crispy quinoa tops the list. With sun-dried tomatoes, olives, cucumbers, chickpeas and feta, it is full of crunch and a mix of bold ingredients. This is a chopped salad that will keep you going back for more. Enjoy it as a main dish salad for lunch or dinner or pair it with soup or a sandwich to treat it like a side salad.
Table of Contents
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
What makes a great salad is the right mix of flavors, ingredients and crunch, and this one has it all. A base of chopped romaine is the starting point for additions like chickpeas, cucumbers and sun-dried tomatoes. Plus you also have the toasted quinoa.
If you’ve never had crispy quinoa, you can think of it like healthier version of breadcrumbs that’s super simple to make. You just have to toss cooked quinoa with a little olive oil, salt and pepper and toast it in the oven until it’s deep golden brown and crisp.
This is a spoonable chopped salad. I am a big fan of a salad you can eat with a spoon. There is so much you get in each bite when all the ingredients are chopped. That’s why these salads are one of my favorite ways to eat leafy greens.
The Ingredients
This is what you need:
For crispy quinoa
- Cooked quinoa: I like to cook the quinoa the night before so then I am ready to toast it and make the salad. It is important that the quinoa has cooled before you prep it. If you do simmer the quinoa and need it to cool quickly, spread it across a dinner plate.
- Olive oil, kosher salt & black pepper help the quinoa brown and give it flavor.
For salad
- Romaine lettuce is a chopped salad classic. I buy hearts of romaine because they are the tender, crisp inner leaves from a full head.
- Chickpeas: After I dump the can into a colander and rinse off the chickpeas, I pull off their skins. This is optional, but I do it for texture and appearance. You can substitute with white beans.
- Cucumbers: You should use an English cucumber or Persian cucumbers. Their skin is more delicate, and they have less seeds than regular ones.
- Kalamata olives: Buy pitted olives. Then slice them in half for the salad. Whole olives will be too big and throw off the scale of the other chopped ingredients.
- Sun-dried tomatoes: I get a jar of tomatoes that are packed in oil, so they are already hydrated. Use a fork to take them out, so you leave the oil behind. Then chop them. If it is summer and fresh veggies are at their peak, swap with halved cherry tomatoes.
- Red onions give the salad a sharp accent. Finely chop them. Then they end up distributed throughout the greens and the rest of the ingredients.
- Feta: I like the salty taste of crumbled feta, but you can make substitutions. Parmesan cheese, goat cheese, blue cheese and torn fresh mozzarella are also great choices.
- Parsley: I finish the salad with chopped fresh herbs.
For vinaigrette
- Oregano, red pepper flakes, kosher salt and black pepper season the dressing.
- Garlic: In addition to the spices, I include a minced garlic clove.
- Mustard: I stir in whole grain mustard for flavor and to help emulsify the vinaigrette.
- Honey balances out the acidity of the ingredients.
- Red wine vinegar: You can substitute with white wine vinegar. Balsamic vinegar will work if you like a stronger dressing.
- Olive oil: Use high quality extra virgin olive oil for the best taste.
How To Make This Mediterranean Salad Recipe with Crispy Quinoa
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
1. Prep the quinoa. In a medium bowl, stir the cooked quinoa with oil, salt and pepper. Then spread it across the prepared pan.
2. Toast the quinoa. Give it 25-30 minutes to brown and crisp up, stirring it every 10 minutes.
3. Make the vinaigrette. Whisk the garlic, mustard, honey, oregano, red pepper flakes, salt, pepper, vinegar and olive oil in a small bowl.
4. Combine the salad ingredients in a large mixing bowl. That includes the romaine, chickpeas, cucumbers, olives, sun-dried tomatoes, red onions, feta cheese and fresh parsley. Toss with half the dressing.
5. Fold in the crispy quinoa. Drizzle in additional dressing as desired.
Serving
You can serve this as a main dish salad. It is up to you whether you add a protein like rotisserie chicken, salmon, shrimp, tofu or chopped hard boiled eggs. It’s also the kind salad that can be an exciting side dish to go with recipes such as rapini pasta, sheet pan gnocchi and vegetables or baked kale risotto. If you like a soup and salad combo, try it with roasted tomato soup or vegetable barley soup.
Leftovers & Storage
Plan ahead if you are doing meal prep, or if you know you are going to end up with leftovers. Only dress that amount of salad and toss in part of the quinoa. Then the salad will maintain its texture and not get soggy. You can store the salad up to 3 days. Even if your leftovers are dressed salad, go ahead and save them. The flavor will still be good even if it isn’t as crisp.
Store the salad, crispy quinoa and vinaigrette in separate airtight containers. The quinoa should be at room temperature and everything else should go into the fridge. When you take out the dressing, give it 15 minutes at room temperature and then stir it. This allows the oil to liquify again assuming it hardens in the chill of the refrigerator.
Recipe Tips
- Do not try to toast the quinoa when it is warm. Let it cool off or make it the day before and store the cooked quinoa in the fridge.
- You can make the vinaigrette and quinoa up to 2 days in advance. Keep the dressing in the fridge and the quinoa in a container in your kitchen at room temperature.
- Change 2 ingredients to make the salad vegan. Leave out the feta or use a plant-based, dairy-free cheese. For the dressing, swap the honey with maple syrup.
More Salad Recipes
Lemon Arugula Salad
Better-Than-A-Restaurant House Salad
Quinoa Chickpea Salad
Italian Chopped Salad
Mediterranean Three Bean Salad
Cucumber Chickpea Salad
Mediterranean Salad with Crispy Quinoa
Ingredients
For quinoa
- 1 1/2 cups cooked quinoa, cooled
- 2 teaspoons olive oil
- Pinch of kosher salt
- Pinch of black pepper
For vinaigrette
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 1 tablespoon whole grain mustard
- 1 teaspoon honey
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- Pinch of red pepper flakes
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 1/4 cup olive oil
For salad
- 3 cups chopped romaine
- 15 ounce can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- 1 cup diced cucumbers
- 1/2 cup halved pitted kalamata olives
- 1/2 cup chopped sun dried tomatoes, oil drained
- 1/4 cup finely diced red onions
- 1/4 cup crumbled feta
- 1 tablespoon chopped parsley
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper.
- In a medium bowl, stir the quinoa with 2 teaspoons olive oil, 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt and a pinch of black pepper. Spread the quinoa across the prepared pan.
- Toast the quinoa until it is browned and crisp, about 25-30 minutes. Stir it on the pan every 10 minutes.
- To make the dressing, whisk the garlic, mustard, honey, oregano, red pepper flakes, 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, vinegar and 1/4 cup olive oil in a small bowl.
- For the salad, combine the romaine, chickpeas, cucumbers, olives, sun-dried tomatoes, red onions, feta and parsley and toss with half the vinaigrette.
- Stir in the crispy quinoa. Drizzle in additional dressing as desired.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
