Greek Mediterranean Quinoa Salad

By Lily・Published:Sep 7, 2020・Updated: Jun 21, 2021・Post may have affiliate links.

This Mediterranean quinoa salad recipe is rich in flavor. There’s something about the feta, oregano, and olives being infused with the tomatoes, quinoa, and cucumbers. Honestly, this is one of my favorite salad recipes.

What I love the most about this recipe is that it's flexible. It can be a standalone meal with some form of protein- either chickpeas or grilled chicken. Or, it can be a side dish. It’s delicious, easy, and filling. This salad is also rich with nutrients and vitamins.

And if you haven't already noticed my obsession with hummus and quinoa salad recipes, I must have hidden it well. This Mediterranean quinoa salad recipe is the blending of two major worlds- quinoa and Mediterranean salad. Yum!

Ingredients

Quinoa: I really love using this ingredient. It’s a superfood and complete protein grain. For this recipe, I prefer to use white quinoa, however, you can use any other type of quinoa.
Olives: I prefer to use green Greek olives. Sometimes I can't find the olives already pitted, so I end up pitting the olives myself.
Tomatoes: I normally use grape tomatoes and just cut them in half. Grape tomatoes are a little bit sweeter than Roma or beefsteak tomatoes.
Onions: You can use red onion, brown onion, sweet onion, white onion, or yellow onion for this recipe.
Cucumbers: Use Persian cucumbers or an English cucumber. You can keep the outer skin on the cucumber if using either of those cucumbers.
Feta cheese: Get some high-quality feta cheese for this salad, and don't put too much! The feta offsets the vibrant flavors of the veggies.
Oregano: If you have fresh oregano on hand, go with the fresh stuff. If you don't have fresh oregano, you can use dried oregano.
Olive oil: Use high-quality olive oil.
Fresh Lemons: You will need to juice a fresh lemon to add to the salad. I never recommend using canned lemon juice because it's not the same!
Salt and pepper to taste: If you want to get a little fancy, you should check out Maldon's flaked salt. Also, fresh cracked pepper is pretty delicious.

Tips and Tricks

Quality ingredients: The quality of your ingredients makes a difference in my opinion. When I get fresh organic vegetables, I notice that their flavors are more pronounced. Quality feta cheese, olives, and olive oil also make a big difference.
Make this vegan: If you’d like to make this a vegan recipe, substitute avocado for the feta cheese. When I’m making this for work lunches, I will cut my avocado the day of.
Cool the quinoa before mixing: Make sure the quinoa has had time to get to room temperature. You can speed the cooling process by sticking it in the fridge. If you are short on time, under no circumstances, should you mix the feta cheese. I've made that mistake.

How to Store Quinoa Salad

This recipe is a great meal prep recipe for a work week. Divide the salad into glass locking containers, and store in the fridge for up to 5 days. I do not recommend freezing this salad.

More Quinoa Salad Recipes

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