Name: Greek Chickpea Salad with Quinoa and Tahini Sauce
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 1 h
Total time: 1 h 30 min
Yield: 5
Cuisine: Greek Cuisine
Ingredients: Zest from 1 lemon; ¼ cup lemon Juice; 1 tbsp Tahini; 3/4 tbsp hot water; 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil; ¼ tsp salt; Freshly grated black pepper; A pinch of oregano; 250 grams uncooked chickpeas; 1/4 cup quinoa; 1/2 cup water or broth; 1/2 tsp sea salt; A handful of arugula (rocket); 1 Carrot (Shavings); 1 Red Onion, sliced; 1 Cucumber, cubed; ¼ cup Parsley, chopped; 1 Sprig fresh mint, only the leaves, chopped; 2 Tomatoes, cubed

Jump to Recipe

This Greek vegan chickpea salad is healthy and a filling dish on its own. It is packed with protein from the chickpeas and quinoa and full of vitamins from the herbs, vegetables and salad dressing.

Chickpea Salad with quinoa and tahini image

I always cook the chickpeas from scratch but if you do not have the time for this, you can either cook them when you have time, separate them into batches and freeze them or you can buy canned chickpeas, which will reduce the time of preparation considerably.

I usually use chickpeas without any skin on.

In case you cannot find any with the skin removed, after soaking them overnight, change the water and rub them with your hands.

The skins will float away when discarding the water. Continue this procedure until you have removed most of them.

You can prepare the chickpeas and quinoa ahead and add your extra protein depending on what you like.

What else can I do with this Greek Chickpea Salad

I am not vegan, so I have also made this dish with canned tuna but you can replace it with ham, smoked turkey, grilled chicken, feta or even hard boiled eggs.

If you want your salad vegan, just leave out these extras and add your favourite vegetables.

It is also a wonderful side dish to fish or other grilled meat.

Τhe vegan option still has a lot of protein from the chickpeas, quinoa and tahini and is also a very healthy meal.

We love eating chickpea salads and I have made it in many ways.

When we are fasting I just add a simple Vegan Tahini Sauce and when we are not, I make it with yoghurt.

The Tahini sauce with Yoghurt becomes a thick spread and looks like mayonnaise. It can be served as an appetizer, as a dip for raw vegetables or as a spread, on bread.

To use this spread as a sauce, mix it in the salad as it is or if you want it more runny, you can just dilute it with some water, before adding it to the salad.

The salad is full of aroma from the lemon zest and mint, which match perfectly with the other ingredients and makes a very refreshing meal during summer.

It stores well in the refrigerator up to 2 – 3 days and it packs well for lunch boxes or pick nicks.

Greek Chickpea Salad with Quinoa and Tahini Sauce

Yield: 5

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour

Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes

This Greek chickpea salad is healthy and a filling dish on its own. It is packed with protein from the chickpeas and quinoa and full of vitamins from the herbs, vegetables and salad dressing.

Ingredients

250 grams uncooked chickpeas
1/4 cup quinoa
1/2 cup water or broth
1/2 tsp sea salt
A handful of arugula (rocket)
1 Carrot (Shavings)
1 Red Onion, sliced
1 Cucumber, cubed
¼ cup Parsley, chopped
1 Sprig fresh mint, only the leaves, chopped
2 Tomatoes, cubed

Tahini Sauce:

Zest from 1 lemon
¼ cup lemon Juice
1 tbsp Tahini
3/4 tbsp hot water
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
¼ tsp salt
Freshly grated black pepper
A pinch of oregano

Instructions

Soak the chickpeas overnight.
Next day change the water in the bowl and rub them with your hands to remove the skin. Drain, add fresh water and boil. Remove foam with a slotted ladle and when no more is visible, drain and add fresh water.
Bring to a boil, add salt and cook for about 1 hour or until they are soft. Drain and set aside to cool.
Place quinoa in a large bowl and cover with water. Let it stand for five minutes and rinse well.
In a salted pot of boiling water or broth, cook quinoa for 20 minutes, remove from the heat and leave it in the pan until it cools.
Put all the salad ingredients in a bowl.
Vegan Tahini Sauce: In a smaller bowl add the tahini and mix with hot water to make a paste Add the olive oil, zest and lemon juice and mix to combine Add salt, pepper and oregano and mix the salad dressing.
Pour the sauce over the salad and mix well.
Refrigerate for half an hour for the flavours to develop and serve.

Notes

For non vegans:

Tahini & Greek Yoghurt Sauce:
¼ cup tahini
¼ cup Greek yoghurt
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
2 tbsp lemon juice
1/8 cup red wine vinegar (2 tbsp)
1 tbsp mild mustard
1 clove garlic
1 tsp salt
1/8 tsp black pepper
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp honey

Put all the ingredients in a food processor and puree until thick and smooth To use as a dressing, take the quantity you want and add some water, a tablespoon at a time, to make it thinner and have the consistency of a dressing

Nutrition Information

Yield 5 Serving Size 1
Amount Per Serving Calories 343Total Fat 11gSaturated Fat 2gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 9gCholesterol 9mgSodium 459mgCarbohydrates 45gFiber 9gSugar 10gProtein 19g

Chickpea Recipes

Chickpeas are one of my favourite legumes which I cook quite often in many variations. Here are a few examples.

Chickpea Salad with Bulgur Wheat, Feta and Pesto

Chickpea, Quinoa Salad with Marinated Anchovies

Greek Chickpea Salad with Quinoa and Tahini Sauce

This healthy Greek chickpea salad is a filling dish on its own, packed with protein from the chickpeas, quinoa and tuna and full of vitamins from the herbs, vegetables and salad dressing.

Stewed Chickpeas with Spinach

Penne with Chickpeas and Roasted Cherry Tomatoes

Whole Wheat Penne with Chickpeas, Roasted Cherry Tomatoes and roasted garlic is a delicious and healthy vegan pasta dish. A delicious summer meal.

Hoummous Soup (Chickpeas soup)

Hoummous soup is made with the same ingredients as for hoummous dip. More hot broth is added until it reaches the consistency of a soup and is served with croutons. The cooked chickpeas can be freezed, so when making this soup, I usually boil more in order to make the dip whenever I like.

Revithokeftedes (Chickpea Patties)

Revithokeftedes (pr. reh-vee-thaw-kae-FTEH-thes) aka chickpea Patties is a delicious, healthy, Greek, vegan meal.

Revithosalates (chickpea salads)

Opaaaa!! Revithosoupa (Greek Chickpea soup)

Revithia giahni sti gastra (stewed chickpeas)

Revithia giahni sti gastra is a vegan dish with stewed chickpeas, traditionally cooked in a clay pot and baked in a wood burning oven.Â However, not all of us have wood burning ovens or clay pots but we can still cook it in a Dutch oven or any casserole dish in our home oven.Â Â If you don't have any of the above, use a baking tin which cover with an aluminium tent.