This healthy Mediterranean Chickpea Salad with Feta is one of my top vegetarian meals! It’s simple to prepare, packed full of nutrients and bursting with flavor! The perfect make-ahead lunch option that can be made in less than 20 minutes! {Gluten-free & vegetarian}
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Mediterranean Chickpea Salad Recipe
This Mediterranean chickpea salad is always one of my favorite vegetarian dishes to whip up when I’m running short on time. It’s ready in just 20 minutes, has tons of fresh veggies and bright flavors, and fiber and protein-rich chickpeas keep me full for hours.
Serve it as a healthy lunch over a bed of spinach, or pile it up on some crusty garlic bread or crispy flatbread or serve it with some pita chips to make an awesome appetizer or quick weeknight meal. It’s also a great side dish for picnics, cookouts and potlucks!
If you love garbanzo beans, be sure to also try my Pearl Couscous Chickpea Salad and Mexican Chickpea Soup too!
Why You’ll Love This Mediterranean Chickpea Salad
- Packed with plant-based protein and fiber to keep you full for hours
- Naturally meatless
- Great for meal prep (the leftovers taste even better the next day!)
- Ready in literally 20 minutes
- Formulated by a Registered Dietitian to have balanced macros and lots of vitamins and minerals
- Made with everyday pantry staples
- Can be served warm or cold for easy lunches all week
- Makes a great salad or serve it on a flatbread for an easy wrap!
- Bright, refreshing flavors to perk up your menu
Ingredient Notes
- Extra-virgin olive oil: I like to use extra virgin olive oil to match all the Mediterranean flavors, but you can sub in your preferred oil.
- Fresh vegetables: Red peppers, red onion and fresh garlic cloves add lots of color and flavor to this dish. You could also use different colored peppers, like orange or yellow to make it even more vibrant!
- Canned chickpeas: Chickpeas are a great plant based source of protein, fiber and iron. Look for a can of chickpeas with no salt added or make your own from dried beans.
- Fresh herbs: Fresh parsley adds an earthy, herby note. Fresh mint or cilantro would be nice, too!
- Lemon juice: Use fresh lemon juice rather than bottled. You can add extra lemon juice or even some lemon zest if you crave bright, citrusy flavors.
- Feta cheese: For a tangy, salty flavor and extra protein. Goat cheese works great, too! If you’re plant-based, try vegan feta instead.
- Red pepper flakes: Add a bit of heat to this dish. You can always add more if you prefer more heat.
- Sea salt & black pepper
Step-by-Step Instructions
-
Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion, red pepper, and garlic, stirring for 5 minutes or until vegetables are tender and fragrant.
- Add chickpeas, lemon juice and red pepper flakes and stir to combine.
- Warm the chickpeas through, about 1-2 minutes, remove from heat and allow to sit for a few minutes. Add parsley and feta cheese and toss lightly. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.
- Serve by itself or over a bed of spinach, lettuce, brown rice, quinoa or on crispy whole-grain pitas or pita chips.
Expert Tips
- I used a can of no-salt added chickpeas to make it super easy, but you could also sub in about 4.5 cups cooked chickpeas.
- Be sure to drain the canned chickpeas in a colander and rinse them very well under cold water until clean. You may also wish to remove the skins before adding them to the pan (it’s a personal preference).
- You can adjust the flavors in this recipe to taste. If you prefer more lemon flavor, increase the amount of lemon juice. If you like it more garlicky, add some additional minced garlic. If you like more heat, add some extra red pepper flakes. If you like more saltiness, add some extra feta.
How to Store
This is a great salad for meal prep. Make up a batch on a Sunday and enjoy it throughout the week.
Place the room temperature chickpea salad in an airtight container in the fridge for up to four days.
Recipe FAQs
This salad is great to enjoy warm straight out of the pan, but it is delicious cold as well. If you prefer it warm, you can heat the salad through on the stovetop.
You’d want to change the name, but yes, you can certainly make this salad with other beans if you prefer! Black beans would work well, but I’m partial to white beans, like cannellini or navy beans. They have a mild, creamy flavor that lets the seasonings and add-ins pop.
No! If you prefer a cold veggie-packed chickpea salad, add the raw veggies to the salad. This makes the recipe even easier!
Serving Suggestions
The best thing about this warm chickpea salad is that it makes a fantastic side dish or main course!
It can be served up on:
- Lettuce or spinach
- A crispy baguette
- Rice
- Quinoa
- Pita chips or a baked crispy pita
We like to serve it up on a crispy pita spread with spicy garlic hummus or tzatziki along with some arugula or spinach for a quick and easy meatless dinner. It’s almost like a chickpea flatbread. So good!
To make the crispy pita: Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Brush some olive oil over the pitas. Bake in the oven for 15-20 minutes, or until crispy.
Recipe Variations
- More veggies: Add different bell peppers, or zucchini, toss in some diced cherry tomatoes or creamy avocado.
- Cheese: You could also try goat cheese or cubed mozzarella.
- For extra protein: Add some shredded chicken.
- Load up on toppings: If you’re enjoying this recipe as a cold salad, you can also add ingredients like green onion, kalamata olives, and crunchy cucumbers. Fresh ingredients don’t necessarily handle being heated very well, but they’re great in a cold salad!
More Vegetarian Salads
- 3 Bean Salad with Avocado
- Chickpea Avocado Feta Salad
- Lentil Pesto Pasta Salad
- Greek Quinoa Salad
- Mediterranean Lentil Salad
- Chickpea Pesto Pasta Salad
Did you make this recipe? Scroll down to leave a star rating and review!
Warm Mediterranean Chickpea Salad with Feta
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- ½ red onion thinly sliced
- 2 red peppers diced
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 2 (19oz) cans no salt-added chickpeas drained and rinsed
- Juice of one lemon (about 4 tablespoons lemon juice)
- 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
- Large handful parsley leaves finely chopped
- 3/4 cup crumbled feta cheese
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion, red pepper, and garlic, stirring for 5 minutes or until vegetables are tender and fragrant.
- Add chickpeas, lemon juice and red pepper flakes and stir to combine. Warm the chickpeas through, about 1-2 minutes, remove from heat and allow to sit for a few minutes. Add parsley and feta cheese and toss lightly. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.
- Serve by itself or over a bed of spinach, lettuce, brown rice, quinoa or with crispy whole-grain pitas or pita chips.
Video
Notes
- I used no-salt added canned chickpeas for this recipe to make it super easy, but you could also sub in about 4.5 cups cooked chickpeas.
- Be sure to drain the canned chickpeas in a colander and rinse them very well under cold water until clean. You may also wish to remove the skins before adding them to the pan (it’s a personal preference).
- You can adjust the flavors in this recipe to taste. If you prefer more lemon flavor, increase the amount of lemon juice. If you like it more garlicky, add some additional minced garlic. If you like more heat, add some extra red pepper flakes. If you like more saltiness, add some extra feta.
Nutrition
This recipe was originally posted in February 2016 and the text and photos were updated in January 2025.
Made this recipe but used lime juice instead of lemon juice and added olives. Dish was very tasty. Hubby and I enjoyed it very much. Thanks for sharing your recipe.
Love the substitutions with the lime and olives! I bet that was delicious. So glad you and your husband enjoyed the recipe! I appreciate you returning to leave a comment and rating :)
Love this recipe! Made it for my nutrition class and everyone went nuts over it! Super easy to make and tastes even better!
Thanks Olivia! So glad your class loved this recipe! It’s definitely one of my favourites!
Did you per chance go to Guelph for school? I took that same course and you describe the head chef perfectly lol!!! He was awesome though, in his own terrifying way :) I am so excited to try this recipe! I’ve been craving a new way to eat chickpeas, and this might just be it. Thanks for sharing!!
Hey Ashley! Thanks for stopping by :) Yes I went to Guelph….small world!!! I totally agree — I ended up learning a lot from him even though he scared me to death haha. I hope you enjoy the recipe!!