An easy Greek-inspired quinoa salad, refreshingly full of fresh vegetables, Kalamata olives, feta cheese (dairy-free if desired!) and a tangy red wine vinaigrette.
This Greek-inspired quinoa salad is one of those recipes that I make all the time (without a recipe ;)) but finally put down on paper to share. It’s super easy with one fair warning: there’s quite a bit of chopping involved. But while the quinoa cooks and steams (about 20 minutes total), you’ll have more than enough time to prep the pepper, cucumber, olives, tomatoes, red onion, and mint. The Greek red wine vinaigrette comes together in just a minute: add everything to a jar and shake.
This is one of those salads that actually gets better as the flavors meld in the fridge (the best kind of salads, in my opinion). Since all the produce is crunchy (aka not wilt-prone), this is a great make-ahead salad for Memorial Day weekend, summer beach days, picnics, or just as a refreshing lunch you can prep early in the week and enjoy for several days.
Greek Quinoa Salad Ingredients and Substitutions
Once you make this recipe once, you won’t really need the recipe anymore. It’s super forgiving and would be good with any added vegetables (grilled zucchini, corn etc.), so use what you have!
To make it more substantial, you could always add (or serve with) a protein, like grilled fish, chicken, steak, tofu, or even chickpeas. I also like to serve this salad with some greens like chopped romaine or baby arugula.
For the Kalamata olives, do yourself a favor and make sure to buy pitted olives!
The feta cheese is kind of important, in my opinion. My all-time favorite feta cheese is Mt. Vikos, which is grass-fed, organic, and traditionally made so that it’s not overly salty. If you’re dairy-free, the Esti dairy-free feta is SO good and Violife dairy-free feta is another favorite.
If you tried this Greek Quinoa Salad or any other recipe on Loveleaf Co. let me know how you liked it by leaving a comment/rating below! Be sure to follow along on Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest for all the easy recipe ideas!
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Greek Quinoa Salad
- Prep Time: 15
- Cook Time: 15
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 6 as a side 1x
- Category: Salad
- Method: Chop
- Cuisine: Greek-Inspired
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
An easy Greek-inspired quinoa salad, refreshingly full of fresh vegetables, Kalamata olives, feta cheese (dairy-free if desired!) and a tangy red wine vinaigrette.
Ingredients
Salad
- 1 cup uncooked quinoa
- 1 medium cucumber, peeled and diced
- 1 red bell pepper, diced
- 1/4 cup chopped red onion
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes, quartered
- 1 small bunch of mint, chopped
- 1/2 cup (generous – I use a little more) pitted Kalamata olives, chopped
- 1 cup crumbled feta cheese (see notes for dairy-free)
Red Wine Vinaigrette
- 6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 6 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 1–2 teaspoons dried oregano ((more or less depending on how strong your spice is)
- 2 teaspoons maple syrup or honey (optional)
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Cook the quinoa according to package instructions. You’ll need 3 cups of cooked quinoa total.
- While the quinoa is cooking, chop the remaining ingredients.
- Make the red wine vinaigrette. Add everything to a jar and shake until well combined.
- Once the quinoa is cooked, transfer it to a large mixing bowl. Add all the chopped ingredients and add in desired amount of dressing. Give everything a good stir and season to taste with salt and pepper. Enjoy!
Notes
Dairy-Free Feta. Esti dairy-free feta is SO good and Violife dairy-free feta is another favorite.
Serving Options. Make this Greek quinoa salad a full meal by pairing it with a protein: fish, chicken, steak, tofu, and even chickpeas would be good here. You can also serve the salad with some greens like chopped romaine or baby arugula.
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Jiohn says
The greek quinoa salad was very nice, probably quite authentic tasting.
I would like to suggest that the recipe could be improved by being more specific about quantities!
How many cups of Red Bell pepper and cucumber is optimum? A medium Cucumber doesn’t mean much to me, and 1 Red Bell pepper of what size?
I also used too much of the vinaigrette, I suggest starting with maybe 1/4 cup, and work up from there.
Overall I enjoyed it, and will make again
Ally says
Hi John, thanks for your review! The red bell pepper and cucumber quantities don’t have to be exact – feel free to use as much or as little as you like next time. I use a standard size red bell pepper (they are usually pretty similar in size, at least at my grocery store) and a standard size cucumber, about 6 inches. Enjoy!