a quick and simple salad that vegetarians may eat with or without chicken.
| Prep Time: | 15 mins |
| Cook Time: | 20 mins |
| Total Time: | 35 mins |
| Servings: | 8 |
| Yield: | 4 cups |
Ingredients
- 2 cups water
- 2 cubes chicken bouillon
- 1 clove garlic, smashed
- 1 cup uncooked quinoa
- 2 large cooked chicken breasts – cut into bite size pieces
- 1 large red onion, diced
- 1 large green bell pepper, diced
- ½ cup chopped kalamata olives
- ½ cup crumbled feta cheese
- ¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
- ¼ cup chopped fresh chives
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ⅔ cup fresh lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
- ¼ cup olive oil
Instructions
- Bring the water, bouillon cubes, and garlic to a boil in a saucepan. Stir in the quinoa, reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until the quinoa is tender and the water has been absorbed, 15 to 20 minutes. Discard the garlic clove and scrape the quinoa into a large bowl.
- Gently stir the chicken, onion, bell pepper, olives, feta cheese, parsley, chives, and salt into the quinoa. Drizzle with the lemon juice, balsamic vinegar, and olive oil. Stir until evenly mixed. Serve warm or refrigerate and serve cold.
Nutrition Facts
| Calories | 278 kcal |
| Carbohydrate | 20 g |
| Cholesterol | 45 mg |
| Dietary Fiber | 2 g |
| Protein | 18 g |
| Saturated Fat | 3 g |
| Sodium | 713 mg |
| Sugars | 3 g |
| Fat | 14 g |
| Unsaturated Fat | 0 g |
Reviews
I love this with or without chicken. I find I have to balance the salt with the lemon juice so it doesnt overpower. Just some taste testing of the dressing mixed up together before putting it in the salad does it.
I used anjou pear balsamic with a hint of organic balsamic, I added the mint, substituted gorgonzola cheese for the Feta, and added sliced cherry tomatoes… you can really buff this recipe up! It’s fantastic! A great base recipe to make your own.
Delicious with or without chicken! Excellent flavor profiles. Makes a good side dish without chicken, and good main course with.
Added chicken, shredded carrots, tomatoes, and celery. So good!! Love this recipe!
Basically, it was an ok recipe. I wouldn’t call it Mediterranean. I’ve lived in the Med 20 years and never saw this made with chicken or boullion. Maybe some countries do. It left out mint, which is a standard ingredient. Chopped cucumbers and cherry tomatoes are pretty standard too.
We love this salad. We opted not to add chicken and we don’t miss it. I also use only half a red onion, one was way too much in our opinion. We also found that when not using the chicken, only half the vinaigrette is plenty. I whisk the olive oil, lemon juice and balsamic vinegar together before pouring it over the salad. We enjoy it freshly made warm, and have leftovers the next day that are cold.
Easy, delicious and healthy …
Made it without the chicken to go with our bbq steak, delicious!
Wonderful recipe. Very versatile to add or subtract what you like. I added spinach, chick peas, carrots and celery. I left out chicken, salt and feta. Will definitely make this again mixing in other veggies!
DELICIOUS AND FILLING. I FELT LIKE I WAS EATING HEALTHY!!!
I absolutely love this recipe. It was exactly what I was craving, and is so healthy. I love the lemony taste with the feta, fresh parsely and kalamata olives! I can’t wait to make it again for guests!
Half of a large red onion is plenty. Otherwise, it’s overwhelming.
Made it exactly as the recipe stated and turned out great. I may have added a tad but more parsley than what was called for because I love dishes that include parsley. I brought it to a party and got asked for the recipe a few times! Score! I really liked this because it’s a healthier side dish than your standard party macaroni salad or potato salad…..and tastier. 🙂
This is a great recipe and I loved it! Very fresh and zippy w/ the olives and feta! My only caution is be sure you’re familiar with your brand of quinoa. Not all quinoas are created equal, and some can be bitter. Unfortunately this new brand I used today is one of the bitter ones. But adding a bit extra balsamic helped. Enjoy!!!
Fantastic. Simple and delicious. I used chicken broth instead of water and bouillon. We loved the dressing. Some have found it to lemony, but to us, the lemon complimented the kalamata olives and feta perfectly. I added grilled chicken and served it as a main dish. Highly recommend.
I find that most recipes for quinoa have too much water – in this case I used 2 cups quinoa and 3.25 cups water, but there was still too much water – the result of this is soggy, overcooked quinoa that sticks together in lumps. what u want for a salad is more dry quinoa, since you’ll be adding dressing and moist vegetables at the end.
I’ve made this many times and it is delicious. I can vary it with different vegetables; this time I lightly steamed asparagus and spinich and added it to the salad. I agree with one reviewer that the lemon is a bit strong. Next time I’ll try it with 1/2 cup of freshly squeezed lemon juice (instead of 2/3) and see whether that makes a difference.
Delicious and so versatile. You can add, delete or substitute items according to availability. Family loves this recipe and keeps well in the refrigerator for the week.
This may be a second review, if so, after several years its still a 5-star side/salad for me. This is a great base recipe that can be changed a bit depending on what I have on hand. I always reduce lemon juice to juice of one lemon. Today I omitted chicken, up’d the kalamata olives, added one cup of halved grape tomatoes and about one-third cup grated queso cojita cheese. Delish!
Such a hit at my bbq – I didn’t change a thing! Definitely a keeper!
Great and delicious.