This Mediterranean Quinoa Salad gets better every hour it sits, which is exactly why it's the dish I bring when I need to walk in looking pulled together without actually being rushed that morning. A shake-in-a-jar red wine vinegar dressing coats the quinoa, briny kalamata olives, and crisp cucumber, and a squeeze of fresh lemon right before serving is what wakes the whole bowl up.
What makes this different
The dressing does all the work here: red wine vinegar, olive oil, and oregano shaken together in a jar, and it only gets better the longer the quinoa sits in it. Most quinoa salads turn gluey or bland by the second day, but this one keeps its bite and its flavor for up to three days in the fridge.
This is the dish I bring to a cookout or a potluck when I want people asking for the recipe before they've finished their plate. It takes about 35 minutes of hands-on time. The only thing to remember: hold the lemon juice and cilantro until right before you serve it.
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What I Learned Making This Recipe
When I first started making this salad, I leaned much heavier on quinoa: more grain, fewer vegetables, closer to a quinoa bowl with a handful of vegetables scattered through it. It tasted fine, but it ate more like a side of quinoa than an actual salad, and the vegetables felt like an afterthought instead of the main event.
Over time I flipped that ratio: less quinoa, more cucumber, tomatoes, red pepper, and olives, so the vegetables carry the salad and the quinoa is there mostly to add body and hold onto the dressing. It reads as a vegetable salad with quinoa in it now, not a quinoa dish with vegetables added in, and that balance is what makes it work just as well cold from the fridge as it does the day you make it.
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Ingredients & Substitutions
This salad has a short ingredient list, but a few of these choices matter more than they look like they would.
Ingredient Notes:
- Quinoa. I give it a rinse before cooking. Quinoa naturally has a bitter coating (saponins) that a quick rinse under cold water washes away, so skipping it is the difference between a salad that tastes clean and one that tastes faintly soapy. Once it's cooked, fluff it with a fork and let it cool for at least five minutes before it goes anywhere near the vegetables. Warm quinoa wilts everything it touches.
- Kalamata olives. These are what make this taste Mediterranean instead of just like a grain bowl. I don't substitute regular black olives here: they don't have the same briny depth, and this salad depends on that flavor. It's the same briny, feta-and-olive combination I love in my Layered Greek Dip, if you're looking for another way to use it.
- Cucumber. Sliced thin so it stays light and doesn't take over the bowl.
- Fresh cilantro. I scatter it on at the very end, after the lemon. Not a cilantro person? Fresh parsley keeps the flavor bright without the soapy note cilantro gives some people.
- Red pepper. I use seedless mini peppers. They're sweeter than a standard bell pepper and there's no core or seeds to deal with.
- Feta. I buy the Israeli feta block in brine from Trader Joe's. It's a genuinely different product from pre-crumbled feta, which is coated in anti-caking additives that keep it from tasting as clean.
Instructions
This easy Greek Quinoa Salad comes together in a few simple steps.
Step 1
Place the quinoa, red pepper, cucumber, olives, tomatoes, red onion and feta cheese in a bowl.
Step 2
Add the red vinegar, olive oil, oregano, salt and pepper to a small jar and shake to combine.
Step 3
Pour the dressing over the top and stir to combine.
My best Tips
Rinse the quinoa before you cook it. This one small step is the difference between quinoa that tastes clean and quinoa that tastes faintly bitter. It only takes a few seconds under cold water in a fine mesh strainer.
Let the quinoa cool before you add the vegetables. Warm quinoa wilts cucumber and tomatoes fast, and once they've gone soft they don't bounce back. Five minutes of patience here saves the texture of the whole salad.
Hold the lemon and cilantro until you're ready to serve. Both lose their brightness if they sit in the dressing too long. I add them right before the salad goes on the table, even when everything else was made a day ahead.
Don't swap the kalamata olives. Regular black olives are milder and won't give you the same briny backbone.
FAQs
Yes, and I actually recommend it. The flavors get noticeably better the longer everything sits together. Make it the night before, keep it covered in the fridge, and hold the lemon juice and cilantro until right before serving. It keeps well for up to three days.
Either works. I usually pull it straight from the fridge, but if it's sat out on a counter for a bit before serving, it's just as good. This is part of why it travels so well to a cookout or potluck.
Absolutely. Fresh parsley is a great swap and keeps the flavor bright.
This works with anything off the grill: chicken, salmon, lamb chops. It's also hearty enough to be the main event for a lighter lunch. Add a warm pita and you're set.
Top Tip
Use seedless mini peppers for this recipe! The flavor cannot be matched and there aren't any seeds to clean out of the middle. Easy peasy!
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Recipe
Mediterranean Quinoa Salad with Feta
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 cup water
- ½ cup uncooked quinoa
- ⅓ cup red wine vinegar
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- ½ small red onion diced
- ½ cup red pepper chopped
- ½ cup cucumber sliced
- 1 cup grape tomatoes halved
- 1 cup kalamata olives
- 4 ounces feta cheese crumbled
- ½ cup fresh cilantro chopped
- Juice of one lemon
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Instructions
- Bring the quinoa and water to a boil over medium heat. Reduce to a simmer and cook for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the water is absorbed. Fluff with a fork and cool for 5 minutes.1 cup water, ½ cup uncooked quinoa
- In a small jar, add the oil, vinegar, oregano, salt and pepper and shake to combine.⅓ cup red wine vinegar, ¼ cup olive oil, 1 teaspoon oregano, ½ teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon pepper
- Place the quinoa in a large bowl. Add the onion, tomatoes, pepper, olives, cucumber, and feta cheese. Pour the dressing over the top and stir gently to combine.½ small red onion, ½ cup red pepper, ½ cup cucumber, 1 cup grape tomatoes , 1 cup kalamata olives, 4 ounces feta cheese
- Chill for 2 hours to let flavors combine. Squeeze lemon juice over the salad right before serving to brighten the flavors. Garnish with cilantro, stir and serve.½ cup fresh cilantro, Juice of one lemon
Notes
- Quinoa tip: Rinse before cooking to remove the bitter coating, and let it cool before adding your vegetables. Warm quinoa wilts everything it touches.
- Make ahead: Keeps in the fridge for up to 3 days. Hold the lemon and cilantro until right before serving.
- Olives: Kalamata olives are worth seeking out here. Regular black olives don't have the same briny depth.
- Serving tip: This salad is even better the next day, once the flavors have had more time to develop.
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Nutrition
Nutrition info not guaranteed to be accurate.
Marilyn Earhart says
Had this at a party and loved it. I want to try it with riced-cauliflower substituted for the quinoa.
Tanya says
I've made this dozens of times over the years. I always come back to it. I love to make a bowl and use it for lunches over the next few days. Since I like to let it sit, I leave the tomato out. Just because I don't think it'll be as good a few days later and also my husband isn't a huge fresh tomato fan. Today I made it and realized that I had only about a TBSP of red wine vinegar. I subbed half white wine vinigar and balsamic vinegar (not sweet) and it was just as good.
Kelly says
Wow ! This was amazing . I love the Greek flavor. Thanks for sharing !
Darlene O'Brien says
Going to try this Mediterranean
Quinoa Salad. It sounds so yummy. I've been looking for a good recipe. Thanks