Roasted Chickpea Greek Salad with Lemon-Herb Dressing is an anything-but-boring salad! Crunchy and crisp roasted chickpeas tossed with a mix of lettuce, cucumbers, tomatoes, shallot, feta cheese, and a mildly sweet and tangy lemon-herb dressing that’s bursting with Greek flavors! Meal prep it for lunches or enjoy it as a light dinner.
There’s a not-so-secret rule here at Fork in the Kitchen: absolutely no boring salads allowed.
Salads are one of those things that are great in theory – vegetables! fiber! nutrition! – but depending on the execution of them, they can end up sad, unfulfilling, and leave you hangry. Or is that just me?
So the no-boring-salads thing is real. Because if we’re going to be enjoying a salad, then we’re ENJOYING the salad. That means texture, flavor, and variety! This Greek-inspired salad delivers all of those and more.
Thanks to the crispy roasted chickpeas, variety of fresh vegetables, creamy feta, and a mild and bright lemony and herb dressing this salad hits all the marks.
How to Roast the Chickpeas
In my humble opinion, a salad needs a variety of textures, and one of those must be something crunchy. While croutons are always a solid option, roasting chickpeas is also a delicious swap, delivering fiber and protein (so I’ve heard ;)).
It’s easy to roast chickpeas in the oven and takes about 25 to 30 minutes to do so, giving you plenty of time to prepare the homemade salad dressing and the remaining ingredients. Then, it all comes together lickety-split!
Start by draining and rinsing a can of chickpeas (save that liquid for other uses if you want – it’s called aquafaba and is an amazing vegan egg-white substitute!).
Dry the chickpeas between a tea towel or two paper towels, rolling until mostly dry. Some of the skins may come off and that’s totally ok! You can roast them up, too, for extra crispy bits (or remove them if preferred).
Then toss the dried chickpeas with a little olive oil, oregano, parsley, garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Spread them evenly on a baking sheet – use one with edges so they don’t roll off – and bake! I like to shake the pan back and forth about halfway through the cook time to make sure they’re evenly roasted.
Once they’re golden brown and crisp, it’s time to remove them from the oven and toss them in the salad!
Assembling Greek-Inspired Lettuce Salad
With the chickpeas seasoned and roasted it’s time to assemble!
Chop or tear romaine lettuce leaves as desired and place them in a large bowl. If you prefer, you can also assemble the salads individually, although I prefer tossing it all together with the dressing before plating. To each their own!
You can also use mixed spring lettuce or another variety of greens.
Then, add thinly sliced shallot, diced cucumber, tomatoes, and feta cheese. Use as much or as little of each as you desire! Banana peppers or sun-dried tomatoes would also be delicious!
With all of the salad components ready, it’s time to toss with the dressing! Homemade dressing is 100% the way to go – it’s easy to make in under 5 minutes and has so much flavor without any excess ingredients.
Whisk together fresh lemon juice and zest, dried oregano and parsley, maple syrup or honey, and olive oil.
To make homemade dressing even easier, add the ingredients to a mason jar, put the lid on it, and shake it up! Fewer dishes to use, and the leftover dressing will already in a storage container!
Toss the salad with your desired amount of dressing, being careful to not drench the salad, then garnish with a little more feta cheese as desired and enjoy!
FAQs, Tips, and Tricks
Yes, you can! Store the baked chickpeas in an airtight container at room temperature until ready to serve. Do know, they do lose some of their crispiness. Assemble the salads either individually or as one, but don’t toss with the dressing until just before serving.
You sure can; use maple syrup instead of honey in the dressing and omit the feta. Add avocado if you want to replace the creaminess of the feta, and then a sprinkle of flakey sea salt for the salty tang.
It’s also delicious with banana peppers or kalamata olives for extra brininess. You could substitute sun-dried tomatoes for fresh ones as well. You can’t go wrong!
Roasted Chickpea Greek Salad with Lemon-Herb Dressing
Equipment
Ingredients
ROASTED CHICKPEAS:
- 1 16 oz. can chickpeas/garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
- Drizzle of olive oil
- 1/4 – 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/4 – 1/2 teaspoon dried parsley
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- Dash of paprika
- Salt and Pepper, to taste
DRESSING:
- 1 lemon, zested
- 1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice, approx. 1 lemon
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/4 teaspoon dried parsley
- 1 Tablespoon maple syrup or honey, or to taste
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- Salt and pepper, to taste
SALAD:
- 1 head romaine lettuce, chopped
- 1 cup cucumber, diced
- 1/2 cup cherry tomatoes, halved or diced
- 2-4 oz. feta cheese, crumbled
- 1 small shallot, thinly sliced
Instructions
ROASTED CHICKPEAS:
- Pre-heat oven to 400°.Drain and rinse chickpeas, then dry by rolling a paper towel over chickpeas (if the skins come off, either discard or leave; it's up to you if you want to remove the skins from all chickpeas).
- Spread the chickpeas on a baking sheet (with edges); lightly drizzle them with olive oil. Sprinkle oregano, parsley, garlic powder, paprika, salt, and pepper over chickpeas. Roll chickpeas around the baking sheet until all are coated with olive oil and herbs. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until crispy, shaking them halfway through.
DRESSING:
- Whisk together lemon zest, lemon juice, dried oregano and parsley, and maple syrup or honey. Slowly pour in the olive oil while whisking. Add salt to taste and adjust ingredients to preferred taste as needed.
SALAD:
- Toss lettuce, cucumbers, tomatoes, shallot, feta, and roasted chickpeas together. Toss with the desired amount of dressing, reserving what is left. Garnish with additional feta as desired and enjoy immediately.
Notes
- If making this salad for individual portions or meal prep, do not mix dressing until ready to eat.
Nutrition
Disclaimer: The nutritional information provided for this recipe is only an estimate. The accuracy of the facts listed is not and cannot be guaranteed.
By the Way…
This recipe is part of our collection of green salad recipes. Check it out!