Quinoa Salad with Chickpeas

Packed full of flavor and good-for-you ingredients, this Quinoa Salad with Chickpeas is one of my favorite quinoa salad recipes. It is a quick, healthy, and versatile dish that can be a main meal or masquerade as a holiday side dish as well.

This has been a regular meal for us lately! We love it Shashi! xoxo

~ Megan

This Quinoa Salad with Chickpeas is a warm, sautéed, plant-protein-packed dish. I usually enjoy this as a meal with some avocado and chips. It is packed full of wholesome goodness and flavor from ingredients like ginger, garlic, onion, coriander, smoked paprika, and turmeric.

This dish is made with 15 ingredients, but, some of them can be replaced with some of your favorites.

What are the ingredients in this Quinoa Salad with Chickpeas?

1. Red onion
   I used a fresh red onion in this dish as it added a bit of color. But, you can use a yellow onion if that’s what you have on hand. When the onions are lightly sautéed, they all taste delicious. However, onion powder would not be a good substitute.
   
2. Garlic
   I used fresh garlic in this recipe. But, if you prefer, you can use some of the peeled garlic that’s stored in glass jars in the produce section of most stores. Replacing the fresh garlic with garlic powder would alter the taste of this dish drastically.
   
3. Ginger
   I used fresh ginger in this recipe. As with the garlic, ginger powder would not be a good substitute. The fresh onion, garlic, and ginger used in this dish not only add in tons of flavor to this dish, but this trio has a multitude of nutritional benefits between them as well.
   
4. Celery
   I used a few stalks of fresh salary in this dish. But, celery is one of those ingredients that can be substituted. If you prefer, you could use a green bell pepper instead.
   
5. Carrots
   Carrots are another one of those ingredients that is versatile. You can replace it with one of your other favorite veggies. You could add in diced sweet potato if you prefer. Or, simply leave out the carrots completely.
   
6. Frozen peas
   While I used frozen peas in this dish, you could use fresh peas if you prefer. Or, you could use another veggie instead. For example, you could use frozen edamame or frozen corn instead.
   
7. Coriander
   I used coriander powder in this dish. Coriander adds such a delicious depth of smoky flavor to this Quinoa Salad with Chickpeas recipe. Like the garlic, onion, and ginger, I would not replace the coriander.
   
8. Smoked paprika
   The combination of smoked paprika along with the coriander and turmeric makes for a delicious blend that makes this Quinoa Salad with Chickpeas simply scrumptious.
   
9. Turmeric
   Turmeric not only adds a bunch of flavor to this dish, but brings a slew of nutritional benefits with it. And, while it might add an annoying yellow hue to light countertops, it adds lovely color to this dish.
   
10. Black olives
    Black olives add another level of flavor to this dish. And they add visual and textural diversity as well. If you prefer, you can leave them out or add in green olives instead.
    
11. Canned chickpeas
    I used canned chickpeas in this dish as they are so convenient to use. Just drain, rinse, and add in without soaking for hours.
    
12. Pistachios
    Pistachios added a lovely pop of color as well as a nice textural element to this dish. If you prefer, you can use peanuts or cashews instead.
    
13. Red chili pepper
    I used one fresh red chili pepper in this dish. I removed as much of the seeds as I could from the chili pepper, diced it up and added it in. If you would rather this Quinoa Salad with Chickpeas be on the mild side, then omit the red chili pepper entirely.
    
14. Tomatoes
    I opted to use a few tomatoes I had leftover after making this roasted tomato soup in this dish. They add such a delightful taste and texture to this dish.
    
15. Cooked quinoa
    If you have leftover cooked quinoa, then that would be perfect for this. Or, you can cook some up to use in this salad, like I did. As this is a warm salad and the quinoa is added in to the sautéed veggies and spices, you do not have to cool the cooked quinoa down before using it.

How do you serve this healthy dish?

This Quinoa Salad with Chickpeas is a warm and satisfying dish. I like to enjoy it as a meal, with some avocado and chips. In fact, you could add this dish to your new year’s meal prep options.

However, this dish can also be served as a side dish along with some mango chutney or cranberry apple chutney, beetroot curry, and some pan roasted spicy crispy tofu.

If you loved this quinoa salad recipe, then make sure to also try out this Easy Kale Quinoa Salad too.

Quinoa Salad with Chickpeas

5 from 9 votes

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Prep Time: 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes minutes

Total Time: 25 minutes minutes

Servings: 4 servings

Author: Shashi

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Packed full of flavor and good-for-you ingredients, this Quinoa Salad with Chickpeas is one of my favorite quinoa salad recipes. It is a quick, healthy, and versatile dish that can be a main meal or masquerade as a holiday side dish as well.

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 red onion
• 4 garlic cloves
• 1 inch knob of fresh ginger
• 3 stalks of celery
• 2 carrots
• 1/2 cup frozen peas
• 1 15- oz can chickpeas
• 3 tsp coriander
• 1 tsp smoked paprika
• 1/2 tsp turmeric
• 1/4 cup sliced black olives
• Handful of pistachios
• I red chili pepper optional
• 4-5 tomatoes
• 1/2 cup uncooked quinoa
• salt and pepper to taste
• parsley to garnish optional

Get Recipe Ingredients

Instructions

• Add the quinoa to a pan with 1 cup of water and place it on a stove with the flame/heat set to high. Then bring it to a boil, lower the heat, place a lid on it, and let it simmer for 15 minutes.
• Peel and dice the onion, ginger, and garlic and add it to a pan with the EVOO. Saute for 10 minutes, stirring the onion, ginger, and garlic often so they do not burn.
• Rinse and chop up the celery and carrots and add them to the pan with the onions, ginger, garlic.
• Also, add in the frozen peas.
• Open the can of chickpeas, drain it and rinse the chickpeas in a colander. Add the rinsed chickpeas to the pan.
• Also add in the coriander, smoked paprika, and turmeric and saute for about 3 minutes.
• If using the red chili pepper, dice it, carefully removing as many of the seeds as you would like. Also, cut the tomatoes into bite-sized pieces.
• Add in the black olives, pistachios, cooked quinoa, cut tomatoes as well as the red chili pepper, and saute for about 2 more minutes.
• Remove from the heat and season with salt and pepper to taste.
• Garnish with chopped parsley and enjoy!

Nutrition

Serving: 1g | Calories: 456kcal | Carbohydrates: 59g | Protein: 17g | Fat: 19g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 15g | Sodium: 523mg | Fiber: 15g | Sugar: 13g

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