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Mediterranean Chickpea Cauliflower Salad is an easy, vegetable loaded salad that is perfect for the warmer months. This simple salad travels well, so bring it to your next BBQ or picnic. It also makes a great packed lunch for those on the go!
I love salads and they are always on repeat at my house. While meal prepping for the week ahead I make at least two salads every week. This easy cauliflower chickpea salad is on rotation with my Greek Chickpea Salad.
After sharing my recipe for Cauliflower Tabbouleh got on a bit of a cauliflower kick and knew I had to use cauliflower rice in a version of my favorite Mediterranean Chickpea Salad. I love adding cauliflower rice to salads as it keeps the salad light, but gives it great texture and crunch.
Cauliflower is a really versatile vegetable and one that takes on strong flavors. If you enjoyed this salad try my Turmeric Roasted Cauliflower, Roasted Buffalo Cauliflower, Cauliflower Gratin or Spanish Cauliflower Rice recipes.
Why We Love this Chickpea Cauliflower Salad
If you are looking for a light salad full of flavor this one is for you! Here is why we love it:
• Easy Preparation: No cooking required, this easy chickpea cauliflower salad is a simple assembly job and takes minutes to pull together.
• Versatile: This salad can be makes a great lunch, or light dinner option. You can also serve it as a salad side with other main dishes.
• Adapt the Recipe: Easy to adapt recipe, if there is an ingredient you don’t like the flavor of, simply leave it out.
Ingredients You’ll Need
For exact ingredient amounts and instructions, see the full recipe card below.
- Cauliflower: This recipe requires 3-4 cups of cauliflower rice, for ease I use a 16 ounce bag of cauliflower rice. If you can’t find ready prepared cauliflower rice, make your own cauliflower rice by grating 1 medium sized head of cauliflower.
- Chickpeas: I used canned chickpeas in this salad.
- Red Onion: A finely chopped red onion adds a milder onion flavor to the salad, you could also use shallots which also have a milder flavor.
- Tomatoes: I use cherry tomatoes in this recipe as they have a great sweet flavor.
- Cucumber: I like to use an English cucumber for this recipe but you can use a regular cucumber.
- Carrot: Matchstick sized pieces of carrot add great crunch and texture to this salad.
- Cheese: Feta cheese adds a salt, creamy element to the salad. If you can find a fresh block of feta buy that and crumble it yourself otherwise just buy crumbled feta.
- Dressing: The dressing is light and mixes together oil, vinegar, lemon, honey and warm spices.
Recipe Variations
- Pulses: I’ve used garbanzo beans but you can swap these for white beans like cannellini or navy beans.
- Vegetables: Add extra vegetables like zucchini, bell peppers, celery, radish, artichokes or fire roasted tomatoes.
- Cheese: Swap feta cheese for any variety of cheese, goats cheese would be a great alternative.
- Nuts & Seeds: Add some crunch and texture with a sprinkle of toasted pine nuts, almonds, cashews, walnuts, sunflower or pumpkin seeds.
- Dry Spices: You can add any variety of dried spices to the salad dressing. I like to add a teaspoon of sumac or za’atar, but you could also use garlic powder, cumin, smoked paprika, Greek seasoning, Italian seasoning or dried oregano.
- Other Ingredients: You also can add in avocado, spinach, kale, any fresh herbs you have on hand, kalamata olives, easy marinated tomatoes, oven roasted tomatoes, roasted red peppers, pickled red onions, or pickled vegetables to this salad.
How to Make Mediterranean Chickpea Cauliflower Salad
Step 1: Prepare Salad: In a large bowl combine the cauliflower rice, chickpeas, red onion, tomatoes, cucumber, matchstick carrots, green onions, mint, parsley and feta cheese.
Step 2: Make Dressing: In a mason jar or a salad dressing container combine the olive oil, red wine vinegar, lemon juice, honey, your favorite spice, salt and pepper and mix well.
Step 3: Dress Salad: Pour the dressing over the salad and gentry toss to combine. Serve immediately or cover and refrigerate.
Recipe Tip: If time allows I like to place the salad in the refrigerator for a couple of hours as that allows the cauliflower rice to absorb some of the salad dressing as it marinates.
Storage Tips
Store the salad in an airtight container, in the refrigerator, for up to 3 days.
Recipe FAQs
Yes, you can prepare the salad earlier in the day or the day before and store in in the refrigerator. However, if you plan to make this salad ahead I suggest only using half of the dressing. Save the remaining dressing to toss through the salad and freshen it up when you are ready to serve the salad.
The best way to create cauliflower rice is using a cheese grater or you can use the grater attachment on a food processor. You also can save time and buy pre-made cauliflower rice at the store.
More Cauliflower Recipes
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Mediterranean Chickpea Cauliflower Salad
Ingredients
For the salad:
- 3 to 4 cups cauliflower rice, I used a 16 ounce bag of cauliflower rice/grated cauliflower or 1 medium sized cauliflower, grated
- 1 – 16 ounce can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- 1/2 red onion, chopped {about 2/3 cup}
- 2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved {or tear drop tomatoes work}
- 1/2 english cucumber, diced {you can peal the cucumber if you want}
- 1 cup matchstick carrots
- 8-10 thinly sliced green onions, about a bunch-green parts chopped
- 1/4 cup fresh mint leaves, chopped
- 1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
- 3/4 cup feta cheese, crumbled
For the dressing:
- 2/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1/3 cup red wine vinegar
- 1 lemon, juiced
- 1 teaspoon honey
- 1 teaspoon of your favorite spice {I like to use sumac or za’atar}
- 1/2 teaspoons salt
- 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl combine the cauliflower rice, chickpeas, red onion, tomatoes, cucumber, matchstick carrots, green onions, mint, parsley and feta cheese.
- In a marson jar or a salad dressing container combine the olive oil, red wine vinegar, lemon juice, honey, your favorite spice, salt and pepper and mix well.
- Pour the dressing over the salad and gentry toss to combine.
- Serve immediately or cover and refrigerate. If you plan to make this salad ahead I suggest only using half of the dressing and saving the remaining dressing to toss the salad in when you are ready to serve the salad}.
Notes
- Try white beans instead of chickpeas.
- Add a variety of other vegetables like zucchini and bell pepper.
- If you like your salad to be a bit spicy try adding cayenne pepper to the salad dressing or even jalapeños.
- You can easily add grilled chicken, steak or seafood to this salad to create a hearty meal.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
This turned out delicious! So fresh and light! We are going to enjoy it tonight with some baked potatoes and fresh corn on the cob!
I am so glad you liked it! Sounds like a great pairing for a meal too.
This turned out delicious! So fresh and light! We are going to enjoy it tonight with some baked potatoes and fresh corn on the cob!
Yes love the idea of using cauliflower rice! Thinking of adding grilled chicken to this for dinner!
That’s a great idea! I love the addition of grilled chicken to salads.