There was a time in my life when I didn’t like olives or feta, but now I love them both. Ten years ago, I would have never wanted to eat a Greek salad, but now I think I could eat one everyday. I try to keep this in mind when my kids turn their heads away from some of the meals I lovingly labor over for them. When I think about how much my tastes have changed over the years, I have hope that theirs will too.
Along with feta and olives, this simple Greek Quinoa Salad has tomatoes, cucumbers, and red onion with a bright red wine and lemon vinaigrette dressing. Use the ripest tomatoes possible for the best taste and texture. If you make this salad ahead of time, save some of the dressing and add it right before serving.
Greek Quinoa Salad
Ingredients
- For the Salad:
- 1 cup quinoa
- 2-3 ripe roma tomatoes, diced
- ½ English cucumber, diced
- ¼ cup red onion, small diced
- ¼ cup kalamata olives, pitted and sliced
- ⅓ cup feta cheese, crumbled
For the Dressing:- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 tablespoon red wine veingar
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ⅛ teaspoon pepper
Instructions
For the Salad:
- In a medium pot, boil 6-8 cups of water over high heat. Rinse the quinoa in a fine mesh strainer. When the water is boiling, slowly add the quinoa and boil uncovered for 11-14 minutes. After 10 minutes, start checking the quinoa for doneness. The quinoa is done when the "dot" in the middle of the quinoa starts to disappear and when some of the white filaments start to come off the seeds. Drain the quinoa over a fine mesh strainer and let cool.
- In a large bowl, use a wooden spoon to combine the quinoa with the rest of the ingredients. Add ¾ of the dressing and toss thoroughly. Season to taste with extra salt and pepper. Toss in the remaining dressing right before serving.
For the Dressing:
- In a small bowl, use a wire whisk to blend ingredients.
Notes
adapted from Alice Water's The Art of Simple Food
How to Philosophize with Cake says
What a great idea! I’ve never tried using quinoa in Greek salad but I will have to now. Beautiful pictures too! 🙂
Holly says
This looks great! Could you make this for lunch before hand and save it for the rest of the week?
Emily says
Hi Holly, this should keep for 2-3 days after it’s made. After that, I think the tomatoes and cucumbers start to lose their texture. Thanks for reading!
Holly says
Alright, thanks for the info! I will have to try this soon. 🙂
Mich says
I went to your blog to get the black bean quinoa recipe again and then saw this! Made the Greek version instead and it was also delicious!! Perfect for a light summer dinner, thank you 🙂