Chickpea, Feta & Coriander Salad

Chickpeas, feta, coriander with a hint of chilli in one bowl – it works for lunch, for dinner, for BBQs. This salad is lush with a fantastic combination of textures and flavours. And chickpeas are truly kick arse when it comes to nutritional value with a good serve of protein, fibre and lots of other goodies.

I’m a fan of pulses and love the humble chickpea. I buy them dried, soak overnight and then cook in big batches. This way I can bag up portions and stick in the freezer for future use. I think they taste a lot better this way. If you don’t have the time or inclination for this, then use tinned.

 

250g dried chickpeas, soaked overnight in cold water and then cook in salted water as per instructions, or two tins of chickpeas, drained and washed

1/2 cup olive oil

1 large red onion, roughly chopped

4 garlic cloves, finely chopped

1 or 2 red chillies, seeded and finely chopped

200 to 250g crumbled feta cheese

4 spring onions, green part only, chopped

1/2 cup fresh chopped coriander

1 cup chopped parsley

Juice of 1 lemon

 

• Soak chickpeas overnight in cold water, rinse, and then cook as per instructions. You want them soft but not falling apart. Drain and set to one side. If using tinned chickpeas, drain and wash, and set to one side.
• Heap 3 tbsps of olive oil in a fry pan and fry the onions gently until cooked through. Add the garlic and chilli and cook for another minute or so. Take care not to brown the garlic. Set to one side and let cool.
• Add the feta, spring union, coriander, parsley, and lemon juice to the chickpeas and season with salt and pepper. Then add the cooked red onion, garlic, chilli and remaining olive oil and mix thoroughly.

 

This is great served either as a main dish, perhaps with some wraps, or as a salad.

Enjoy!

 

Adapted from Falling Cloudberries by Tessa Kiros. While not all the recipes in this book are vegetarian, it’s well worth a look. Every recipe I’ve tried from it has been a real treat.

 

Happy eating!