Marinated Chickpea Salad
This marinated chickpea salad comes together in under 10 minutes and is packed with bold, briny flavors. Think Castelvetrano olives, sun-dried tomatoes, pepperoncinis, and capers all tossed in a punchy red wine vinaigrette. It’s one of those meals that practically makes itself and stays fresh in the fridge all week!
The chickpea salad that’s going to live in your fridge all week.
- 10 minutes of actual effort is all this dish requires! Whisk a dressing, open some cans, toss it all together, and let the fridge do the rest.
- Every bite is briny, tangy, herby, and creamy all at once. This is the kind of salad that actually makes you excited to eat lunch day after day.
Here’s what you’ll need.
Here’s how it all comes together.
MAKE MARINADE. Whisk together the olive oil, red wine vinegar, parsley, Dijon, dried oregano, garlic, and a couple pinches of Kosher salt and pepper until emulsified. Taste and add more salt as needed.
GATHER SALAD INGREDIENTS. Add the chickpeas, olives, sun-dried tomatoes, pepperoncinis, capers, and shallot to a large bowl.
DRESS + TOSS. Pour the dressing over the salad and toss until everything is well coated. Add the feta now if you’d like — I like to gently tuck the slices into the salad. You can also hold it and add right before serving.
LET IT CHILL. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour and up to overnight. This is where the magic happens!
SERVE + ENJOY. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve with toasty sourdough bread and enjoy.
Things I learned while testing this recipe.
- Sun-dried tomato oil makes a noticeably tastier dressing than plain olive oil. It adds a subtle depth that ties the whole thing together. Use it if you have it!
- Castelvetrano olives are worth seeking out. They’re buttery and mild in a way that plays really well against the punchy capers and pepperoncinis. Any other olive will work, though. Use your favorite!
- The feta situation is flexible. Crumbled blends in, sliced stays in pockets, diced gives you little bites throughout. I personally love tucking in big slabs and letting them marinate.
- Don’t skip the chill time. An hour minimum, overnight is better. The chickpeas absorb the dressing, and everything just gets more delicious the longer it sits.
- This dressing is strong on its own, but that’s by design. Once it’s coating all those chickpeas and soaking into the olives and tomatoes, it mellows out perfectly.
Better tomorrow, even better the day after that.
- This is a true make-ahead meal. Prep it Sunday, and you’ll have lunches locked in for the week.
- The flavors genuinely improve as it sits, so making it in advance isn’t just convenient, it’s actually ideal!
Here’s what I’d serve with this.
- herby Greek meatballs with creamy feta + olives
- lemon butter white fish
- honey garlic chicken meatballs
- 20-minute salmon fish cakes
- creamy Tuscan salmon
Just in case you have leftovers.
- Transfer to an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 5 days.
- Season to taste with salt and give it a good stir before serving.
More easy vegetarian recipes for your eating pleasure.
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Marinated Chickpea Salad
This marinated chickpea salad comes together in under 10 minutes and is packed with bold, briny flavors. Think Castelvetrano olives, sun-dried tomatoes, pepperoncinis, and capers all tossed in a punchy red wine vinaigrette. It’s one of those meals that practically makes itself and stays fresh in the fridge all week!
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 0 minutes
- Total Time: 10 minutes
- Yield: 8 servings 1x
- Category: Dinner, Lunch
- Method: No Cook
- Cuisine: Greek
- Diet: Vegetarian
Ingredients
MARINADE
- 1/2 cup sun-dried tomato oil (or olive oil)
- 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
- 3 tablespoons fresh chopped parsley
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 2 cloves garlic, grated (or finely minced)
- Kosher salt
- fresh cracked black pepper
SALAD
- 2 (15 ounce) cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- 1 cup sliced, pitted Castelvetrano olives
- 1/2 cup julienne-cut, oil-packed, sun-dried tomatoes, drained and roughly chopped
- 1/2 cup finely chopped pepperoncinis, drained
- 3.5 ounce jar capers, drained
- 1 shallot, finely diced
- 4 ounces feta cheese (sliced, crumbled, diced, whatever)
Instructions
- MAKE MARINADE. Whisk together olive oil, red wine vinegar, parsley, Dijon, dried oregano, garlic, and a couple pinches of Kosher salt and pepper until emulsified. Season to taste with more salt as needed.
- GATHER SALAD INGREDIENTS. Add chickpeas, olives, sun-dried tomatoes, pepperoncinis, capers, and shallot to a bowl.
- DRESS + TOSS. Pour dressing over the salad and toss until everything is well coated. Add feta cheese now if you’d like. I like to gently tuck slices into the salad. You can also add just before serving if you prefer.
- LET IT CHILL. Refrigerate for at least an hour and up to overnight.
- SERVE + ENJOY. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve with toasty sourdough bread and enjoy!
- SHARE THE LOVE. If you loved this recipe, please leave a 5-star rating and review below!
Notes
- Sun-dried tomato oil makes a noticeably tastier dressing than plain olive oil. It adds a subtle depth that ties the whole thing together. Use it if you have it!
- Castelvetrano olives are worth seeking out. They’re buttery and mild in a way that plays really well against the punchy capers and pepperoncinis. Any other olive will work, though. Use your favorite!
- The feta situation is flexible. Crumbled blends in, sliced stays in pockets, diced gives you little bites throughout. I personally love tucking in big slabs and letting them marinate.
- Don’t skip the chill time. An hour minimum, overnight is better. The chickpeas absorb the dressing, and everything just gets more delicious the longer it sits.
- This dressing is strong on its own, but that’s by design. Once it’s coating all those chickpeas and soaking into the olives and tomatoes, it mellows out perfectly.
