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Fresh and flavorful mediterranean quinoa salad! This simple salad recipe is loaded with healthy veggies and tossed in a simple lemon dressing. Quinoa, chickpeas, olives, sundried tomatoes, basil, and feta – what’s not to love?!

close-up image of mediterranean quinoa salad in a bowl.

What You’ll Need to Make Mediterranean Quinoa Salad

Quinoa – Start with 2 cups of cooked red or white quinoa (I used white quinoa) for this recipe. To cook quinoa, simply rinse 1 cup of dry quinoa, then add to a small saucepan with 2 cups of water and a pinch of salt. Bring the quinoa to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cover with a lid. Simmer quinoa for about 15 minutes, or until all liquid has been absorbed. Once cooked, let cool to room temperature before adding to this salad!

Chickpeas – A can of chickpeas adds some extra protein to this grain salad. However, if you don’t like chickpeas, you can leave them out. Or, feel free to swap out the chickpeas with your favorite white bean – canneloni beans or navy beans would also taste great!

Kalamata Olives – This classic mediterranean ingredient adds tons of delicious flavor to this quinoa salad! Either buy pitted kalamata olives, or slice and pit them yourself for this recipe.

Feta – Another staple ingredient in many mediterranean recipes! Feta cheese is deliciously creamy and salty, and takes this salad recipe to the next level. Though if feta’s not your thing, you can leave it out or replace if with your favorite soft white cheese.

mediterranean quinoa salad ingredients separated in a bowl.

Tips and Tricks

  • This salad is great for meal prep! You can fully prep and store this salad in the fridge for up to 4 days. The flavors will only intensify as it sits.
  • Feel free to change up this salad however you’d like! Not a fan of one of the ingredients? Either leave it out or replace it with whatever you prefer. This mediterranean quinoa salad is super easy to customize and make your own.
  • Love this recipe? Try this very similar Jennifer Aniston salad next!
mediterranean quinoa salad in a bowl with a glass of water on the side.

Adjust This Recipe to Your Dietary Needs

Make it Gluten-Free: Surprise! This mediterranean quinoa salad is already gluten-free! Quinoa is a naturally gluten-free grain.

Make it Vegan/Dairy-Free: Simply leave out the feta, or swap it out for your favorite non-dairy feta – I love this Violife Vegan Feta.

close-up overhead image of mediterranean quinoa salad in a bowl.
5 from 2 votes

Mediterranean Quinoa Salad

Fresh and flavorful mediterranean quinoa salad! This simple salad recipe is loaded with healthy veggies and tossed in a simple lemon dressing. Quinoa, chickpeas, olives, sundried tomatoes, basil, and feta – what’s not to love?!
Print Pin Rate
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 15 minutes
Servings: 4 servings

Ingredients

  • 2 cups cooked quinoa
  • 1 (15.5 ounce) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
  • 1/2 English cucumber, chopped
  • 1 bell pepper, chopped
  • 1/2 red onion, chopped
  • 1/2 cup kalamata olives, pitted and sliced in half
  • 1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes, finely chopped
  • 1/2 cup fresh basil, finely chopped
  • 1/3 cup crumbled feta

For the lemon dressing:

  • 1/2 cup olive oil
  • 1/4 cup lemon juice
  • 1 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Instructions

  • Add the quinoa, chickpeas, cucumber, bell pepper, red onion, kalamata olive, sun-dried tomatoes, basil, and feta to a large bowl.
    mediterranean quinoa salad step 1
  • In a separate small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice, dried oregano, salt, and black pepper until combined.
  • Pour the dressing over the salad and toss to combine. Enjoy immediately or store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.

Nutrition

Calories: 300kcal

Perfectly seared salmon in a creamy sun dried tomato sauce, ready in under 30 minutes! This simple weeknight meal requires just one skillet and comes together in a flash. The perfect recipe when you’re craving seared salmon, with lots of delicious flavor!

creamy sun dried tomato skillet salmon recipe in a skillet with fresh parsley and lemon slices on top

Main Ingredients

Salmon Fillets – I used and recommend Atlantic salmon for this recipe. Atlantic salmon is buttery, flaky, and totally delicious. It’s pretty common, and shouldn’t be hard to find at your local grocery store or seafood counter. Sockeye is another very common type salmon, and will work in this recipe, but won’t cook up nearly as tender as Atlantic salmon. Sockeye salmon is quite lean, with a meatier consistency and a stronger fish flavor. Though feel free to use your favorite type of salmon in this dish!

Sun Dried Tomato Oil – Sun dried tomato oil is simply the oil found in a jar of sun dried tomatoes. Some sun dried tomatoes are sold dry and in bags, but for this recipe, you’ll want to get the jarred kind! That luscious oil the tomatoes are packed in is loaded with incredible flavor. However, if you can’t find sun dried tomatoes packed in oil, you can simply replace the sun dried tomato oil with a more mild olive or avocado oil.

White Wine – Any dry white wine will work in this salmon recipe! I used an extra dry Pinot Grigio and had perfect results. Though any white wine with either “dry” and/or “crisp” in the description will taste great. My favorite part of cooking with wine, is getting to pair a glass of it with my finished dish – yum!

Unsweetened Creamer – I used my dairy-free coffee creamer to make the sauce extra thick and velvety smooth. Though any cream/creamer will work here, just as long as it’s unflavored and unsweetened. If you’re not dairy-free, feel free to use heavy cream or whole milk instead.

Top Tips

  • Serve up this simple one-pan salmon recipe any way you’d like! I enjoyed mine over some brown rice and OMG it was delicious. I even used the ready-to-eat microwaveable brown rice to make this easy dinner recipe even easier to make!
  • If you have a cast-iron skillet, use it! Cast-iron does an incredible job at circulating heat and will create an irresistible golden crust on your salmon fillets. Though if you don’t have a cast-iron skillet, my recommendations are (in order) a stainless steel, ceramic, or non-stick skillet instead.
  • Love the idea of a creamy sun dried tomato sauce, but don’t love salmon? Simply turn this salmon recipe into a one-pan chicken recipe! To do this, replace the salmon fillets with four thinly sliced chicken breasts. Cook them just as you would the salmon, only increasing the cook time to ensure the chicken is completely cooked through.

Adjust This Recipe To Your Dietary Needs

Make it Dairy Free – Either use my dairy-free coffee creamer like I did, or 1/2 a cup of full-fat coconut milk in place of the creamer!

Make it Non-Alcoholic – For a wine-free version, simply sub the white wine for 1/2 cup of chicken or vegetable broth, plus 1 tablespoon of lemon juice. The broth will add flavor, while the lemon juice brightens things up!

Creamy Sun Dried Tomato Skillet Salmon Recipe

5 from 1 vote
Recipe by Samantha Course: MainCuisine: ItalianDifficulty: Intermediate
Servings

4

servings
Prep time

5

minutes
Cooking time

15

minutes
Total time

20

minutes

Perfectly seared salmon in a creamy sun dried tomato sauce, ready in under 30 minutes! This simple weeknight meal requires just one skillet and comes together in a flash. The perfect recipe when you’re craving seared salmon, with lots of delicious flavor!

Ingredients

  • 4 salmon fillets, about 8 ounces each

  • salt and pepper, to taste

  • 2 tablespoons sun dried tomato oil, see Notes

  • 1/2 cup sun dried tomatoes, sliced

  • 1 shallot, chopped

  • 6 garlic cloves, minced

  • 1/2 cup dry white wine

  • 1/2 cup unsweetened creamer I used my homemade non-dairy coffee creamer

  • 2 cups baby spinach

  • fresh parsley or basil, for serving

Directions

  • Pat salmon fillets dry with a paper towel then evenly season with salt and pepper.
  • Heat sun dried tomato oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat, place salmon fillets in skillet with the skin-side facing up. Cook salmon for about 5 minutes, then flip and cook for 2-3 minutes or until cooked to your liking. Remove salmon from skillet and set aside.
  • Reduce heat to medium and add shallots, cook until soft, about 3 minutes. Add in sun dried tomatoes and garlic, cook for another 2-3 minutes.
  • Pour in white wine and simmer for 3 minutes or until the liquid has slightly reduce. Pour in creamer and baby spinach, cook until spinach has wilted.
  • Nestle salmon fillets back into skillet, spoon sauce over each fillet and simmer until warm – about 2 minutes.

Notes

  • Sun Dried Tomato Oil: Sun dried tomato oil is simply the oil from a jar of sun dried tomatoes. If your sun dried tomatoes didn’t come packed in oil, use olive oil or avocado oil instead.

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