Crispy Quinoa & Chickpea Salad

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Crispy Quinoa + Chickpea Salad

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Prep

20 minutes

Cook

40 minutes

Yield

4 -6

This Crispy Quinoa & Chickpea Salad is healthy and delicious. The fennel and pear topping, combined with the crunch from the quinoa is the perfect combo.

This Crispy Quinoa & Chickpea Salad is so delicious. Complete with quinoa, chickpeas, and a pear and fennel salad for a pop of flavor. This salad is a tasty side dish, or even a main course for a healthy lunch. It looks impressive, it’s easy-to-make, but it’s so tasty.

Crispy Quinoa Salad

❤️ Why You’ll Love Crispy Quinoa & Chickpea Salad

  • Easy: This Crispy Quinoa & Chickpea Salad is so easy to make. Prep it in 20 minutes
  • Healthy: This recipe is made with healthy ingredients full of vitamins and minerals
  • Flavorful: The pear and fennel salad really gives this salad a POP of flavor that’s to die for

🍲 Ingredients

Fennel – Fennel has a very mild anise flavor so it’s not everyone’s favorite taste but I find it pairs so nicely when mixed with other ingredients. It’s also good for you. Full of antioxidant compounds that help fight cell damage, and so many other health risks.

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Chickpeas – Chickpeas are so good for you. They can help with digestion because they are high in fiber, and can even help with lowering cholesterol, your risk of cancer, and so much more. They are great to toss in a bowl, soup, stew or salad.

Close up of Crispy Quinoa Salad

👩‍🍳 How to Make Crispy Quinoa & Chickpea Salad

  1. Preheat the oven to 425F and line two large baking sheets with parchment paper.

For the quinoa

  1. Cook the grains according to package instructions. Set aside.
  2. After the quinoa is cooked, add it to one of the baking sheets along with the pressed garlic, salt, pepper, chili flakes, olive oil, lemon juice and lemon zest. Toss to combine and then flatten out into a single layer on the pan. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until the quinoa is starting to crisp up. Set aside when done.

For the chickpeas

  1. To another large sheet pan lined with parchment paper add the drained/rinsed chickpeas, olive oil, salt and pepper. Toss to combine and bake fro 20-25 minutes or until crispy *if it fits in the oven while the quinoa is baking, add this pan to the oven at the same time* Set aside when done.

For the pear fennel salad

  1. Assemble the pear salad by making the dressing – whisk together the olive oil, red wine vinegar, salt and pepper. To a medium bowl add the sliced pear, sliced fennel, parsley, cilantro and walnuts. Toss with the dressing.

Assemble the final dish

  1. Finally, assemble the final dish – to a large serving platter or bowl spread the greek yogurt on the bottom and then top with the baked grains and finally the pear-fennel salad.
Crispy Quinoa & Chickpea Salad on a platter

🪄 Tips and Tricks

🗒 Substitutions

  • Chickpeas: You can definitely make this salad with white beans instead of chickpeas
  • Pear: Pear is so lovely with the fennel in this recipe but if you prefer you can try apple instead
  • Walnuts: Walnuts can be left out to make this nut free or you can use pecans instead


🗒 Best served with

👝 How to Store Leftovers

This salad is best served fresh but you could prepare the chickpeas and quinoa ahead of time, then prepare the fennel and pear salad when you’re ready-to-eat.

🤔 Common Questions

What kind of pear should I use for this recipe?

Any pear would be great but the best varieties are Anjou, Bosc, Bartlett and Comice.

How do you make quinoa crispy?

Cook the quinoa like normal than put it on a baking sheet to bake until crispy. It adds a nice texture to salads.

Crispy Quinoa + Chickpea Salad

5 from 3 votes
This Crispy Quinoa & Chickpea Salad is healthy and delicious. The fennel and pear topping, combined with the crunch from the quinoa is the perfect combo.
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 40 minutes
Total Time 1 hour
Course Salad + Main
Cuisine American-Inspired
Servings 4 -6
Calories 545 kcal

Ingredients
  

For the quinoa

For the chickpeas

For the pear fennel salad

  • 2 ripe pears, sliced thin (about 1 1/2 cups)
  • 1 large fennel, sliced thin
  • 2 tbsp fresh minced parsley
  • 2 tbsp fresh minced cilantro
  • 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
  • 3 tbsp olive oil
  • 3/4 tsp salt
  • 1/4 tsp pepper
  • 2 tbsp red wine vinegar
  • 1 cup plain Greek yogurt
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Instructions
 

  • Preheat the oven to 425F and line two large baking sheets with parchment paper.

For the quinoa

  • Cook the grains according to package instructions. Set aside.
  • After the quinoa is cooked, add it to one of the baking sheets along with the pressed garlic, salt, pepper, chili flakes, olive oil, lemon juice and lemon zest. Toss to combine and then flatten out into a single layer on the pan. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until the quinoa is starting to crisp up. Set aside when done.

For the chickpeas

  • To another large sheet pan lined with parchment paper add the drained/rinsed chickpeas, olive oil, salt and pepper. Toss to combine and bake for 20-25 minutes or until crispy *if it fits in the oven while the quinoa is baking, add this pan to the oven at the same time* Set aside when done.

For the pear fennel salad

Assemble the final dish

Video

Notes

Nutrition

Calories: 545kcal | Carbohydrates: 50.1g | Protein: 16g | Fat: 33.6g | Saturated Fat: 5.1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 8.9g | Monounsaturated Fat: 17.8g | Cholesterol: 6.2mg | Sodium: 1263.5mg | Fiber: 10g | Sugar: 11.1g
Review This Recipe Let us know how it was!
Helen

5 stars
I love a salad that is different from the basics. Boy, this one didn’t disappoint. It was an explosion of tastes and textures. Absolutely loved it!

Maria Koutsogiannis

Thank you so much for the love, Helen!!!!

Yvonne

5 stars
Amazing recipe right in time for the fall!

Maria Koutsogiannis

Thank you so much hun!

5 from 3 votes

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