Mediterranean Kale Chickpea Salad

This Kale Chickpea Salad is made with baby kale, tender chickpeas and crisp vegetables. Dressed in a lemon garlic salad dressing, this Mediterranean style kale salad is perfect served as a side dish for dinner or a main dish for lunch.

This Kale Chickpea Salad recipe is healthy, filling and low in calories. Just like this Chickpea Broccoli Salad, it makes a great lunch to bring to work and is great as a light dinner.

Baby kale is perfect for eating raw in salads, for making smoothies and pesto. It's also delicious in soups and can be cooked in the same way as many other greens.

Jump to:

• How to Make it
• Ingredients Overview
• Steps Overview
• How to Make Lemon Garlic Dressing
• Serving Suggestions
• Storing Salad Dressing
• More Mediterranean Recipes
• Mediterranean Kale Chickpea Salad

How to Make it

This Kale Chickpea Salad is made with simple ingredients such as tender baby kale. Baby kale leaves are harvested from young kale plants that are not fully mature. They have a milder flavor, and because the leaves are tender, there’s no need to tenderize the kale by massaging or marinating it before making the salad.

Ingredients Overview

• Raw kale: I like to use baby kale. You can also make this salad with regular lettuce (romaine lettuce or mixed salad greens). 
• Chickpeas: For convenience, I use canned garbanzo beans. Simply drain and rinse them.
• Tomato
• Cucumber 
• Radishes
• Red onion
• Goat cheese: Feta cheese is also delicious, if you don't have either, you can add shavings of parmesan cheese.

Steps Overview

1. Wash and dry kale and add to to la large bowl. You can prepare the kale ahead of time by rinsing it and drying it in a salad spinner or by using paper towels to absorb the water from the greens.
2. Top kale with chickpeas, chopped tomatoes, cucumbers, radishes, onion and crumbled goat cheese.
3. Add some of the dressing and toss gently to combine. Taste and adjust amount of salad dressing to your liking. Serve immediately. 

How to Make Lemon Garlic Dressing

Homemade salad dressings always taste better than store-bought and this lemon garlic dressing has tons of flavor and is so simple to make.

To make the dressing, you'll need extra-virgin olive oil, freshly squeezed lemon juice and a minced garlic clove. You'll also need dried oregano, sea salt and pepper. If you have any ground sumac in your pantry, a pinch adds a great citrusy kick.

Add all of the ingredients to a small bowl and whisk the ingredients together. I like to add all of the dressing ingredients to a small jar, cover and shake well.

Serving Suggestions

This delicious salad can be enjoyed for lunch or as a side for dinner. It goes wonderfully with fish like this Pistachio Crusted Salmon or this Baked Rainbow Trout Fillet.

When ready to serve, add the dressing to the salad, toss and serve. If you prefer you can also serve the lemon garlic dressing on the side.

Storing Salad Dressing

Store leftover salad dressing in a sealed mason jar or an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week. Remove the dressing from the refrigerator about 15 to 20 minutes before using and shake well before dressing the salad.

Enjoy!

More Mediterranean Recipes

• Tabbouleh
• Fattoush Salad
• Greek Salad with Grilled Chicken
• Roasted Sweet Potato Salad
• Lebanese Red Lentil Soup
• Healthy Vegetable Frittata
• Baked Rainbow Trout Fillets with Roasted Broccoli