This Spicy Chickpea Cucumber Salad with Feta is a refreshing, flavorful Mediterranean dish. Perfect for potlucks and BBQs!
I LOVE a fresh, crunchy salad like this for summer. I first got into this style of salad when I tried Albanian tomato salad, which is made with tomatoes, bell peppers, cucumbers, onion, feta, and sometimes olives and/or lettuce. When people hear Mediterranean, they usually think of countries like Greece and Italy. But Albania is actually also on the Mediterranean sea, as well as the Ionian and Adriatic seas. So finding super fresh flavors in their cuisine should be no surprise!
Even though Albanian salad is delicious, adding chickpeas and feta to this Spicy Chickpea Cucumber Salad makes it more filling, thanks to the protein and fat. It’s perfect to serve at a potluck or summer BBQ, but would also be so tasty stuffed in pita bread for a light, packable lunch. Another idea is to try it on top of my herby spring pasta recipe! Herbs + more herbs is a win in my book. My husband and I also have this for dinner in my house served over homemade saffron rice. That’s a go-to meal for me in the summer, because it doesn’t require the oven or the stove (since I use a rice cooker). No matter how you eat it, I hope you love this salad as much as I do!
Spicy Chickpea Cucumber Salad with Feta FAQs
Nope! They are already cooked when canned. But if you cook your own chickpeas at home, you can sub in about 1 and 1/2 cups of chickpeas instead of the can of chickpeas.
By scooping out the seeds! The watery center of the cucumber that contains the seeds can make salads soggy. But by scooping them out, you don’t have to worry about them ruining your salad. And because the flesh of the cucumber is so soft, scooping out the seeds is very easy!
I used English, also known as hothouse, cucumbers for this salad because they generally have fewer seeds than other varieties. Sometimes English cucumbers are called “seedless”, but that’s not an accurate label. They do have seeds, but they’re very easy to scoop out!
Yes! They have the exact same nutritional value as home-cooked chickpeas. The only thing to note is that canned chickpeas are usually more salty. If you’re worried about your salt intake, buy a low-sodium variety and rinse very well before using in this recipe.
Are chickpeas and garbanzo beans the same thing?
Yes! Those are just two different names for the same thing.
Spicy Chickpea Cucumber Salad with Feta
Ingredients
Chickpea Cucumber Salad
- 1 Long English Cucumber see notes
- 1/2 Cup Red Onion thinly sliced
- 1 Can Chickpeas
- 1 Bunch Fresh Parsley
- 1/2 Cup Feta or more, to taste
Dressing
- Juice from 1/2 Lemon
- 1/4 Cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 1/2 Tsp Salt or more to taste
- 1 Tsp Aleppo Pepper see notes
- Black Pepper to taste
- Red Pepper Flakes to taste, optional
- 2 Tbsp Toasted Sesame Seeds
Instructions
- Start by prepping your veggies. Using a mandoline, carefully slice an onion until you have about 1/2 cup.
- Cut your cucumber in half lengthwise. Using a spoon, scoop out the gooey seeds in the center and discard.
- Drain, rinse, and dry your can of chickpeas. Discard any loose chickpea skins.
- Add vegetables to a mixing bowl, and set aside.
- Prep the dressing – mix all dressing ingredients in a small bowl and whisk until combined. Taste, and adjust seasonings if desired. Then, pour over the salad and stir. Let this mixture sit while you complete the rest of the steps, so the vegetables can marinate.
- Chop up your bunch of parsley then add to the bowl. Mix.
- Finally, crumble about 1/2 cup of feta into the salad, and mix. Feel free to add more or less feta to your liking.
- Let the salad rest in the refrigerator, covered, for at least 15 minutes before serving, so the flavors can all meld and the sharp bite of the red onion softens.
- To serve, garnish with more parsley and extra sesame seeds, if you'd like.
- Enjoy!
Notes
- Keep this salad refrigerated until ready to serve. It will keep in the fridge for up to two days, but will lose its crunch over time.
- English cucumbers, aka hothouse cucumbers, are a variety of cucumber that generally have fewer seeds than regular cucumbers, and are usually about a foot in length. However, you can easily use regular cucumbers in this recipe. Just be sure to scoop out the seeds so the salad doesn’t get mushy.
- Aleppo pepper is a medium-spicy dried pepper spice that comes in flakes. If you don’t have it, you can sub the same quantity hot or sweet paprika, or omit if you like. Just note that because paprika is made in a finer grain, it will tint the salad red.
- It is HIGHLY recommended to use the safety guard or kitchen gloves while using a mandoline.
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