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Quinoa Chickpea Salad with Lemon Dill Dressing

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This Quinoa Chickpea Salad is a delicious and nutritious meal. With plant-based protein, fresh vegetables and a zesty lemon dill dressing, it’s perfect for a healthy lunch, light dinner, or side dish. Quick to make and full of wholesome ingredients, this salad is sure to become a go-to favourite.

If you’re looking for more quinoa salad ideas, try my Chili Lime Black Bean Quinoa Salad!

quinoa chickpea salad in large glass bowl with wooden spoon

Post originally published July 11, 2019. Photos and post updated January 2025.

Why you’ll love this recipe

I’ve been making variations of this recipe for years and it’s always a crowdpleaser. This lemon dill quinoa salad is

  • Fresh and flavourful with crisp veggies and an easy, zesty dressing.
  • Quick to prepare and tastes even better as you let it marinate in the refrigerator, making it perfect for meal prep or bringing to picnics.
  • Easily customized to suit your tastes and the vegetables you have on hand.
  • Delicious on it’s own or as a side to your favourite proteins like grilled chicken, salmon or burgers. It’s also great served on a bed of baby spinach or mixed field greens, for added nutrition.
  • Naturally gluten free and vegan, for those that have dietary restrictions.
quinoa chickpea salad in off-white bowls

Ingredients

Here are the ingredients needed to make quinoa chickpea salad. See the recipe card below for full details.

For the salad

  • Quinoa – we use a pre-rinsed variety
  • Cucumber – I use English cucumber, but you can also peel and seed a regular cucumber
  • Bell peppers  – the sweeter peppers (red, yellow or orange) work best
  • Carrot – adds nice crunch to the salad. You can also grate the carrot if you prefer that texture.
  • Green onion
  • Chickpeas (garbanzo beans)  –  I used a 19oz can, but it’s fine to use a 15oz can. Use what you’ve got!

For the lemon dill dressing

  • Extra-virgin olive oil
  • Lemon juice – freshly squeezed
  • Fresh dill – chopped and to taste (see tip 2 below)
  • Fine-grain sea salt
  • Dijon mustard
  • Black pepper – to taste
Ingredients needed to make Quinoa Chickpea Salad with lemon dill dressing, viewed from overhead with text label overlays.

How to make it

Step one: Make the quinoa

Option 1: On the stove top

  • With a dry measure, scoop one cup of quinoa into a medium sauce pan
  • Using the same measuring cup, add two cups of water to the quinoa
  • Place sauce pan over high heat and bring to a boil; once boiling, turn down to low heat and simmer for 15 minutes
  • After 15 minutes, remove from heat and let the quinoa rest for 5-10 minutes
  • Fluff with a fork

Option 2: In the Instant Pot

  • With a dry measure, scoop one cup of quinoa into the Instant Pot insert.
  • Using the same measuring cup, add one cup of cold water to the quinoa (that’s right, just one cup of water for this method).
  • Close the lid, set the vent to sealing and pressure cook on high for 1 minute.
  • Allow for a natural release (just leave it!), then when the pin drops, open the lid and fluff the quinoa with a fork.
  • Transfer to a large bowl to cool.

Step two: Prepare the mix ins 

  • While the quinoa is cooking, rinse and drain the chickpeas (be sure they drain well or the residual water could dilute the flavour of the dressing).
  • Wash and chop all the vegetables and dill.
  • Place the vegetables and chickpeas in a large bowl.

Step three: Prepare the dressing

  • In a small bowl or mason jar, combine the olive oil, lemon juice, fresh dill, salt, Dijon mustard and black pepper. Stir well. 

Step four: Prepare the salad

  • Add the fluffed quinoa to the large bowl with the vegetables and chickpeas.
  • Pour on the prepared dressing and gently toss the ingredients together until the quinoa is well coated.
  • Optional (but recommended): Refrigerate the salad for 30 minutes or more to allow the flavours to blend.
Ingredients for Quinoa Chickpea Salad grouped together in large white bowl, viewed from overhead.

Tips for success

  • Rinse the quinoa if it doesn’t come pre-washed. This will help avoid undesirable flavour and texture. I like to buy a pre-washed variety to save time (it will tell you on the package).
  • Adjust the amount of dill to taste. You can use more or less dill in the dressing. I found one tablespoon gave only a hint of dill, so I increased the amount to two tablespoons. Play with the amount to suit your taste!
  • Let the salad marinate in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes. This salad tastes even better when made ahead of time, so it’s perfect for meal prep and potlucks. We tend to make this salad a few hours before serving, to allow the flavours to blend together.
Quinoa Chickpea Salad in a large white bowl with two silver serving spoons, viewed from overhead.

More easy salad recipes

Quinoa Chickpea Salad in large white bowl next to a blue and white linen with veggies in the background.

Quinoa Chickpea Salad

Laura Lawless, BASc
This Quinoa Chickpea Salad is a delicious and nutritious meal. With plant-based protein, fresh vegetables and a zesty lemon dill dressing, it’s perfect for a healthy lunch, light dinner, or side dish. Quick to make and full of wholesome ingredients, this salad is sure to become a go-to favourite.
5 from 3 votes

Click stars to rate now! ↑

Servings 6
Calories 370
Prep Time 20 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes

Ingredients

For the salad

  • 1 cup uncooked quinoa
  • cups cucumber, quartered and sliced
  • 2 bell peppers, small dice (red, yellow, or orange)
  • 1 cup carrot, small dice (about 2 medium carrots)
  • ¼ cup green onion, chopped (white and light green part only)
  • 19oz can chickpeas, drained and rinsed

For the dressing

Instructions
 

  • In a medium sauce pan, cook quinoa according to package directions. Set aside to cool.
  • While the quinoa is cooking, prepare the cucumber, bell peppers, carrot, green onion and chickpeas. Place in a large bowl.
  • Whisk together all dressing ingredients in a small bowl or mason jar.
  • Add the cooked and cooled quinoa to the vegetables and chickpeas in the large bowl, pour the dressing on top, then stir until well combined. If you have time, cover and chill in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes to let the flavours blend. Store any leftovers in a airtight container in the refrigerator and eat within 4 days.

Notes

  1. Quinoa: be sure to rinse if your quinoa doesn’t come prewashed (it will say on the package). This will help to avoid an undesirable flavour/texture.
  2. Veggie choices: this salad is super customizable. Switch up the mix ins with what you have on hand.
  3. Dill: adjust the amount in the dressing to suit your taste. We like a decent amount of dill flavour, so we recommend at least 2 tablespoons.
  4. Marinate: we highly recommend letting it sit at least 30 minutes to let the flavours blend. 

Nutrition Estimate

Calories: 370kcal | Carbohydrates: 45g | Protein: 11g | Fat: 17g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Sodium: 563mg | Potassium: 508mg | Fiber: 10g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 4880IU | Vitamin C: 59mg | Calcium: 31mg | Iron: 2mg

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5 from 3 votes

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8 Comments

  1. Have you ever tried it with dried dill? Of course fresh is best, just curious!

    1. Laura Lawless, BASc says:

      I have, but you’re right, fresh is definitely more flavourful 🙂 I used 2 tsp dried dill to replace the fresh (1 tsp per tablespoon)

  2. 5 stars
    This was a nice, fresh recipe. I enjoyed it very much. Thank you

    1. Laura Lawless, BASc says:

      So happy to hear this, you’re welcome!

  3. 5 stars
    I’m doing a 22 day cleanse the first 10 days you can’t have any protein just fruits and vegetables. So this recipe was perfect! I could have everything in it! I did add artichoke hearts

  4. Thank you for coming up with this recipe. I have stage 3 kidney disease and this is a recipe where I can get protein from plant based ingredients instead of meat. Excited to make it!! It’ll be a delicious treat!

    1. Laura Lawless, BASc says:

      I hope you enjoy it, Lynn!

  5. 5 stars
    Made this salad late Sunday night for lunches for the week. Came together super quick. The dressing is amazing and may need to try it on more things! Great recipe!