These Mediterranean inspired quinoa bowls are loaded up with flavorful ingredients like herbed chickpeas and tzatziki sauce! Perfect for meal prep, lunch or dinner.
Spring weather has me craving light, veggie-filled meals. This quinoa bowl fills that need perfectly because it's made with flavorful but simple ingredients like herbed chickpeas, tzatziki sauce and feta.
All you have to do is mix a few ingredients together and voila-- dinner is served!
Ingredients
- Herbed chickpeas in olive oil and balsamic vinegar
- Quinoa
- Pita chips
- Hummus
- Tzatziki sauce
- Feta
- Fresh parsley
My favorite part of these bowls is the herbed chickpeas. To make, just combine a can of drained chickpeas (or chickpeas cooked from dry) with equal parts balsamic vinegar and olive oil.
I recommend using the best olive oil and balsamic that you can reasonably afford because these two ingredients provide so much flavor.
Marinating the chickpeas for at least 15 minutes is a great idea but they can also be served right away. I've even marinated them for up to 24 hours and they were delicious.
How to make tzatziki sauce
This tzatziki style sauce is made up of just a few ingredients: plain Greek yogurt, lemon juice, salt, pepper, parsley and grated zucchini.
I say "tzatziki style" because traditionally it uses dill in place of parsley.
I grate my zucchini on a box grater using the side with medium holes (similar to the size of zucchini for zucchini bread).
To remove excess moisture from the zucchini, layer shreds in a large colander and sprinkle with salt. Allow to rest for 10 minutes before combining with the other ingredients.
The result? A zesty, creamy sauce that's great in grain bowls (of course), dipped with carrots or drizzled on roasted vegetables.
Customization ideas
The whole point of grain bowl is that they are a balanced but flexible meal. If you don't have all of these ingredients, feel free to improvise!
Try using jalapeno hummus in place of regular or swap out crunchy pita chips for pita bread. You can even swap chickpeas with white beans!
I like to eat this bowl cold, but it would be equally delicious with the quinoa and chickpeas warmed up.
The bowls can be assembled in separate containers for grab and go lunches. I like to keep the pita in a separate container outside of the fridge so that it stays fresh.
Looking for similar recipes? Here are a few of my favorite recipes:
- Black Eyed Pea Veggie Bowls
- BBQ Tofu Bowls
- Coconut Curry Rice Bowls
- Balsamic Cherry Tomato Pasta Bowl
- Tofu & Veggie Spring Roll Bowls
- Sweet Potato Grain Bowls
Enjoy!
Quinoa Bowls with Herbed Chickpeas
Ingredients
- ¾ cup dry quinoa
- 1 and ½ cups water
- ¾ teaspoon fine sea salt divided
- 2 medium cucumbers
- 5 ounces plain Greek yogurt equivalent to one single serving cup
- ½ teaspoon black pepper divided
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice from ½ large lemon
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 3 tablespoons fresh chopped parsley divided
- 1 can (15 ounces) chickpeas drained and rinsed; equivalent to ~1.5 cups
- ¼ cup balsamic vinegar
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
- 3 tablespoons feta
- 3 tablespoons hummus
- 3 handfuls pita chips
Instructions
- Combine quinoa, water and ¼ teaspoon salt in a medium sauce pot. Bring to a boil over high heat. Once boiling, reduce to a simmer over low heat and cover. Simmer for 15 minutes, or until quinoa is cooked through. Fluff with a fork.
- Meanwhile, make the the sauce: Using a box grater, grate just one of the cucumbers until you have about 1 full cup. Thinly layer in a large colander and sprinkle with ¼ teaspoon salt. Allow to rest for 10 minutes. After ten minutes, lightly press on the zucchini to push out excess water. In a small dish combine zucchini, Greek yogurt, ¼ teaspoon black pepper, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, minced garlic and 1 tablespoon chopped parsley.
- To make the herbed chickpeas: Combine one can chickpeas, balsamic vinegar, olive oil, 2 tablespoons chopped parsley, ¼ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon black pepper.
- Thinly slice the other cucumber and cut into half moons. To assemble one bowl combine: ½ cup cooked quinoa, ½ cup chickpeas, several slices of cucumber, 1 tablespoon hummus, 1 tablespoon feta, 1 tablespoon tzatziki sauce and a few pita chips.
Notes
Leave a Reply