This flavorful leek salad recipe includes lemon braised leeks, quinoa, chickpeas, parsley, feta cheese, and a simple dressing. It’s the perfect side dish for any occasion and can even be enjoyed as a make ahead vegetarian and gluten free lunch! Enjoy the delicious flavor of cooked leeks in every bite.
Well, we are officially in that rainy transition period that occurs between winter and spring. It’s a fitting time to bid farewell to winter veggies and welcome some new spring flavors! Speaking of, check out my produce guides for April and May if you’re in the mood for some seasonal veggies.
This delicious leek salad is my attempt to showcase a winter vegetable with a flavor combination that tastes incredibly fresh, somehow in a way that just makes you think of spring. Lemon and parsley have a way of doing that!
So what if spring hasn’t officially sprung yet?! At least we can start to get ready for it in the kitchen with this end-of-winter leeks recipe. Like all salads, it’s of course a great side dish, but I also enjoy eating it for a main course.
Jump to:
Ingredients and Substitutions
- Leeks: You’ll need two large ones, which yields about 4 to 5 cups sliced. Look for firm leeks without any dark spots or shriveled areas for the freshest flavor. Check out my tutorial on How to Cut Leeks for info about slicing and cleaning them.
- Extra virgin olive oil: For both braising leeks and making the dressing. My favorite brand is Partanna.
- Vegetable broth: Sub other types of broth or even just water if needed. You just need a little liquid to cook the leeks.
- Lemon juice and zest: This leek salad is heavy on the lemon (hence the name)! I wouldn’t skip this ingredient.
- Garlic: A key ingredient in the dressing. Use dried minced garlic or garlic powder if you don’t have fresh.
- Quinoa: If you don’t have quinoa, try farro, freekeh, brown rice, or even orzo. To save time, make the quinoa in advance or use frozen, microwaveable packets of quinoa.
- Parsley: Sub another fresh herb if desired, such as basil or thyme.
- Feta cheese: I like to buy blocks of feta to crumble myself for super fresh flavor, but pre-crumbled feta also works. Omit this ingredient to make the recipe vegan. You can also sub goat, parmesan, halloumi, or another cheese of choice.
- Chickpeas: Swap in white beans if desired.
Instructions
The full recipe card for lemony leek salad with quinoa is at the bottom of the post. Here’s a preview of the steps with photos to guide you in the kitchen.
Cook quinoa according to package instructions. It usually takes about 15 minutes to cook.
In a large skillet, warm olive oil. Add the sliced leeks and cook for a few minutes. Add the lemon zest and vegetable broth and cook until the broth evaporates.
Combine the cooked leeks, quinoa, parsley, chickpeas, and feta in a large mixing bowl.
Toss with the lemon dressing, and enjoy!
Storage
Store this recipe in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. You may want to add a fresh squeeze of lemon juice before serving to freshen it up.
Serving and Additions
This salad tastes great warm or cold, so you can choose to serve it at either temperature. It works as a side or main dish. Consider adding chicken, shrimp, or tofu (like my Vegan Crispy Panko Tofu) for additional protein.
More Leek Recipes
Love this lemony leek salad? Check out these other delicious ways to eat leeks while you’re here:
- Leek Puff Pastry Tart with Gruyere
- Pickled Leeks
- Potato Leek Pizza on Pita
- Leek Pancakes
- Fennel and Leek Soup with Potatoes
For another fresh-tasting quinoa salad, you may enjoy the Sugar Snap Pea Quinoa Salad or Quinoa Arugula Salad with Pineapple.
I’d love to hear how you like this recipe! Rate/review using the stars on the recipe card or in the comments, and follow the Veg World on YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest. Looking for something totally different? Browse the recipe library.
📖 Recipe
Lemony Leek Salad with Quinoa
Ingredients
Salad
- 3 cups cooked quinoa
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 2 leeks - white and light green parts sliced into half-moons and cleaned
- ¼ cup vegetable broth
- 2 to 3 teaspoons lemon zest - from 1 lemon
- ½ cup crumbled feta cheese
- ¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
- 1 15-ounce can chickpeas - drained and rinsed
Dressing
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
- 3 to 4 tablespoons lemon juice - from about 1 to 2 lemons depending on size
- 1 to 2 cloves garlic - minced
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- Cook quinoa according to package instructions. You typically need 1 cup dry quinoa combined with 2 cups water to yield 3 cups. You can make the quinoa up to a few days in advance to cut back on prep time if desired.
- While the quinoa is cooking, heat the olive oil a large skillet over medium heat heat. Add the leeks to the skillet and cook for 5 to 7 minutes until tender, stirring occasionally. Pour in the vegetable broth and add the lemon zest, along with salt and pepper to taste. Cook the leeks for another 5 minutes over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until the broth is absorbed. Remove from heat.
- Combine the cooked quinoa and leeks in a large bowl. Add the feta, parsley, and chickpeas. At this point, you can choose to serve the salad warm or put it in the fridge and serve it cold later.
- Prepare the dressing by whisking together the olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, salt, and pepper in a measuring cup or bowl.
- Pour the dressing over the quinoa salad when you are ready to serve it, toss until coated, and enjoy!
- Leave a rating or review by tapping the stars on this recipe card (above) or in the comments section (at the end of the post)!
Notes
- This recipe tastes great both warm or cold and as a side or main dish. Consider adding shrimp, chicken, or tofu for extra protein.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 3 to 5 days. Add a squeeze of lemon juice to freshen it up before serving.
Nutrition
This post was originally published in March of 2019. It was updated with new photos and slight changes to the recipe in April of 2024.
annabelle
delicious! I made the recipe just now with pearl cousous instead of quinoa, since that is what i had to hand, and added some sumak, to enhance the lemon taste and the middle eastern aspects of the dish (chick peas, parsley, cousous, lemon, feta etc). it is really good and I’m thrilled to have such a tasty light recipe to hand and another way of using leeks. thank you very much!!!
ps i’m not really on instagram, but may have to sign up for your recipes!!!
Lizzie Streit, MS, RDN
Hi Annabelle, what a great comment to read! I’m so glad you enjoyed the recipe, and I love the idea of using pearl couscous and sumak. Thanks for leaving a review!