Print

According to an old Instagram post she made, Jennifer Aniston loves this combination of ingredients. The salad is nutritious, and I made it even more well rounded, delicious, and higher in protein by stirring in some shredded chicken and boosting the lemony flavor of the vinaigrette. 

Prep: 15 minsTotal: 15 mins
Servings: 8 cups (6-8 servings) 1x

Ingredients

For the Dressing: 

  • 2 teaspoons lemon zest (~1 medium lemon) 
  • ½ cup fresh lemon juice (juice of 3-4 lemons)
  • ⅓ cup extra-virgin olive oil 
  • 1 tablespoon honey or maple syrup
  • 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard 
  • ¾ teaspoon fine salt
  • ⅛ teaspoon black pepper

For the Salad:

  • 2 cups cooked quinoa
  • 2 cups shredded or chopped cooked chicken
  • 1 (15-oz) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
  • 1 small cucumber, diced (about 1 cup)
  • ½ medium red onion, finely chopped (1 cup)
  • ½ cup finely chopped fresh Italian parsley (may sub fresh curly parsley or cilantro)
  • ½ cup finely chopped fresh mint leaves
  • 1 cup chopped roasted pistachios
  • 4 oz crumbled feta cheese (1 cup)

Instructions

  1. In a small bowl or a jar with a tight-fitting lid, combine the dressing ingredients. Whisk or shake vigorously. Dressing may be prepared up to 3 days in advance. 
  2. Prepare quinoa according to package directions, using water or chicken broth as the liquid. Allow quinoa to cool to room temperature. Quinoa may be prepared up to 3 days in advance. 
  3. In a large bowl, combine the cooked quinoa, cooked chicken, chickpeas, cucumber, red onion, fresh parsley, fresh mint, pistachios, and feta; toss to mix the ingredients. 
  4. Re-whisk or re-shake the dressing, then pour it over the salad ingredients. Toss until well coated. 
  5. Store leftover salad in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.

Notes

Need to make shredded chicken quickly? Use our Instant Pot chicken cooking method to get fully cooked and shredded chicken breasts or thighs in 20 minutes, start to finish. You can also boil, grill, or bake the chicken, or use a rotisserie chicken. 

Nutrition Information

  • Serving Size: ⅙ of the salad (about 1 ⅓ cups)
  • Calories: 475
  • Fat: 25 g
  • (Sat Fat: 6 g)
  • Sodium: 560 mg
  • Carbohydrate: 30 g
  • (Fiber: 8 g
  • Sugar: 7 g)
  • Protein: 27 g
  • Cholesterol: 43 mg

Dietary

© The Real Food Dietitians
Recipe By: Jessie Shafer