Moroccan Chickpea Rice Salad

Moroccan Chickpea and Rice Salad…is the salad for summer barbecues or family and friends get togethers. When in need of a hearty salad…make this salad. A mix of rice and chickpeas, fresh veggies, raisins and plenty of fresh lemon juice with a splash of olive oil. Add some fresh cilantro to balance out the earthy chickpeas.

This simple to prepare Moroccan rice salad isn’t a weekday salad, but an exotic “company’s coming” salad. The rice and chickpea salad is hands down one of my favourite rice chickpea salad.

The Moroccan spices such as cumin, coriander, turmeric, cinnamon and fresh ginger give this rice and chickpea salad real authentic Moroccan flavours. This epic rice chickpea salad is nutritionally dense, vegan and naturally gluten-free.

♥ The details.

This Moroccan rice salad is probably one of the simplest salads to make. To make the salad, you will need three cups of cooked long-grain rice, such as basmati rice. Once the rice is cooled, all you do is mix in the remaining ingredients and set the salad aside to develop flavours.

I’ve made this salad three times this month so far. I just love rice and chickpea salad, and so does my family. The zesty lemon combined with spices, garlic, ginger and fresh cilantro infuses the rice and chickpeas with so much flavour and freshness. It’s fresh flavourful and with so many textures.

♥ A little less time in the kitchen

There is so much going on in this rice and chickpea salad that it is anything but boring. And the leftovers make for an incredibly tasty lunch the next day. In the summer, I try not to spend too much time in a hot kitchen. This is when rice salads come in handy. You can make the salad well in advance and have it ready when you need it.

Rice and chickpea salad…the ingredients

I know that this rice and chickpea salad recipe has a long list of ingredients. However, they are mostly spices. The two main ingredients are rice and chickpeas. The salad takes only minutes to put together, but it has to sit for at least thirty minutes for the flavours to develop. And yes it is totally vegan 🙂

I especially love this Moroccan rice salad because it keeps up to seven days when refrigerated and tastes even more delicious with each day as the flavours intensify.

The best part, you can bring the chickpea and rice salad to summer barbecues, and you don’t have to worry about keeping the salad chilled. This rice chickpea salad should be served at room temperature. Enjoy!

If you like the flavours of Moroccan cuisine, check out this Lamb Stew with Saffron Ginger and Green Beans Recipe