Take your vegetable game up a notch with this crunchy, herby, crave-worthy snap pea salad recipe with tender green beans, tangy feta cheese, walnuts, and crispy quinoa.
When I’m Craving Crunch, I Make this Snap Pea Salad
Snap peas serve as the base of this vegetable salad, where I mix in lightly steamed green beans, earthy toasted walnuts, chunks of briny feta, peppery arugula, and generous amounts of parsley and mint. I sprinkle the whole thing with crispy quinoa to give it that addictive crunch.
The crispy quinoa is ridiculously easy to make and even more fun to eat. It’s like toasted breadcrumbs but healthier, gluten-free, and just as hard to resist. This vibrant green salad is loaded with enough texture and flavor to enjoy as a main meal, but I also like to serve it alongside recipes like Whole Roasted Chicken or this simple (and fast) Broiled Salmon.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Amazing Textures: Combines snappy peas and beans with “addictive” crispy quinoa for a healthy, gluten-free crunch.
- Bright and Zesty: Packed with veggies and fresh herbs, salty feta, and toasted walnuts in a vibrant lemon-garlic dressing.
- Quick: Ready in 30 minutes.
Snap Pea Salad Ingredients
- Green beans and Snap Peas: These veggies make up the base of this salad. Green beans are earthy and tender, while sweet snap peas provide a crisp texture.
- Lemon juice and zest: I always opt for lemon juice when I want to add fresh flavor and a hit of acid. Using the zest adds a floral note that brightens up the flavor of the vegetables.
- Garlic and Scallions: Minced garlic gives the dressing a nice bite, and scallions add oniony flavor.
- Extra virgin olive oil: Carries the flavor of the dressing and adds a peppery bite.
- Kosher salt and black pepper bring out the flavors of the aromatic ingredients and balance the citrus.
- Feta cheese: Salty and tangy, this crumbly cheese packs a powerful flavor. I like to use Sheep’s milk feta whenever possible, but cow’s milk feta is also fine.
- Toasted walnuts: Earthy, rich walnuts are one of the most nutritious nuts: high in fiber and omega-3 fatty acids. Toasting them brings out their natural sweetness.
- Herbs: Parsley is such a great all-around herb, adding a peppery, earthy flavor to almost any salad. I reach for mint whenever I want to add a refreshing, herbal note to a salad.
- Arugula: In this salad, baby arugula provides a different texture and helps tie the ingredients together.
- Crispy quinoa: Adds a crunchy layer. To make it, you’ll need cooked (or leftover) quinoa, salt, and olive oil.
How to Make Snap Pea Salad
You can certainly make this recipe with standard quinoa, but crisping it on your stove or in your oven is well worth the added time. You can prepare the quinoa up to one week in advance. Keep it on hand for grain salads, snacking, and beyond (see my full crispy quinoa guide for more ideas). Here are the steps:
Make the Crispy Quinoa
- Cook and cool the quinoa (or use leftover quinoa): Simmer 1 cup of quinoa in 1 1/2 cups of water until the quinoa is fluffy and the water has been absorbed, 13-15 minutes. Let steam, covered with a kitchen towel, about 10 minutes. Then spread the quinoa on a sheet pan, breaking up any clumps with a fork, and let it cool completely before using it to make the Crispy Quinoa.
- Make the crispy quinoa: Toss the cooled quinoa with 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil, 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, and 1/4 teaspoon Aleppo pepper (or your favorite spice combination). Spread the quinoa on a rimmed sheet pan and toast in a 375°F oven, turning with a spatula every 10 minutes or so, until golden brown and crispy, 25-30 minutes. Or add to a large pan and cook on your stovetop over medium-low heat, stirring frequently with a wooden spoon, for 20-25 minutes.
Cook the Veggies
- Prep the veggies: Snap off the stem ends of 1/2 pound green beans and slice them diagonally into bite-sized pieces. Trim the ends of 1/2 pound snap peas and remove the strings (if desired), then cut them to match the beans.
- Steam the green beans: Combine the green beans with 1/2 cup of water in a large skillet. Cover and set on medium heat. Cover and bring water to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer beans until crisp-tender, about 3 minutes.
- Gently steam the snap peas. Remove the pan from the heat and add the snap peas. Cover, and let stand until snap peas are bright green, but still crispy, about 3 minutes more. Pour off any remaining water and let the vegetables cool.
- Make the dressing: In a large bowl, combine two tablespoons of freshly squeezed lemon juice, one teaspoon lemon zest, and two cloves minced garlic; season with salt and pepper. Whisk in two tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil.
Dress and Serve
- Dress the salad: Add the vegetables and toss with the dressing until well coated. Add 1 cup crumbled feta cheese, 3/4 cup chopped walnuts, 4 minced scallions, 1/2 cup each parsley and mint, and two ounces of baby arugula. Toss, being careful not to break up the feta too much.
- Top with the Crispy Quinoa: Divide the salad among plates and top each with about 1/4 cup of Crispy Quinoa. Serve immediately.
How to Trim Snap Peas
When it comes to snap peas both the pea and the pod are edible. The plump, crisp pods have a string that runs down the seam. Choosing to remove the string is entirely up to you. I cut the peas for this recipe, so the string doesn’t bother me, but if it bothers you, here’s how to remove it.
- Hold the pea in one hand and start at the stem end. Snap the top of the stem and pull down. The string should come right out.
- If there isn’t a stem, you can just snap the pointed tip off the top of the pea and pull it down, string and all.
Snap Pea Salad Variations
The appeal of this salad for me is the combination of textures–crisp vegetables, creamy cheese, and the addictive crunch of the Crispy Quinoa. Keeping this in mind, feel free to play around with the ingredients. Here’s how:
- Vary the veggies: While I love the combination of green beans and snap peas, you can try all green beans or all snap peas. If you only have English peas, you can try them in this recipe, but it will look different, or make our English Pea Salad instead.
- Change up the nuts: Other nuts that would work well are sliced almonds, pistachios, or chopped hazelnuts.
- Switch up the greens: Baby spinach or a spring green mix are good swaps for the arugula.
- Don’t lose the crunch: The Crunchy Quinoa is what makes this salad irresistible to me. Other ways to add that essential texture are toasted bread crumbs, broken pita chips, or extra chopped nuts.
What to Serve with Snap Pea Salad
The benefit of a salad like this is that you have everything you need in one dish. Throw in a piece of fruit to nibble on, and you have an easy-to-pack and satisfying lunch that can be made in advance. To make it a complete meal for dinner, try these recipes:
- Grilled Chicken Kebabs, which are loaded with garlic and aromatic spices.
- Juiciest Lamb Kebabs dipped in our Easy Tzatziki Sauce, a traditional recipe from the Greek Island of Paros.
- If it’s nice outside, put some pork chops on the grill and dine al fresco!
On hot summer nights, I love make-ahead frozen desserts, like:
- This ultra-refreshing Lemon Sorbet, which uses just two ingredients and doesn’t require an ice cream maker.
- Or make Frozen Yogurt, another easy-breezy dessert that takes just 5 minutes to prep.
Snap Pea Salad with Green Beans, Walnuts, and Crispy Quinoa
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Ingredients
- 3/4 cup walnuts
- 1/2 pound green beans, trimmed and sliced on the diagonal into bite-sized pieces
- 1/2 pound snap peas, trimmed and sliced on the diagonal into bite-sized pieces
- 1 lemon, zested and juiced (1 teaspoon zest, 3 tablespoons juice)
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- Kosher salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 cup crumbled feta cheese (about 4 ounces)
- 4 scallions, trimmed and sliced
- 1/2 cup chopped parsley
- 1/2 cup chopped mint
- 2 ounces baby arugula (about 4 cups)
- 1/2 cup Crispy Quinoa (see note)
Instructions
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Toast the walnuts: Preheat your oven to 350°F. Spread the nuts on a small baking sheet and place in the hot oven. Bake until they turn golden brown and smell toasty, about 10 minutes. Let cool on the baking sheet completely before roughly chopping.
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Meanwhile, steam the green beans: Combine the green beans with 1/2 cup of water in a large skillet. Cover and bring water to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer beans until crisp-tender, about 3 minutes.
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Gently steam the snap peas. Remove the pan from the heat, add the snap peas, and immediately cover. Let sit until the snap peas are bright green but still crispy, about 3 minutes more. Pour off any remaining water and let the vegetables cool uncovered.
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Make the dressing: In a large bowl, combine lemon zest, lemon juice, and garlic. Season with 1/2 teaspoon salt and plenty of freshly ground black pepper. Whisk in extra virgin olive oil.
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Toss: Add cooled vegetables to the bowl with the dressing and toss until well coated. Add the feta, walnuts, scallions, herbs, and arugula and toss gently, avoiding breaking up the feta too much.
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Garnish and serve: Divide the salad among plates or shallow bowls and top with Crispy Quinoa. Serve immediately.
Notes
- Shop this recipe: Visit our shop to browse quality Mediterranean ingredients including the olive oil used in this recipe.
- I recommend seasoning the Crispy Quinoa with your favorite savory seasoning blend or simply Aleppo pepper for this recipe.
- Getting ahead: Store the quinoa covered at room temperature for up to one week. Store the salad and dressing separately in your refrigerator for up to 3 days. Dress and garnish the salad just before serving.
- Nutritional calculation does not include the Crispy Quinoa.
Nutrition
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