This chickpea salad with feta and herbs is inspired by the tastes and flavours of the Mediterranean. Lebanon, Morocco, Greece, Libya and all those countries where aromatic spices, lemons, legumes and goat cheeses predominate.

You can replace the red onion with fresh spring onion for a more delicate flavour, perhaps using only the light green and white parts, keeping the dark green tips for soups, stews, and broths.

Preparing this recipe is very simple and is an excellent alternative for your weekly meal prep, as it can be stored well in the fridge for a couple of days. You will appreciate how flavoursome it gets.

Ingredients
for 4 people, preparation time 10 minutes – cooking time 20 minutes:

250g chickpeas
1 small red onion
Sage
2 tablespoons of fresh basil
2 tablespoons of fresh parsley
2 tablespoons of fresh mint
1 teaspoon of cumin seeds
1 teaspoon of coriander seeds
100g feta cheese
1 lemon (juice and zest)
1 teaspoon of smoked paprika
Extra virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper

Method

1 – Soak the dried chickpeas for at least 24 hours, then rinse and cook them in plenty of fresh unsalted water with a few sage leaves. With the pestle, mash the cumin and coriander seeds after having toasted them.

2 – Cut an onion into small diced: first making slice the onion horizontally, then vertically, and finally, transversally parallel to the root. Transfer to a small bowl and add salt.

3 – Wash and dry parsley, mint and basil, then with the knife, finely chop them up.

4 – Once cooked and cold, place the chickpeas in a bowl and add the onion – rinse it if it is too salty – the chopped herbs, paprika, crushed cumin and coriander seeds, lemon juice, pepper and chilli to taste. Serve with plenty of feta cheese and lemon zest.