Mediterranean Lamb Salad

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Yield: 4

Mediterannean Lamb Salad with Quinoa

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Mediterranean lamb salad with quinoa is one of my favourite ways to turn leftovers into something vibrant and satisfying. I toss juicy pieces of lamb with fluffy quinoa, cherry tomatoes, cucumber, pomegranate seeds, red onion, and fresh herbs, then finish it all with a sprinkling of feta. It’s bold, balanced, and packed with texture – perfect for warm days or prepping ahead for lunches. Hearty enough to stand alone, but still fresh and light enough for summer.

Prep Time 1 hour

Cook Time 1 hour

Total Time 2 hours

Ingredients

Lamb

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• 300g lamb, diced
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 tsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp dried oregano
• 1 tsp lemon juice

Salad

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• 250g baby tomatoes, diced
• 1 cucumber, diced

Caramelised Onions

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• 1 large red onion, sliced
• 1 tsp olive oil
• 1 tsp butter

Quinoa

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• 100g Quinoa
• 200ml chicken stock

Dressing

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• 100g natural Greek yoghurt
• 1/4 tsp celery salt
• 1/4 cup mint, fresh
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 1/4 cup flat leaf parsley, fresh

Additional

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• 50g Feta, crumbled
• 50g pomegranate seeds

Instructions

Lamb

1. Marinate the lamb in the oil, cumin, oregano and lemon juice with a pinch of salt, for at least 30 minutes.
2. Heat a skillet over low-medium heat and add cook the lamb for 15-20 minutes, or until charred.
3. Remove from heat and set aside

Salad

1. Set the tomatoes and cucumber in a sieve and mix through 1 tsp sea salt. Set aside to soak for one hour.

Onions

1. Heat oil over low heat and melt the butter into the oil. Add the onions to the oil and add a pinch of salt. Cook over low heat for one hour, or until caramlised.

Quinoa

1. Rinse quinoa thoroughly under cold water until the water runs clear.
2. Bring chicken stock to boil over high heat. Add quinoa, cover and reduce heat to low.
3. Simmer for 20 minutes or until all stock has been absorbed. Remove from heat and let sit, uncovered, for 10 minutes.

Dressing

1. Combine all dressing ingredients in a jug and blitz until well combined.

Bringing it together!

1. Transfer tomatoes, cucumbers, and quinoa to a salad bowl and toss together. Divide between 4 salad bowls.
2. Mix the onions through the lamb, then divide between the salad bowls.
3. Crumble the feta over the lamb and salad, sprinkle with pomegranate seeds, and then drizzle over salad dressing.

What I Cook With

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• 
  Cast Iron Skillet Frying Pan
• 
  Colander

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

4

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 465Total Fat: 26gSaturated Fat: 10gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 14gCholesterol: 90mgSodium: 394mgCarbohydrates: 31gFiber: 2gSugar: 16gProtein: 26g

Please note, this nutrition information is to be used as a guide only. Nutrition information isn’t always accurate.

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Mediterranean Lamb Salad with Quinoa

Why I Love Salad (and Always Have)

Another salad this week, though as simple as my Bacon & Kale salad with blue cheese dressing is, this Mediterranean Lamb Salad with Quinoa is a little more complicated. Now, when I say complicated, I don’t mean difficult. Simply that there are many ingredients that require different ways of preparation – fear not, it’s all incredibly easy no matter how daunting it may appear. I know it might look like a faff at first glance, but once you get going, it’s actually a joyful mess of textures and flavours coming together.

Firstly though, I want to share with you my appreciation of salad! I have been a fan of salads for as long as I can remember. It was always my task as a teen to prepare them for our regular gatherings and family barbecues. I would always spend the time to ensure each salad was perfectly balanced, and my efforts were always appreciated. There was a quiet pride in those moments, especially when someone would ask, “Who made the salad?” and then go back for seconds. Simply pleasures, y’know?

Now, this was back in the 90’s mind you, before the time of food blogs. Back then, my access to new, exciting recipes was mainly limited to cheap magazines or Women’s Weekly cookbooks! However, at the time salads were hardly sexy and these recipe collections rarely offered anything new or interesting. So of course, when I talk about my salads I mean nothing more complicated than an Australian garden salad. Think cheese, tomato, lettuce, onion, carrots and celery. Hardly exciting!

From Basic to Brilliant

However these days, thanks to the absolute abundance of recipes online, my salads are anything and everything but boring – I find myself genuinely excited about putting them together. I love pulling inspiration from different cuisines and tweaking flavours to suit whatever I have on hand. That’s what this Mediterranean Lamb Salad with Quinoa is all about. It brings in that rich, savoury lamb with all the vibrance of lemon, herbs, and feta. It’s hearty enough to be dinner but still light enough for a summer afternoon.

These are the kinds of salads I would have killed for in my teens. I imagine myself rocking up to a backyard barbie with this bowl of colour and flavour and wowing everyone. The 90s crowd wouldn’t know what hit them! It’s the sort of meal that looks fancy but feels comforting, like you’ve just taken a stroll through a herb garden in Santorini and ended up at a table filled with good wine and even better company.

And while I know I said it’s a little more complicated than some of my other salad recipes, it’s still very much doable on a weeknight. You just need to time it so the lamb is resting while the quinoa cooks, and the herbs can be chopped while the grill’s heating – multi-tasking at its finest. Plus, it all keeps well in the fridge, so it’s brilliant for meal prep too.

The Joy of Versatility

I ramble when I’m stressed. And truthfully, I’m very stressed with life right now. There’s a lot going on in the background that I can’t really talk about here, and on top of that, I’m combatting what I strongly suspect is Covid-19. My mother-in-law only just returned from living in Spain over the summer, so it’s feeling fairly inevitable. When I don’t want to overthink what’s happening in my life, I ramble. And I think it’s pretty obvious in the recipes where I use a lot of words to say, well, a lot of nothing. This might be one of those times. We’ll see how we go.

It’s strange how writing about salad turns into emotional processing, but here we are. I suppose that’s the beauty of cooking – it lets you channel your energy into something tangible. And for me, writing and cooking have always been connected. When the world feels chaotic, I cling to the rhythm of chopping herbs and the comfort of an aroma filled kitchen. It doesn’t solve anything, but it helps me breathe.

So if this post feels a little wordy, that’s why. I’m not trying to be poetic or deep – I’m just overwhelmed and trying not to spiral. This Mediterranean Lamb Salad with Quinoa might be my dinner, but it’s also my therapy session. And if you’ve ever found yourself talking to a tomato while trying to hold it together, you’ll know exactly what I mean.

Ingredients Breakdown

The star of the show here is diced lamb, marinated with olive oil, cumin, oregano, and a splash of lemon juice. It’s quick to cook and packed with flavour. For the salad, you’re working with fresh and vibrant veg: diced baby tomatoes and cucumber, and t hey bring that juicy crunch and summer brightness. The caramelised red onion – slowly softened in olive oil and butter – adds a subtle sweetness that rounds it all out beautifully.

Quinoa is the hearty base, cooked in chicken stock for a bit of depth. It’s got that lovely nutty texture that holds its own against the bold lamb. Then comes the yoghurt dressing – natural Greek yoghurt blended with celery salt, lemon juice, and a mix of fresh mint and flat-leaf parsley. It’s creamy, herby, and the perfect contrast to the richness of the meat.

To finish, a generous crumble of feta and a scattering of pomegranate seeds bring salty creaminess and sweet little pops of flavour to each bite. This isn’t just a salad, it’s a full meal that gives you something different with every forkful – hearty, zesty, cool, and warming all at once.