Cottage Cheese Chickpea Salad (No-Cook, 15 Minutes)

Cottage Cheese and Chickpea Salad

Curdy cottage cheese makes the base for a mound of chickpeas, crisp vegetables, avocado, and green olives. A little red wine vinegar and olive brine brighten the topping without soaking the cottage cheese. This cold, no-cook salad takes about 15 minutes to assemble and makes two generous meal portions or four smaller sides. Serve crackers or pita chips alongside for scooping.

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups 2% or whole-milk cottage cheese (340g)
• 1 cup canned chickpeas, drained and rinsed (165g)
• 1 cup English cucumber, diced small (135g)
• 1 cup cherry tomatoes, quartered (150g)
• 1/2 cup red bell pepper, diced small (75g)
• 1/4 cup red onion, finely diced (35g)
• 1/2 medium ripe avocado, diced (75g)
• 1/3 cup green olives, sliced (50g)
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, plus a little for finishing
• 2 teaspoons red wine vinegar
• 1 teaspoon olive brine
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
• 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt, or to taste
• 1/8 teaspoon black pepper, plus more to finish
• Seeded crackers or pita chips, for serving (optional)

How to Make Cottage Cheese and Chickpea Salad

1. Drain and chop: Let the rinsed chickpeas drain until they are no longer dripping. Cut the vegetables and avocado into small, recognizable pieces, slice the olives, and chop the parsley.
2. Mix the dressing: Stir together the tablespoon of olive oil, red wine vinegar, olive brine, oregano, salt, and pepper in a small bowl.
3. Dress the topping: Combine the chickpeas, cucumber, tomatoes, bell pepper, red onion, avocado, olives, and parsley. Add the dressing and toss gently, keeping the avocado pieces intact. The topping should be lightly coated, with no dressing pooling in the bowl. Taste and adjust the vinegar, salt, or pepper if needed; the olives and brine are already salty.
4. Build the bowl: Spread the cottage cheese across the bottom of a shallow serving bowl. Spoon the topping into a mound in the center, leaving cottage cheese visible around it. Do not stir the topping into the cottage cheese.
5. Finish and serve: Add a light drizzle of olive oil and a little more black pepper. Serve cool, with crackers or pita chips on the side.

Ingredient and Texture Notes

Two-percent or whole-milk cottage cheese usually makes a richer, thicker base. Nonfat cottage cheese works, but it may spread more loosely. The chickpeas stay soft in this no-cook salad; they do not need to be roasted.

For a milder bowl, omit the red onion. Fresh pita or bread also works in place of crackers. For a pasta-based salad with chickpeas and a different herb profile, try Lemon Basil Parmesan Pasta Salad.

Make-Ahead and Storage

For advance prep, refrigerate the cottage cheese, chopped vegetables and chickpeas, and dressing in separate covered containers. Cut the avocado close to serving time, then dress the topping and assemble the bowl. Once combined, the cucumber and tomatoes release moisture, so the assembled salad is best served promptly. Keep crackers separate so they stay crisp.

Nutrition

Approximate nutrition per generous meal portion, based on 2 portions and excluding crackers: 475 calories, 29g protein, 22g fat, and 42g carbohydrates. Per 100g: about 90 calories, 6g protein, 4g fat, and 8g carbohydrates. Values vary with the cottage cheese, olives, and amount of finishing oil used.