Mediterranean salmon salad

Filled with roasted and fresh vegetables, pan-seared salmon and some feta cheese, this Mediterranean salmon salad is rich in protein, low-carb, full of flavor and antioxidants and it’s just satisfying. If you can’t “cook” every day, this would be a great meal prep salad for lunch or dinner!

It’s excellent for summer or spring – whenever it’s hot and you can’t imagine eating food that is not cold.

Okay, now, after kissing this Mediterranean salmon salad’s butt for a minute, let us talk about something else. We’re strangers in the night, so we're just going to talk about the weather.

We're so glad it’s over. We mean that winter thing that lasted a long time and nobody liked it. Like it sucked. Don’t know whether it’s just us living with a dark cloud over our head since November 2020, but now we feel the sun on our skin, we see the pigeons trying to make babies as well as art using their droppings on our balcony…and we're loving it.

We feel free, happy and like we're coming out of a long dark tunnel. A tunnel that left us with the biggest vitamin D deficiency. And we feel like we're finally living again.

Still, we keep going on our balcony every now and then, slapping our hands twice violently together and screaming: “Hey!”. Which does not work. The pigeons don’t even tremble. They just think we're weird when we do that. They look at us as if they’re trying to say:

“Why would you applaud us when we’re having sex and using the toilet (aka your balcony)? You pervert.”

Other than the pigeon inquisition, life’s good right now, and we're so grateful. A few days ago we had Easter here (the Orthodox Easter falls on a different date than the Catholic Easter). And it was just nice not to wear a winter jacket outside.

We painted a lot of eggs, we fought with them and then our dad invited us to eat lamb. Which he prepares once a year, and we always feel bad about it, but then we eat it…we mean, we know…we've been doing some gardening, learning how to drive again, because it freaks us out and we've been just spending more time outside. It’s been nice the last 3 days and now we're coming back (we were away for more than 3 days).

Now, after this life update nobody asked for, let’s get back to the recipe. You are going to love the Mediterranean salmon salad. It’s simple, yet, just so solid to make whenever you’ve cooked up some salmon and don’t know how to use the leftovers. It’s fresh and satisfying at the same time.

Ingredients For This Mediterranean Salmon Salad

To make the Mediterranean salmon salad you’ll need simple healthy ingredients. Exhibit A.

• Salmon. We used one salmon filet for this healthy salad, which we seared on each side for about 6-7 minutes until done. We didn’t actually add anything to it, no salt, no herbs, no spices – it was good and versatile. You could use it in whichever cuisine you like if you prepare it this way. If you have an air fryer, you could also use that for making your salmon. Last time we updated the recipe, we actually had some baked salmon and that was what we used.
• Leafy Greens. We used arugula and some cabbage, but lettuce will work too. We're somehow not a big fan of kale or spinach in salads, but those will work well in the base too.
• Tomatoes and cucumber. The classic duo. But, in the 21st century, life’s no rainbows and butterflies for these innocent vegetables (or fruits) either. One of them is getting hate for being a nightshade, the other one for not having nutrients.
• Scallions and garlic. Do not forget about these aphrodisiacs if you want to freshen up your breath. You can also use onions if you don’t have scallions.
• Lemon juice and olive oil.
• Feta cheese. If you’re not eating dairy, you can use thinly chopped olives instead.
• Radishes. We know not everyone is a fan. However, they’re full of antioxidants and healthy, especially for your liver. Also, we just love them because they’re round, crunchy and red and look pretty.
• Roasted red peppers. If you don’t have any, it’s simple to make some in the oven or on the stovetop. Simply chop them up, remove seeds (or the other way around), then rub with some olive oil and sear in the pan for a bit or bake in the oven for about 10-15 minutes. If you make more, you can keep them in the fridge for up to three days or freeze to preserve them longer.
• Fresh herbs. Last time we made the salad we didn’t have cabbage, so we used more arugula and added some fresh dill! Which we definitely recommend. Other great herbs for this salad would be parsley, basil, mint or even fresh oregano.

How it comes together

To make this Mediterranean salmon salad, you would ideally have already some cooked salmon in your fridge. If not, take out a salmon filet and sear it on both sides in a pan for 6-7 minutes each or until well-done. We wouldn’t use smoked salmon here, since it has a different flavor, which we feel won’t go well in this salad.

Then, you chop all the needed vegetables, add everything to a bowl, arrange it to look pretty, flake the salmon if you want, sprinkle the feta cheese, add salt and pepper, the oil and lemon juice and just mix it all together.

And that’s it. Simple.

How To Meal Prep This Salmon Salad

Make sure to prepare enough salmon for as many days as you’d like to have the salad. If you have no roasted vegetables or red peppers, go ahead and roast enough to have throughout the week. Usually, we find that 2 peppers are more than enough for us.

Wash, pat dry and chop the non-juicy vegetables. Use whole cherry tomatoes and add the oil, feta cheese and lemon juice when it’s time to serve the salad.

What Vegetables Go Well With Salmon

If there are some vegetables you don’t like in this Mediterranean salmon salad, don’t worry, we've got options.

For example, if you don’t like roasted peppers, you can 1) check your taste buds and 2) roast other vegetables. Asparagus, zucchini, cauliflower, broccoli or carrots are also great options if you’re on a nightshade-free diet or just don’t like peppers.

Other fruits, vegetables and herbs that would go well with salmon are avocado, lettuce, dill, parsley, cilantro, fresh oregano, lettuce, spinach, kale or even beets if you’re brave.

Dietary Restrictions & Options

This Mediterranean salad is low carb and naturally grain-free, gluten free and nut-free. If you want to make it dairy-free and paleo as well you can leave out the feta cheese and use some chopped olives instead.