Orange Lentil Greek Salad

With sliced oranges, pears, fresh mint, and green lentils, this Orange Lentil Greek Salad is a modern and fruity twist on the salad classic. Tossed with a zesty Mediterranean Orange Dressing, this healthy salad makes for a filling main course. Skip the feta to make this a vegan salad.

This Orange Lentil Greek Salad recipe is a perfect light and healthy meal on its own but also makes a great bbq side dish, picnic salad, lunch box favorite and late night binge that you can feel good about! It’s a perfect balance of flavors and textures as it is, but there’s plenty of room for you to throw in your favorite ingredients and tweak it in endless ways! 

So, are you feeling the salad LOVE yet? I’m absolutely all for salad dinners, and my husband is luckily on board. Actually, it’s all he would eat. Because apparently men DO complain, too and my hubby complains that I make him fat. Yes, like I’m on a mission to destroy his weight goals.

So we agreed to make light and healthy salads for as long as we don’t get bored!

This fantastic Orange Lentil Greek Salad is the beginning of this season’s salad collection,

Why you need to try this Orange Lentil Greek Salad: 

This is not your momma’s Greek Salad – this is a fruity, refreshing version, somewhat more filling and with a nice sweetness from the oranges and pears! You can use any fruit that’s seasonal where you live.

Another big bonus: legumes! Lentils, beans and chickpeas are so big this year—and for a reason. They’re so good for you, good for the farmers, good for the environment, and taste great! Also, they make this Greek Salad super satisfying and filling.

I picked green lentils today because I love them, and I had plenty on hand to use. You can certainly use your favorite.

How to make Orange Lentil Greek Salad:

So, once your lentils are perfectly cooked, the salad comes together in a breeze. For the record, you can use any grain you like, or make this salad without lentils or grains, I just love adding a hearty feel to my salads so they’re a perfect meal on their ow.

I love using salad greens, sliced clementines or oranges, sliced pears, cucumbers, tomatoes, red onions, kalamata olives and feta cheese (leave this out if you’re vegan). If you’ve got strawberries, throw them in, apples, green olives, anything you love.

And what’s a perfect orange lentil Greek salad without a fantastic dressing? I love using this Salad Dressing or today’s orange vegan version. It’s a combination of garlic, oregano, vinegar, orange juice, mustard, and black olives, finished off with a touch of orange marmalade.

Simply process all these ingredients for a smooth dressing, or chop them and add them to a sealed container and shake it well. Now I promise you, once you try making your own Greek salad dressing—you won’t ever buy store bought again, ever… 😉

This Orange Lentil Greek Salad makes a fabulous full meal, very filling, hearty and tasty. Plus, if you skip the feta, it’s even vegan and gluten-free!

Take it to your next potluck, bbq, picnic, office lunch, anywhere you can think of—this salad will not disappoint 🙂 Now enjoy !:)

Tips for success: 

• For meal prep, you can make a large batch of this Orange Lentil Greek Salad, and dress only the portion you need each day.
•  Store the dressing in an airtight container in your fridge for up to a month.
• The plain salad keeps in the fridge in a sealed container for 3 days.
• If you’re wondering what’s the perfect way to cook lentils, you can read about it in this Mexican style lentil detox salad. One tip: Never salt your beans/lentils/chickpeas before they’re completely cooked.

For more salad recipes, make sure to check out this rainbow power grilled haloumi salad and this fabulous salmon asparagus sweet potato Nicoise.

4.75 from 8 votes

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Orange Lentil Greek Salad

With sliced oranges, pears, fresh mint and green lentils, this Orange Lentil Greek Salad is a modern and fruity twist on the salad classic. Tossed with a zesty Mediterranean Orange Dressing, this healthy salad makes for a filling main course. Skip the feta to make this a vegan salad.

Course Main Course, Side Dish

Cuisine American, Greek

Keyword Greek Salad, lentil salad, lentil salad with orange dressing

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 25 minutes

Total Time 35 minutes

Servings 4

Calories 399 kcal

Author Mahy

Ingredients

For the lentils:

• 1/2 cup lentils green lentils or any kind you like
• 1 cup water
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

For the salad:

• 3 cups spring mix
• 2 oranges sliced
• 1 red onion sliced
• 2 cups cherry tomatoes
• 1 pear sliced
• 2/3 cups kalamata olives pitted
• 1 cup cucumbers sliced
• 1/4 cup mint chopped
• 1/3 cup feta cheese in cubes, (optional, omit if vegan)

For the dressing:

• 2 tablespoons pitted olives
• 1 tablespoon mustard
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 clove garlic
• 1 tablespoon vinegar
• 2 tablespoons orange juice
• 2 tablespoons orange marmalade
• 1/4 cup olive oil

Instructions

1. Cook the lentil in the water, bring the water to boil on high heat. Then lower the heat to low and cook the lentils until tender for 25-30 mins. Once cooked, add the salt and cool the lentils to room temperature and colder.
2. Prepare the salad ingredients in the meantime.
3. For the dressing, place all the ingredients in a food processor and process until smooth.
4. To finish the salad, toss the salad ingredients, cooked lentils and salad dressing.

Recipe Notes

• For meal prep, you can make a large batch of this Orange Lentil Greek Salad, and dress only the portion you need each day.
•  Store the dressing in an airtight container in your fridge for up to a month.
• The plain salad keeps in the fridge in a sealed container for 3 days.
• If you’re wondering what’s the perfect way to cook lentils, you can read about it in this Mexican style lentil detox salad. One tip: Never salt your beans/lentils/chickpeas before they’re completely cooked.

Nutrition Facts

Orange Lentil Greek Salad

Amount Per Serving (1 serving)

Calories 399 Calories from Fat 180

% Daily Value*

Fat 20g31%

Saturated Fat 4g25%

Cholesterol 11mg4%

Sodium 769mg33%

Potassium 741mg21%

Carbohydrates 46g15%

Fiber 12g50%

Sugar 21g23%

Protein 11g22%

Vitamin A 1170IU23%

Vitamin C 70.7mg86%

Calcium 151mg15%

Iron 3.3mg18%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

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