This Middle Eastern spinach salad with crispy croutons is packed with flavor and texture from smoky roasted chickpeas, pickled red onion, za’atar toasted almonds and chewy dates! Tossed with a simple lemon dressing.

This past week, I've been on a kick cooking from one of my all time favorite cookbooks, Jerusalem. The storytelling and history behind each dish is fascinating, the pictures are stunning and every recipe I've made has been incredible. Well, except for the carrot salad...but I don't really like carrot salad so perhaps I should take the blame on that one.

Since all of the dishes are as beautiful as they are tasty, I'll probably end up sharing a few of my adaptions. If you don't like Middle Eastern food, you may want to check back in a few weeks. This spinach salad was one of the first things that caught my eye when I first got the book, and I hope you enjoy this adaption as much as I did!

Middle Eastern Spinach Salad with Crispy Chickpeas

In the book, this spinach salad is made with crispy pita to ad crunch, but for a fun twist, I decided to make this spinach salad with crispy chickpeas. It’s a fun way to add crunch and protein to this salad, plus some smoky spice. Combined with chewy dates, toasted almonds and pickled red onion, it’s the perfect simple salad to pair with Middle Eastern inspired mains.

How to Make Crispy Chickpeas

Have you ever made roasted chickpeas before? If not, move it to the top of your to do list! Roasting cooked chickpeas dries them out into crispy little bites and brings out their nutty flavor. I make them at least twice a month, usually for snacking, but once you've made them, you'l find all kinds of other uses. I like to add them on top of a creamy pureed soup for texture, toss with nuts and dried fruit for a savory trail mix, and of course, use them in lieu of croutons to add crunch to salads, like I did in this spinach salad with crispy chickpeas recipe.

Here’s how you make crispy chickpeas:

Drain 1 can of chickpeas. Pat them really dry using a paper towel or dish towel. It's important to get them as dry as possible so they'll crisp. As you're drying them with a paper towel, rub them vigorously back and forth to loosen the skin. Pick away loose skin, but unless you enjoy tedious tasks, don't worry if some still have the skin on.
Toss chickpeas with a teaspoon of oil and your choice of spices and salt.
Place in a 400 degree oven and roast for 20 minutes. Toss with a spatula and place them back in the oven to roast for another 15 minutes.
Remove from the oven and let cool. If you don't eat them all immediately, cover and store at room temperature after they've cooled completely.

Feel free to experiment with different seasonings! Some favorites of mine:

Curry
Cinnamon and sugar
Smoked paprika
Sesame oil and sriracha
Garlic and crushed red pepper
Harissa

Spinach Salad with Crispy Chickpeas Serving Suggestions

Try pairing this spinach salad with crispy croutons with:

Pan-seared lamb chops with green harissa
Vegetarian kofte
Za’atar roasted chicken
Persian herb frittata
Lavash or manoushe paired with yummy dips, like hummus or yogurt sauce
Lentil soup

Spinach Salad with Crispy Chickpeas Recipe Notes

This recipe is more of a side salad, so feel free to bulk up this spinach salad with crispy chickpeas by adding roasted or grilled chicken, feta, and/or roasted potatoes to make it a meal.

This recipe also calls for making a big batch of pickled red onions. I’ve seen people online saying they last for anywhere from 2 weeks to a year in the fridge. So um, yeah, I know that’s not helpful. Personally, I’ve kept mine for many months and haven’t died from food poisoning yet. I store them in a glass jar and love to have them on hand to add to sandwiches, salads and for garnishing tacos.

If you like this spinach salad with crispy chickpeas recipe, follow my leafy green salads recipe board for more inspiration.

This Middle Eastern spinach salad with crispy chickpeas recipe, images and text have been updated to give you the best possible content.

Middle Eastern Spinach Salad with Crispy Chickpeas

Serves 4

Adapted from Jerusalem.

Ingredients

1 14-ounce can chickpeas, drained, rinsed
2 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon cumin
1 medium red onion, thinly sliced
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup warm water
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
1/2 cup almonds, coarsely chopped, toasted
1 teaspoon za'atar
1/2 cup dates, pitted and chopped
5 ounces baby spinach leaves
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

Instructions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Pat chickpeas dry with a paper towel, rubbing vigorously to loosen skin. Pick away any skins that come loose. Toss the chickpeas with 1 teaspoon olive oil and cumin. Spread evenly on a baking sheet and roast 20 minutes. Toss with a spatula and roast an additional 15 minutes until crunchy. After roasting, remove from the oven and set aside to cool.
While chickpeas are cooking, toss red onion with sugar, salt, water and vinegar in a glass mason jar. Set aside to pickle for at least 20 minutes.
Toss almonds with 1 teaspoon olive oil. Toast in a small skillet or in the toaster oven, until fragrant and golden. Remove from heat, toss with za’atar and set aside.
Place spinach leaves in a large bowl. Toss with chickpeas, red onion, almonds, and dates. Whisk together 1/4 cup olive oil and lemon juice, season with salt and black pepper. Dress the salad with the lemon dressing and serve.