It's my first full day back from Europe and I am BEYOND ready for some vegetables. Between spending a week in Italy and having the flu, I don't think I've seen an edible plant in weeks. Thank goodness I keep most of the ingredients I need for Greek Salad in my fridge at all time! Add a few fresh ingredients and I have a delicious Greek Salad any time I desire.
To be SUPER honest, this Greek salad is not super traditional. I've been to Greece, and I am very aware this is a bastardized version of what you'll get there. In Greece, there is no lettuce and it's pretty much red onion, tomatoes, a block of feta, and cucumbers plus an olive oil and vinegar dressing with dried oregano. However, this is one of my go-to salads because it has a lot of the taste of that dish, but is full of way more vegetables which is just what I want for a salad. If you're looking for a damn delicious salad, keep reading. If you're looking for a classic Greek salad, keep Googling.
Things to Keep in Your Fridge
Costco is one of my very favorite stores, but buying things there as a single girl is hard! You pretty much have to stay away from all fresh produce or anything with a short shelf life because you just won't go through it. When you do commit to something you have to be VERY sure you're going to like it because it will be taking up space in your cabinet for months (I'm looking at you 4505 Pork Rinds). This is why I love the jarred food the most! There are a few staples that I keep in my fridge always because they turn into meals! You should definitely keep a big jar of Sundried Tomatoes, Kalamata Olives and Artichoke Hearts if you enjoy Greek Salad as much as I do.
I always battle with myself over spending around $8 on a huge jar of these things, but honestly you get SO much bang for your buck. I went to Trader Joe's after buying the three in the picture and was really happy I had spent a little more now because I got so much more food for the price that I paid! And since Greek Salad is my go-to "I'm being healthy now" meal, I have no excuse but to eat a lot of salad!
Marinated Onions
If you want to make next level salad, then you have to make these Marinated Onions. I ran across No Crumbs Left's counter onions years ago, and they're just so easy to make! The absolute key to making them is to make sure that you don't break up the onion because then you need about 20xs more olive oil to cover them, and that's frustrating! They'll last a week or so on your counter and the oil is excellent as the dressing for this salad. Don't be afraid to mix up the spices too! I love using thyme or basil in mine too. You really can't go wrong. Plus they're GREAT sauteed. I almost like them more that way and this makes it much easier for a single person to go through a whole red onion before they go back.
The Protein
For this particular salad, I was being SUPER lazy. I just wanted a salad pronto so while at Trader Joe's I grabbed a container of their Shawarma Chicken Thighs. I love this chicken because it's Whole30 friendly, it's super easy to make, and they really place a lot of flavor into these packs which is my favorite. For these, you just take them out and bake them in a 400 degree oven for 20 minutes and slice.
Trader Joe's Chicken Shawarma 
Before Cooking After Cooking
If you're one of the poor souls who doesn't have ready access to this chicken though, Greek Chicken Shawarma is really easy to whip up! I am including a marinade at the bottom of this post. This will give you a very similar flavor palette to the Trader Joe's version. If you want to make up your own chicken though, go for it! This is an easy way to make this recipe taste better to you, by making chicken you like best! Just think about the flavors that really make up Greek food. Think lemon, cumin, garlic, vinegar, oregano, etc. But heck, you could really just shred up a rotisserie chicken too and call it a day if you're busy.
And the rest is easy! Just fill up that bowl with lettuce and other toppings plus the chicken and you have a delicious Greek Salad that will really give you that veggie fix you've been needing. I skipped out on the feta this time, because I do not need more cheese in my life right now. If you're feeling like feta, go for it! Can't wait to hear what you think of this one. Happy eating!
Recipe
Easy Greek Salad
Ingredients
Chicken Shawarma
- 1 pound chicken thighs
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp paprika
- ½ tsp allspice
- ½ tsp turmeric
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- ½ tsp salt
Salad Ingredients
- 2 cups romaine lettuce, chopped
- ½ cup cucumber, sliced
- ⅛ cup marinated onions
- ¼ cup tomatoes
- 5 kalamata olives
- 1 tbsp sundried tomatoes in oil
- 3 marinated artichoke hearts
- 1 tbsp feta, if not dairy free
- ¼ cup button mushrooms, sliced
Instructions
- Mix all Chicken Shawarma ingredients together and marinate in fridge, covered, for up to 1 day beforehand.
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Bake marinated chicken for 20 minutes or until thoroughly cooked.
- Slice chicken and serve 1 chicken thigh in bowl with remaining salad ingredients. Save remaining chicken for future salads.
If you make this recipe, be sure to tag @thatzestlife in your photo! I would love to see what you made!
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