This Greek couscous salad is one of my favorite things to make at the moment. Picture pearl couscous tossed with cucumber, tomato, bell pepper, olives and feta, with pan-fried chicken and homemade tzatziki. The chicken and tzatziki turn it from a side dish into a full meal. It takes 35 minutes, serves four, and keeps well enough to be lunch for the next few days!
I'm lucky enough to say I've been to Greece quite a few times, with my parents, with friends, and once for a whole month with my Henry, island hopping around the Ionians. The food there is fresh and unfussy in a way I keep trying to get back to.
If you're after more in this direction, my Greek yogurt chicken in the air fryer uses the same yogurt and lemon idea as a marinade instead of a sauce, and my chicken cucumber salad is the lighter, grain-free cousin of this one. If you're wanting to be completely transported to Greece, check out my Greek Chicken Gyros.
Jump to:
Why this Greek couscous salad works
Almost every version of this online is a side dish. The recipe ends, and then there's a line underneath suggesting you add grilled chicken if you want to make it a meal. Building the chicken in from the start changes the ratios, so you get less grain and more protein, and the dish then ends up being dinner (or lunch) rather than something that sits next to dinner.
The tzatziki is the other change. Greek salads of this kind almost always get a red wine vinaigrette, which slides straight to the bottom of the bowl and leaves the top half dry. Yogurt clings. A spoonful over the top coats everything it touches, and because it goes on at the end rather than being stirred through, the salad doesn't go watery in the fridge (winning!!).
Pearl couscous (or giant couscous to some) is one of my favorite things about this salad. I personally find regular couscous too grainy. Pearl couscous on the other hand gives you a chunkier bite, which is one of the reasons this survives as a make-ahead lunch. You could also use orzo if you fancy!
Ingredients for Greek couscous salad
- Pearl couscous: sold as pearl couscous or Israeli couscous in the US, and as giant couscous in the UK. It's not really couscous at all, it's small toasted balls of semolina pasta, which is why it holds its texture the way it does. Don't substitute regular couscous here without reading the swaps below.
- Chicken breast: I go for chicken breast because it's leaner but feel free to go for skinless and boneless chicken thigh if you'd like.
- Greek yogurt: feel free to use full fat or low fat greek yogurt, just make sure its thick.
- Cucumber: you need one large one, because half gets grated into the tzatziki and half gets chopped into the salad.
- Feta: the best summer cheese! You could alternatively fry off some halloumi if you'd like and add that in instead.
- Black olives: pitted, and I use plain black olives rather than kalamata here since kalamata can overpower the tzatziki. Either works though!
- Yellow bell pepper: for color as much as anything, since the rest of the bowl is pale. Red or orange do the same job.
- Dried oregano: dried, not fresh. This is one of the few cases where the dried version is better, because it's more concentrated and it's what you'd actually find in a Greek kitchen.
For the full ingredient list with measurements, scroll down to the recipe card.
How to make Greek couscous salad
Step 1. Cook the chicken
Season the chicken breasts with salt and pepper and pan-fry in a little olive oil over medium heat, about 6 to 7 minutes a side depending on thickness (internal temp should be 165F/74C). You want golden on the outside and no pink in the middle. Set aside to rest.
Step 2. Cook the pearl couscous
Meanwhile, boil the couscous in generously salted water for 8 to 10 minutes until al dente (or according to packet instructions), then drain.
Step 3. Make the tzatziki
Grate half the cucumber, then squeeze it in your hands or a clean dish towel over a bowl or the sink to get excess water out. Combine with the yogurt, grated garlic, finely sliced mint, olive oil, lemon juice and black pepper in a bowl. Mix, taste and season according to your preferences.
Step 4. Slice and soak the red onion
Slice the red onion as thinly as you can and drop it into a bowl of cold water. Leave it there while you chop everything else. It comes out crunchy but noticeably milder, without the aftertaste raw onion leaves.
Step 5. Build the salad
Into a large bowl add in: the drained couscous, chopped cucumber, tomato, bell pepper and the drained onion. Drizzle over olive oil, scatter the oregano, then add the olives and cubed feta. Season with salt and pepper.
Step 6. Add the chicken and toss
Cube the rested chicken and tip it in. Toss until everything is properly combined and the oil has coated the couscous. Serve in bowls with a big spoonful of tzatziki on top of each. Enjoy!
Tips for the best Greek couscous salad
- Salt the couscous water like pasta water. It should taste seasoned.
- Squeeze the grated cucumber to remove excess water. Wring it out in a dish towel or using your hands until barely anything comes out. This is the single difference between tzatziki and a bowl of thin cucumber yogurt.
- Cube the feta, don't crumble it. Half-inch cubes give you distinct salty hits as you eat. Crumbled feta vanishes into the couscous and you lose it entirely.
- Season it again after tossing. Cold food needs noticeably more salt than hot food to taste the same, and there's a lot of bulk in this bowl. Taste at the end, then adjust.
Substitutions and variations
- The grain: orzo is the closest swap and behaves almost identically. Regular couscous works but is much softer, so stir it in just before serving rather than making it ahead. Quinoa, farro and bulgur all work if you want something with more chew.
- The protein: cubed extra-firm tofu, pan-fried the same way, is the vegetarian route. Chickpeas work with no cooking at all. Shrimp and halloumi are both excellent here.
- Dairy free: coconut or soy yogurt makes a decent tzatziki, and either leave the feta out or use a vegan block. You'll want a little extra lemon to make up the sharpness.
- The herbs: dill instead of mint in the tzatziki is arguably more traditional and equally good. Fresh parsley through the salad is a nice addition if you have it.
Make it ahead
This is what the recipe is really for. A few things make it work properly.
Keep the tzatziki separate. It goes on at the point of eating, not before.
The dressed salad with chicken keeps for 3 days in an airtight container in the fridge. Without the chicken it'll go a comfortable 5. If you want lunches for the full working week, make the salad base without chicken on Sunday and cook chicken fresh in a couple of batches, or use the days it's good for and accept that Friday needs something else.
Reviving it on day two or three: a fresh squeeze of lemon and a splash of olive oil, then toss.
For taking to work, salad in the main container and tzatziki in a small separate pot.
Greek couscous salad FAQs
Room temperature is best. Straight out of the fridge, the olive oil stiffens and the flavors go flat, so take it out ten or fifteen minutes before you want to eat. Freshly made, when the couscous and chicken are still slightly warm, is arguably the nicest way to eat it.
Yes, and it's a good shortcut. You'll need roughly two cups of shredded or cubed meat. It's a little softer than pan-fried breast so you lose the browned edges, but for a make-ahead lunch that difference matters much less than the twenty minutes you save.
No, store-bought is fine and this recipe still works. Homemade is better mostly because you control how much garlic and lemon go in, and shop-bought tends to be looser. If you're buying it, drain off any liquid sitting on top before you spoon it over.
No. Pearl couscous is a wheat pasta, so it contains gluten, as does regular couscous and orzo. For a gluten-free version, use quinoa instead. Cook it, cool it, and use it in exactly the same quantity.
It's a complete meal on its own, so it doesn't need much. Warm pita or flatbread for scooping up the tzatziki is the obvious one. If you're feeding more people, a bowl of hummus and some charred vegetables turn it into a proper spread without much extra work.
More Greek and Mediterranean recipes to try
- Greek Yogurt Chicken in Air Fryer: the yogurt and lemon combination as a marinade
- Feta Spring Flatbreads: warm, and excellent alongside this salad
- Substitutes for Greek Yogurt: useful if you're making the tzatziki with something else
- Bruschetta Dip: same fresh tomato energy, different continent
If you tried this Greek Couscous Salad or any other recipe on my website, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it went in the 📝 comments below. Thank you!
Greek Couscous Salad with Chicken
Ingredients
For the salad
- 2 chicken breasts about 14 oz / 400g
- 1 cup pearl couscous 200g
- 1 yellow bell pepper chopped
- ½ large cucumber chopped
- 2 medium tomatoes chopped
- ½ red onion very thinly sliced
- 1 cup pitted black olives 150g
- 7 oz feta cubed (200g)
- 3 tablespoon olive oil plus more for frying
- 2 teaspoon dried oregano
- Salt and black pepper
For the tzatziki
- 1 cup Greek yogurt 250g
- ½ large cucumber grated and squeezed dry
- 1 garlic clove grated
- 2 tablespoon fresh mint finely sliced
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- Juice of ½ lemon
- Salt and black pepper
Instructions
- Season the chicken breasts with salt and pepper. Pan-fry in olive oil over medium heat for 6 to 7 minutes per side until golden and cooked through. Set aside to rest.
- Meanwhile, cook the pearl couscous in generously salted boiling water for 8 to 10 minutes until al dente. Drain.
- Make the tzatziki: grate half the cucumber and squeeze out as much liquid as you can. Combine with the yogurt, garlic, mint, olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Mix well and refrigerate.
- Slice the red onion very thinly and place in a bowl of cold water for at least 10 minutes, then drain.
- In a large bowl, combine the drained couscous, bell pepper, chopped cucumber, tomatoes and drained onion. Drizzle with olive oil, add the oregano, then stir through the olives and cubed feta. Season.
- Cube the rested chicken, add to the bowl and toss until everything is well combined. Serve with a generous spoonful of tzatziki on each portion. Enjoy my friends!
Video
Notes
- Store the tzatziki separately from the salad.
- Dressed salad with chicken keeps 3 days in the fridge; without chicken, up to 5.
- Refresh leftovers with a fresh squeeze of lemon and a splash of olive oil, and let it come to room temperature before eating.
- Pearl couscous is sold as Israeli couscous in the US and giant couscous in the UK.
- Not suitable for freezing.
Nutrition
Always see my recipes in Google
One tap adds Myriad Recipes to your preferred sources, so my recipes show up more often when you're hunting for dinner ideas.
Leave a Reply