Roasted Vegetable Salad
This roasted veggie salad is a healthy dish that does double time as a fine comfort food. It’s also the answer when your kids won’t eat their vegetables and a recipe you’ll make over and over. I do!
The roasting unlocks the unique flavors of the vegetables, which are brought out even more by the savory dressing. Then it’s all served atop a hearty grain. It sounds rich because it is. Oh, it’s so delicious!
This roasted vegetable salad recipe is also so easy to make. You may not think so when you see the long ingredient list, but never fear. Most of the total time to make it is veggie prep time. Everything else is a breeze!
It’s a healthy roasted salad because of its packed with nutrition. You get vitamins and minerals, plus has higher fiber (good carbohydrates!) content and lower calories. And it also presents beautifully when you serve it because of all of the color.
This salad works great to serve at a picnic or family BBQ. It serves perfectly a whole family of 6. You can easily double or triple the recipe if needed.
It also works great for meal prep! I like to make a whole batch and keep it in the fridge for a quick lunch or snack.
My kids love to eat it too!
Ingredients needed to make Roasted Vegetable Salad
For this flavorful roasted vegetable salad recipe, you will need the following ingredients:
- Cauliflower or Broccoli: Your pick! Each brings a distinct color, texture and taste, consider you’ll get almost twice the vitamin C with broccoli. Another alternative is chopped Brussels sprouts.
- Zucchini: Zucchini has a mild, slightly sweet flavor on its own and pairs well with the other vegetables by partially absorbing their flavors.
- Sweet Potatoes: Sweet potatoes’ flavor shines when roasting draws out the sugars, plus they are full of vitamin A, vitamin C, potassium and fiber.
- Chickpeas: These bring a creamy, nutty flavor and are packed with protein.
- Red Onion: Roasting caramelizes the onions, tempering their flavor and bringing a nice aroma. They also bring crunch and color.
- Couscous or Quinoa: Another hard choice! With couscous, you’ll get fluffy texture, a mild nutty flavor and complex carbs, fiber, and B vitamins. Quinoa has a denser texture and is a complete protein.
- Parsley: Parsley is part of the vegetable blend and the dressing, adding a bright, fresh, herbal flavor to both.
- Feta Cheese: Feta delivers contrast in almost every way. It inserts a tangy, salty contrast to the sweetness of the roasted vegetables, pairs its crumbly texture with the veggies’ softness and adds a visual pop with its bright white color.
- Olive Oil: Extra virgin olive oil has a rich, buttery flavor that adds depth and complexity to the dressing.
- Red Wine Vinegar: Red wine vinegar has a sharp, tangy flavor that adds brightness and balance to the dressing.
- Dijon Mustard: Adds a touch of creaminess to the dressing along with a tangy, spicy flavor.
- Garlic: Garlic adds its strong flavor to the dressing.
- Oregano: Dried oregano has an earthy flavor that adds complexity to the dressing and pairs well with the vegetables.
- Salt and Pepper: These will go into your dressing to balance the flavors. You’ll use black pepper and can go with plain or kosher salt.
Kitchen equipment needed
- 2 baking sheet pans – These baker’s half sheets are my favorite!
- Small bowl
- Whisk
- Spatula
- Large bowl for serving
What to serve with Roasted Vegetable Salad
This delicious roasted vegetable dish can be a main dish or a side dish.
You can heap it atop a generous layer of quinoa or couscous in a bowl, or spoon a smaller portion alongside perfectly grilled steak.
You can change up the ingredients to include the freshest seasonal vegetables. In spring and summer, you can pair it with a crisp white wine and crusty baguette. Then enjoy a slice of frozen lemonade pie for dessert.
When the weather gets chilly, this dish will warm you up and bring color to your plate alongside a perfectly grilled steak and baked apple slices.
FAQS
Whenever I share this roasted vegetable salad recipe, I get some of the same questions. Here are the most popular ones that people ask!
If you have a question that isn’t listed here, please leave them in the comments, and I’ll answer them as soon as possible.
Can you eat cold roasted vegetables? Do roasted vegetables reheat well?
You can eat cold roasted vegetables if you prefer them that way. I prefer this dish served warm. Thankfully, roasted vegetables reheat well. This is an excellent dish for meal prepping.
What are some substitutions for this roasted vegetable salad?
You can substitute goat cheese for the feta, however you may want to add a bit more salt if you do. I’ve covered butternut squash subbing for sweet potatoes and Brussels sprouts for cauliflower or broccoli.
You could try substituting white beans for the chickpeas. Rinse and prep the beans in the same way. For an earthier take on fresh herbs, try swapping the parsley for thyme – on the vegetables only, not the dressing.
Avocado oil can be swapped for the olive oil for roasting (not the dressing).
A few other vegetables you might add are red bell pepper, green bell pepper, carrots, and cherry tomatoes. For a different texture and definite nutty crunch, throw in some pepitas.
How do you roast vegetables so they don’t get soggy?
The best way to roast your vegetables so they don’t get soggy is to first cut them into even-sized pieces. That will allow them to cook at the same rate.
After you cut them, pat them dry to remove excess water. Then you’ll toss them in oil, which helps them crisp in the oven.
Space the vegetables evenly in a single layer with only a little bit of room between each piece. Be sure your temperature is the correct high setting so they’ll be slightly charred.
Are roasted vegetables good as leftovers?
Yes! How long are roasted veggies good for in the fridge? Usually, they’ll store well in an airtight container for three to five days.
More Grandma-Approved Recipes
If you enjoy this delicious roasted vegetable salad, check out these other favorite recipes to try. They are all delicious and grandma-approved.
- Traditional Red Potato Salad
- Fruit Chicken Salad Recipe
- Strawberry Pretzel Salad
- Radish Potato Salad
- The Best Broccoli Salad Recipe
Roasted Vegetable Salad
This roasted veggie salad is a healthy dish that does double time as a fine comfort food. It’s also the answer when your kids won’t eat their vegetables and a recipe you’ll make over and over with in-season produce and extras like chickpeas and feta cheese!
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 6 servings 1x
Ingredients
Salad Ingredients:
- 2 medium sweet potatoes, cubed
- 1 small head of cauliflower or broccoli, cut into florets
- 2 medium zucchini, cubed
- 1 medium red onion
- 3 Tablespoons olive oil, divided between two baking pans
- 15-ounce can of chickpeas, rinsed and drained
- 2/3 cup feta cheese
- 1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
- 3 cups cooked couscous or quinoa
Dressing Ingredients:
- 2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 2 Tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons minced garlic
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 2 Tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
Instructions
- Adjust oven racks to the top and middle positions and preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
- While prepping and cooking the vegetables, cook the desired grain according to the package to serve with the roasted vegetable salad.
- Rinse the produce and give the sweet potatoes a good scrub to wash away any dirt.
- Cut the sweet potatoes into 1/3-inch cubes, smaller than everything else, so they will cook in the same amount of time.
- Cut the cauliflower or broccoli into small florets.
- Place the sweet potatoes and cauliflower or broccoli on one baking sheet.
- Cut the zucchini into 1/2-inch cubes and the red onion into 1/2-inch pieces as well.
- Place the zucchini and onion on the second baking sheet.
- Drizzle half of the olive oil on one baking sheet and the other half on the other baking sheet.
- Sprinkle each baking pan with 1/2 teaspoon of salt and 1/4 teaspoon of pepper.
- Toss to coat.
- Roast vegetables in the oven for 10 minutes. Then remove from the oven and toss vegetables with a spatula to keep everything from burning. Add the pans back to the oven, rotate the oven position of the pans for even cooking.
- Continue baking for another 10-15 minutes, until the vegetables are browned on the edges and crisp tender.
- While roasting the veggies, prepare the dressing.
- Combine all the dressing ingredients in a small bowl with a whisk: olive oil, red wine vinegar, minced garlic, dried oregano, dijon mustard, salt, black pepper, and 2 Tablespoons of chopped, fresh parsley.
- Once the vegetables finish roasting, add them to a large serving bowl along with the chickpeas.
- Pour the dressing over the vegetables and chickpeas and stir to coat.
- Add the feta cheese and chopped fresh parsley
- Serve warm with couscous or quinoa.
Notes
- Serving the vegetable salad with quinoa makes it gluten-free and a complete protein.
- Include cubes of red or orange pepper for a delicious addition.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Category: Side dish
- Method: Roasting
- Cuisine: Greek, Mediterranean
- Diet: Vegetarian
