Chickpea salad with red onions and feta

Ingredients for 4 servings:

• 400 g chickpeas, cooked
• 200 g red onion(s), cut into thin slices
• 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 1 chili pepper(s), red, pitted, finely diced
• 7 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 7 tbsp vinegar, mild, e.g. cider vinegar
• 1 tsp sugar
• salt, black pepper
• 125 g cocktail tomatoes, quartered
• 1 m.-sized carrot(s), cut into fine strips
• 1 stalk(s) Celery, cut into fine slices
• 3 spring onions, cut into rolls
• 3 tbsp flat-leaf parsley, chopped
• 1 tbsp mint, chopped
• 125 g feta cheese, cut into 15 mm cubes
• 2 tbsp orange peel, cut into fine strips

Instructions

Working time approx. 30 minutes; Total time approx. 30 minutes

the recipe is said to come from Crete

Heat the oil in a pan, briefly sauté the onions, garlic, and chili, sprinkle with sugar, and lightly glaze. Deglaze with vinegar, season with salt and pepper, and simmer for 3-4 minutes. Add the chickpeas and heat gently in the pan. Transfer to a bowl. Add the tomato quarters, carrot, celery, and spring onions, and mix with the herbs and feta cubes. Season again with salt and pepper. Arrange on a platter. Sprinkle with orange zest. Serve lukewarm or let it sit for another two hours. Both have their appeal. Note: If you don’t have cooked chickpeas, cook them like this: Soak 150g of chickpeas in water for 12 hours. Cook with fresh water, a little salt, cloves, garlic, carrot, celery, pepper, thyme, and parsley for one to one and a half hours until tender, depending on the age of the chickpeas. They should still retain some bite, though. It’s practical to cook a large batch of chickpeas at once and use some for the salad. The rest can be easily frozen in portions.