Pea and Mint Salad with Feta

A simple and delicious recipe for Pea and Mint Salad with Feta you can make at home. This dish is so easy to make and is packed full of big flavors. The simplicity of the recipe allows the amazing taste of the ingredients to shine through and is optimal when (like most recipes) you are using the best ingredients. In this recipe we will show you step by step how to make this delicious Salad that is the perfect side dish for a hearty meal, or a meal to simply enjoy on its own as a light and healthy meal

How to make Pea and Mint Salad with Feta

As the name of the dish suggests, there are three core ingredients to this dish, the Peas, the Mint, and Feta Cheese. In addition, we create a very simple dressing to bring the whole dish together, which is best prepared right before serving for optimal flavor and freshness

Starting with the Peas, there’s no need for anything fancy. You can simply get your hands on some nice frozen Peas, and they’ll do a fantastic job with this dish. In fact, it’s commonly known that using frozen Peas is fine for almost every Pea dish. Even some fancy fine dining restaurants use frozen Peas, so for home cooking they are more than fine

When it comes to the Mint, freshness does really come down to seasonality. While you can now buy herbs all year round, you may notice they are sometimes lacking in aroma and flavor during certain months. When it comes to Mint, the best time to use it in cooking is late Summer / early Fall

During these months the Mint will be at its ripest and will bring the best flavors to this Pea and Mint Salad with Feta. That being said, you can make this dish all year round and it’s going to taste great regardless

When it comes to Feta, we prefer the Greek-style

There are loads of different Feta Cheese options you can choose from, and they all carry varying flavor and texture profiles. For this recipe we recommend using Greek Feta. It has a slightly less salty flavor than other styles of Feta, which allows you to better control the seasoning when preparing the dish

Perhaps the biggest plus of using Greek Feta is its texture. We want a crumbly, dryer-style Feta Cheese for this dish as it will present better on the plate and retain its form and texture once the Salad has all been combined

Using a creamy Feta may result in the cheese dissolving into the dressing before you serve the dish. While the flavor will be great, the overall appearance may be affected. So, for the best flavor, texture, and appearance we recommend using Greek Feta. The good news is this is such a common type of Feta Cheese you’ll be able to find it at your local grocery store

Preparing the dish

With the ingredients sourced it’s time to put this dish together. The great news it this dish requires very little effort at all. Since we’ve got some nice frozen Peas, the first step is to get them cooked. Simply place them into a pot of boiling water and allow them to cook

Peas don’t need long to cook at all. In fact, they’re so much better when they are barely cooked as they will have a beautiful texture and flavor. So, simply boil them for about 1 minute before straining them and immediately placing them into ice water

Placing the Peas into ice water will stop the cooking process and allow the Peas to turn a beautiful bright green color. All you need to do is fill up a pot of water in the sink and load it up with ice from your freezer. If you don’t have ice, you can get by with simply using cold water. I’d recommend keeping the water cold once the Peas go in, so simply run the cold water into the pot for a few minutes until the Peas are completely cool

This dish is served cold, so you can prepare the Peas first and get them nice and cold before moving on to the next steps

Preparing the Mint

Don’t be shy with adding Mint to this dish. I mean, the dish is called Pea and Mint Salad with Feta for a reason. We want that Mint flavor to be prominent. I like to roughly chop about half of the Mint and then leave the remaining leaves whole

Doing this will give you a nice variation of textures of Mint in the dish. Also, having some whole Mint leaves looks great on the plate. For the dish we use about 1 ½ cups of Mint. This is about the volume of the Mint leaves once you’ve removed them from their stalks

Making the dressing and finishing the dish

When you’re ready to serve, strain the Peas and place them into a salad bowl with the Mint. In a separate bowl make a simple dressing by combining equal parts Lemon Juice with Olive Oil and some Salt. Mix it all together to emulsify (using a whisk works great here) and then drizzle the dressing over the Mint and Peas then mix well

Another great way to make simple salad dressings like this is to buy a bunch of glass jars with sealable lids and store them in your kitchen. Instead of using a bowl and whisk to combine them, simply pour the Lemon Juice and Oil into the jar. Seal it up then give it a good shake which will get the same result, but without as much mess or hassle

With the dish done it’s now simply a matter of serving. I like to plate the Pea and Mint Salad with Feta onto individual serving bowls, but you can also serve it as is in the salad bowl. The final step is to add the Feta Cheese, which you simply crumble over the top of the Salad right before serving

Pea and Mint Salad with Feta Recipe

Ingredients

• 2 cups of Frozen Peas
• 1 ½ cups of fresh Mint, stalks removed
• 2 heaped tbsp. of Greek Feta Cheese
• 3 tbsp. fresh Lemon Juice
• 3 tbsp. Olive Oil
• ½ tsp. Salt
  
  

Instructions

1. Bring a pot of water to the boil then add the Peas. Cook for 1 minute then strain and place them into a pot of ice water (or cold water) to cool
2. Roughly chop half the Mint, leaving the other half whole and place them into a salad bowl with the cooked cold Peas
3. Combine Lemon Juice, Olive Oil, and Salt into a small bowl and whisk well then drizzle over the Pea and Mint. Mix well
4. Serve the dish onto individual serving plates and finish with a generous crumbling of Feta Cheese
   
   

Recipe Notes

• To make ice water simply place a large pot of water filled with ice in your sink. If you don’t have ice, you can just use cold water. We recommend keeping the cold water running over the pot until the Peas completely cool
• We recommend using Greek Feta Cheese for its crumbly texture which works best for this dish
  
  

This delightfully simple Pea and Mint Salad with Feta is so flavorsome. The classic pairing of Peas and Mint works amazingly well in this dish, and each ingredient’s flavors are amplified by that simple Lemon and Olive Oil dressing. Adding that wonderfully crumbly Feta Cheese right before serving gives the dish a beautiful flavor and texture, making this Salad one you must try at home

For more tasty and healthy recipes just like this, check out these great dishes:

• Mint and Cucumber Salad
• Chicken Schnitzel Salad with Roast Vegetables
• Thai Style Chicken Salad
• Watermelon and Mint Salad
  
  

Happy Cooking!