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    Home » Recipes » Vegan Salad Recipes

    Mediterranean Green Olive Salad Dressing

    By: Amy Katz · Published: Jul 15, 2019 · Last modified: Oct 6, 2020 · This post may contain affiliate links. · As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

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    Special diet: gluten-free, nut-free, soy-free, vegan

    Mediterranean Green Olive Salad Dressing is loaded with tangy flavor. This rustic vegan sauce is simple to make with garlic, lemon, and parsley. For a simple meal, try it tossed with chickpeas and cherry tomatoes. Or serve it with your favorite lettuce and crusty bread. If you love olives, it's sure to become a favorite recipe.

    Overhead of chickpea, tomato, and arugula salads

    What's the difference between black and green olives?

    When I was little, I was one of those kids who adored black olives.

    At Thanksgiving when my mom put out a bowl with the appetizers, I would quickly grab 10 and place one on each finger.

    But not surprisingly, at that age I hadn't yet discovered my love for green olives or this green olive salad dressing.

    It wasn't until I was older and visited Spain that I learned to appreciate the more bitter green ones.

    There it's common to be given a bowl of fruity olives to enjoy with your beverage, similar to how edamame is served with beer in Japanese restaurants.

    I also didn't realize that black and green olives grow on the same trees.

    In fact, the difference in color has to do with when the olives are picked before they are cured, not their variety.

    The black ones are fully ripe while the green ones aren't.

    If you're interested in learning more about olives, check out What's The Difference Between Black And Green Olives, Anyway?

    And now that I'm older, I've never met an olive I didn't like.

    Some of my favorite ways to enjoy the green pimiento-stuffed ones are in Green Pepper Salad and Black Eyed Pea Dip.

    In addition, this Mediterranean Green Olive Salad Dressing makes a regular appearance on my table.

    Process shots showing how to make green olive salad dressing

    Green Olive Salad

    Rather than olives being a topping in this salad, they are roughly chopped and turned into a dressing.

    Then the rest of the salad is comprised of whatever components you like.

    For example, you can serve this green olive salad dressing on your favorite lettuce.

    Or you can toss in chickpeas and cherry tomatoes like I did in the photos above.

    It's also fantastic as a dipping sauce for warm slices of crusty baguette.

    How to make the dressing

    You will need the following ingredients for this chunky vinaigrette:

    • Green olives (I use the ones stuffed with pimientos, which are sweet red cherry peppers.)
    • Fresh garlic
    • Fresh parsley
    • Lemon juice
    • Olive oil
    • Salt and pepper (optional)

    I like to the make the olive dressing directly in the bottom of the salad bowl.

    1. First add the coarsely chopped olives, minced garlic, chopped parsley, lemon juice, and olive oil to the bowl.
    2. Then give everything a stir to combine. You can use a fork for this.
    3. Give the mixture a taste, then add salt and pepper, if desired.

    Finally it's time to add your salad to the rustic dressing.

    I love the combination of briny olives, mild beans, and sweet tomatoes, but feel free to experiment with your favorite ingredients.

    If you don't want to use all of the green olive salad dressing right away, cover and refrigerate it for up to 2 days.

    Close up of chickpea and cherry tomato salad tossed with green olive dressing

    Other serving suggestions

    This dressing is very versatile and can be used for a lot more that just salads.

    For example, you can think of it as a Mediterranean salsa and pour it over grilled vegetable kebabs.

    Or serve it on baked tofu steaks.

    Green olive salad dressing is also fantastic drizzled over potatoes, rice, or your favorite grain.

    Salad on a white plate

    Green Olive Salad Dressing

    This recipe makes 4 servings but you can easily make more or less to suit your needs.

    If you love this recipe, please give it 5 stars!

    Mediterranean Green Olive Salad Dressing

    Mediterranean Green Olive Salad Dressing is loaded with tangy flavor. This rustic vegan sauce is simple to make with garlic, lemon, and parsley.
    5 from 4 votes
    Print Pin SaveSaved! Rate Text recipe + ingredient list Email recipe + ingredient list
    Special diet: gluten-free, nut-free, soy-free, vegan
    Course: Salad
    Cuisine: Mediterranean
    Prep Time: 15 minutes
    Total Time: 15 minutes
    Servings: 4
    Calories: 121kcal
    Author: Amy Katz

    Equipment

    • 5-blade herb scissors
    • Lemon Lime Squeezer
    • Salad Bowl

    Ingredients

    • ½ cup pimiento-stuffed green olives, coarsely chopped
    • 1 clove garlic, minced
    • 1 Tablespoon fresh parsley, chopped fine
    • 3 Tablespoons lemon juice
    • 3 Tablespoons olive oil
    • salt and pepper, to taste

    For serving (optional):

    • 1 dry pint cherry tomatoes, halved or quartered
    • 1 can chickpeas, (15 ounces) 1 ½ cups, rinsed and drained
    • baby arugula
    US Customary - Metric
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    Instructions

    • Combine the chopped green olives, garlic, parsley, lemon juice, and olive oil in a salad bowl.
    • Taste and add salt and pepper, as needed.

    Serving suggestion:

    • Add the cherry tomatoes and chickpeas to the dressing in the salad bowl. Toss well to coat. Serve over a bed of baby arugula.

    Notes

    Nutrition facts are for the dressing only.
    Leftover dressing may be covered and refrigerated for up to 2 days.
     
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    Nutrition

    Calories: 121kcal | Carbohydrates: 2g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 13g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Sodium: 264mg | Potassium: 12mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 150IU | Vitamin C: 5.9mg | Calcium: 9mg | Iron: 0.2mg

    Nutritional information is an estimation only.

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    About Amy

    Amy Katz is a vegan recipe developer, photographer, and Certified Vegan Nutrition Health Coach. She loves sharing delicious plant-based Mediterranean diet recipes that home cooks of all levels can enjoy. Her easy vegan recipes have been featured on HuffPost, LIVESTRONG, Healthline, Parade, VegNews, BuzzFeed, MSN, Greatist, Country Living, Insider, Brit+Co, Well+Good, and more. She lives in Orange County, California with the love of her life, Brad, and their adorable black cat, Ozzy.

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    All commentsI made this
    1. Cindy

      January 23, 2021 at 6:14 am

      5 stars
      I fell in love with this while visiting Turkey and finally found a recipe for it!!!

      Reply
      • Amy Katz

        January 23, 2021 at 10:24 am

        I'm so glad, Cindy! It's one of our favorites.

        Reply
    2. Mandy

      September 30, 2020 at 6:46 pm

      5 stars
      This was delicious! How can there ever be leftovers?? Haha

      Reply
      • Amy Katz

        October 01, 2020 at 9:37 am

        Thank you, Mandy! I completely agree. 😉

        Reply
    3. Kirkpatrick

      February 11, 2020 at 11:42 am

      5 stars
      Delicious! Omg!!! Gave recipe to friends, we love all things olive! Thank You!!!

      Reply
      • Amy Katz

        February 11, 2020 at 12:00 pm

        Thank you so much! Olive lovers, unite! 🙂

        Reply

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