This Mediterranean artichoke salad is a bright, fresh, and flavorful dish made with peppery arugula, juicy tomatoes, tender artichoke hearts, olives, red onion, shaved parmesan, and a simple Italian dressing.
It takes about 15 minutes to make, requires no cooking, and works beautifully as a healthy side dish, light lunch, appetizer, or meal-prep salad.
If you enjoy colorful Mediterranean salad recipes, this easy artichoke salad is a delicious option for potlucks, packed lunches, simple dinners, and relaxed entertaining.
If you like Greek salad, orzo salad, lentil salad, or arugula salad, you will probably love this artichoke salad. The combination of marinated artichokes, olives, tomatoes, and parmesan is simple, balanced, and full of Mediterranean flavor.
Jarred artichoke hearts make this recipe quick and convenient. They are tender, savory, and ready to use, so all you need to do is drain them and arrange them over the greens.
This salad is excellent served with focaccia, crusty bread, pasta dishes, or a meatless main course. You can also make it more filling by adding cooked white beans, chickpeas, or your favorite short pasta.
For a vegetarian antipasto-style salad, add al dente pasta and white beans, then toss everything with the dressing before serving. It becomes satisfying enough for lunch or a light dinner while still tasting fresh and vibrant.
Ingredients
- Arugula: Peppery arugula gives the salad freshness and a slightly sharp flavor. You can substitute spinach, watercress, radicchio, or mixed salad leaves.
- Artichokes: Jarred artichoke hearts in oil are the easiest choice. Quartered and marinated artichokes work best because they are already seasoned and tender.
- Cherry tomatoes: Small, sweet tomatoes add juiciness and color. Cherry, plum, date, grape, vine, or Roma tomatoes can all work. If using larger tomatoes, cut them into wedges.
- Red onion: Thinly sliced red onion adds a pleasant tang. Shallots or scallions are good substitutes.
- Olives: Black olives, Gaeta olives, or Kalamata olives add salty depth. You can replace them with capers or chopped sun-dried tomatoes.
- Parmesan cheese: Shaved parmesan adds savory richness. Pecorino cheese can be used instead.
Italian dressing
- Extra virgin olive oil: Use a good olive oil for the best flavor.
- Vinegar: White wine vinegar, red wine vinegar, or apple cider vinegar all work well.
- Lemon juice: Freshly squeezed lemon juice gives the dressing brightness.
- Maple syrup: Adds gentle sweetness. Honey or agave syrup can be used as a substitute.
- Dried oregano: Adds classic Italian-inspired flavor.
- Dried basil: Complements the oregano and tomatoes.
- Garlic powder: Convenient and evenly distributed. Fresh grated or finely minced garlic can also be used.
- Salt: Sea salt is a good choice.
- Black pepper: Adds mild heat and balance.
Add-ins
You can make this artichoke salad more filling with white beans, chickpeas, short pasta, crumbled feta cheese, diced red pepper, asparagus, capers, or fresh herbs such as basil, mint, parsley, or dill.
Instructions
Arrange the arugula on a large serving platter or in a wide salad bowl.
Drain the quartered artichoke hearts and scatter them evenly over the arugula.
Note: If your artichokes are not already quartered, cut them into bite-size pieces with a small paring knife.
Top the salad with halved cherry tomatoes, pitted olives, and thinly sliced red onion.
To make the dressing, add extra virgin olive oil, vinegar, freshly squeezed lemon juice, maple syrup, dried oregano, dried basil, garlic powder, salt, and black pepper to a small jar.
Close the jar and shake until the dressing is well combined. Alternatively, whisk the ingredients together in a small bowl.
Drizzle half of the dressing over the salad just before serving. Serve the remaining dressing on the side so everyone can add more if they like.
For the best presentation, serve the salad without tossing it. The layers look colorful and inviting on a platter.
Finish with shaved parmesan cheese and serve immediately.
Variations
Artichoke pasta salad
Artichoke pasta salad is a great choice for potlucks, packed lunches, picnics, and easy dinners. It is colorful, satisfying, and simple to prepare ahead of time.
To make it more nutritious and filling, add cooked white beans along with the pasta.
Use 8 to 12 ounces of short pasta such as farfalle, rotini, or fusilli. Cook the pasta al dente in salted boiling water, drain it, let it cool slightly, and combine it with the salad ingredients and dressing.
Questions
Artichokes pair well with basil, beans, parmesan, mozzarella, ricotta, pecorino, garlic, lemon, mushrooms, olive oil, onions, pasta, pesto, pine nuts, pizza, potatoes, salads, spinach, tomatoes, sun-dried tomatoes, and olives.
You can use jarred artichokes to make artichoke salad, artichoke pasta salad, pasta bakes, quick pasta dishes, pesto, pizza toppings, focaccia toppings, antipasti platters, mezze platters, or crostini.
Canned artichokes should be drained from their liquid, but they do not usually need to be rinsed.
Yes. Artichoke hearts can generally be eaten straight from the can unless the label says otherwise.
Make Ahead & Storage
Make Ahead: You can chop the ingredients and prepare the dressing about a day in advance. Keep everything refrigerated separately, then assemble the salad and add the dressing shortly before serving.
Refrigerator: Leftover artichoke salad keeps well for about 24 hours in an airtight container in the fridge. For the best flavor, take it out of the refrigerator 15 to 30 minutes before eating.
Freezing: This salad is not suitable for freezing because the fresh vegetables and greens will lose their texture.
More artichoke recipes
For more easy artichoke recipe ideas, try simple pasta dishes, braised artichokes, steamed artichokes, or roasted artichokes.
- Braised artichokes
- Artichoke pasta
- Steamed artichokes
- How to cook artichokes
Pasta
Artichoke Pasta
Sides
Carciofi alla Romana
Collections
How to Cook Artichokes
Sides
Steamed Artichokes
If you tried this Artichoke Salad recipe, leave a rating and share how it turned out in the comments.
Artichoke Salad
It takes 15 minutes to prepare and is ideal for meal prep, potlucks, lunch boxes, and easy entertaining.
Ingredients
Salad Ingredients
- 2 jars (12-14 oz each) artichoke hearts, quartered and marinated if possible
- 3 – 4 ounces arugula, about 4 handfuls
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
- ½ red onion, thinly sliced
- ½ cup black olives
- ¼ cup parmesan cheese, shaved
Italian Dressing Ingredients
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons vinegar
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup or honey
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon dried basil
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
-
Arrange the arugula on a large platter or in a salad bowl. Drain the artichoke hearts and place them over the greens.
-
Add the halved cherry tomatoes, black olives, and thinly sliced red onion.
-
Add all dressing ingredients to a small jar. Close the lid and shake well until combined.
-
Drizzle half of the dressing over the salad. Serve the remaining dressing on the side and finish with shaved parmesan cheese.
Notes
Substitutions: Use spinach or mixed greens instead of arugula, capers or sun-dried tomatoes instead of olives, shallots instead of red onion, and pecorino instead of parmesan.
Add-ins: White beans, chickpeas, short pasta, pine nuts, asparagus, diced peppers, and fresh herbs all pair well with artichokes.
Storage: Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 24 hours. This salad is best served fresh and should not be frozen.