Everyone is going crazy for Jennifer Aniston’s viral salad that she ate on Friends everyday. And I must say, after making it and trying it, I completely understand. It is absolutely amazing!
Confession time: I’ve never seen Friends. I grew up in a VERY strict environment and wasn’t really allowed to watch much TV. Friends came on too late, plus it was on the “no watch” list. When I got older I never got around to watch it. I kind of wish that at some point I would have watched it, but so far it hasn’t happened…yet. Maybe some day. š
But this salad…omg, I may not have watched the show, but I was still very interested in this salad. It has all of my favorite things for a salad, with a bed of quinoa/bulgar wheat instead of greens! I think the original recipe used the bulgar wheat, but I’m gluten free, so I decided to try quinoa instead and it ended up being very good!
On a random side note- Cheers was also DEFINITELY on the “no watch” list and that was one of the first shows I watched after I grew up and it is one of my FAVORITE shows of all time. š
What’s Inside Jennifer Aniston’s Viral Salad?
- Quinoa– The original base ingredient was bulgar wheat, but I’m gluten free, so I decided to use quinoa instead. It works great!!
- Cucumber
- Red Onion
- Chickpeas
- Parsley
- Mint
- Feta
- Pistachios
- Lemon Juice
- Olive Oil
- Salt
- Pepper
How to Make Jennifer Aniston’s Viral Salad:
- Cook quinoa according to package instructions.
- Place quinoa in refrigerator until chilled.
- While quinoa is chilling, prepare other ingredients- dice the cucumber and onion, finely chop the mint and parsley, roughly chop the pistachios, drain and rinse the chickpeas.
- Put all of the dressing ingredients into a salad shaker/jar/small bowl and shake or whisk until blended.
- One the quinoa has chilled, place all of the ingredients into a large bowl and toss.
- Place the bowl in the refrigerator for a while longer if it’s not chilled enough yet.
- Enjoy!
Equipment Used:
PrintJennifer Aniston’s Viral Salad
Jennifer Aniston’s Viral Salad
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour, 30 minutes
- Yield: 6 servings 1x
- Category: salad
- Method: boiling, tossing
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
For the Salad-
- 1 cup of uncooked Quinoa
- 1 large Cucumber, diced
- 1 medium Red Onion, diced
- 3/4–1 cup of Parsley, finely chopped
- 1/8 cup of fresh Mint, finely chopped
- 1 can of Chickpeas, 15 oz, drained and rinsed
- 6 oz Feta Cheese, crumbled
- 1/3 cup of Pistachios, roughly chopped
For the Dressing-
- Juice of 2 Lemons
- 1 tbsp Olive Oil
- 1/2 tsp Salt
- 1/4 tsp Pepper
Instructions
For the Salad-
- Cook the 1 cup of quinoa according to package instructions.
- After quinoa has finished cooking, place in refrigerator until chilled.
- While quinoa is chilling, prepare the other ingredients- dice the cucumber and red onion, finely chop the parsley and mint, drain and rinse the chickpeas, roughly chop the pistachios.
For the Dressing-
- Place all of the dressing ingredients into a bowl, jar, or dressing shaker and shake (or whisk, if using a bowl) until blended. If using a jar, don’t forget to put the lid on. š
Assembly-
- Once the quinoa has finished chilling and all of the other ingredients have been prepared, place everything into a large bowl, and toss with the dressing.
- Enjoy!
Notes
If you tend to like a little more dressing, feel free to double the dressing recipe. I usually like a lot, but on this salad I feel like less is more. š
