Harissa Chickpea & Sweet Potato Salad
with Feta, Candied Sunflower Seeds, Pickled Shallot & Creamy Lemon Herb Dressing
- Milk
- Eggs
Move over, side salad: this meal is a hearty Middle Eastern feast. After roasting chickpeas and sweet potato in harissa spices, you’ll quick-pickle shallots and make sweet and crunchy candied sunflower seeds. Toss that all over crisp baby spinach, and dress it all up with a creamy lemon herb dressing—now that’s a satisfying meal.
Ingredients
½ cup
Feta Cheese
(Contains: Milk)
1 unit
Chickpeas
½ ounce
Sunflower Seeds
4 tablespoon
Sour Cream
5 ounce
Spinach
1 unit
Green Herb Blend
1 unit
Lemon
1 unit
Sweet Potato
1 tablespoon
Harissa Powder
1.5 ounce
Buttermilk Ranch Dressing
(Contains: Eggs, Milk)
1 unit
Shallot
Not included in your delivery
teaspoon (tsp)
Black Pepper
2 teaspoon (tsp)
Sugar
2 teaspoon (tsp)
Cooking Oil
teaspoon (tsp)
Salt
Nutrition Values
Utensils
Cooking Steps
• Adjust rack to top position (top and middle positions for 4 servings) and preheat oven to 425 degrees. Wash and dry produce. • Drain and rinse chickpeas; pat very dry with paper towels. Dice sweet potato into ½-inch pieces. Toss chickpeas and sweet potato on a baking sheet with a large drizzle of oil, half the harissa powder, and a couple big pinches of salt. (For 4, use 2 baking sheets and all the harissa powder; roast on top and middle racks.) TIP: If you prefer a milder flavor, use less harissa powder. • Roast on top rack until chickpeas are crispy and sweet potato is tender, 20-25 minutes. • Let cool at least 5 minutes before adding to spinach in step 5.
• Meanwhile, halve, peel, and thinly slice shallot. Zest and halve lemon; cut one half into wedges. (For 4 servings, zest and halve one lemon; cut remaining lemon into wedges.) Finely chop parsley and chives. • In a small microwave-safe bowl, combine shallot, juice from lemon half, ½ tsp sugar, 1 TBSP water, and salt until sugar and salt have mostly dissolved. (Use juice from whole lemon, 1 tsp sugar, and 2 TBSP water for 4.) • Microwave for 30 seconds. Set aside to pickle, stirring occasionally, until ready to serve.
• Heat a small, dry pan over mediumhigh heat. Add sunflower seeds, 1 tsp sugar (2 tsp for 4 servings), and 2 TBSP water. Cook, stirring, until water has evaporated and sunflower seeds are coated and lightly toasted, 2-4 minutes. • Turn off heat; transfer to a second small bowl.
• In a third small bowl, whisk together sour cream, ranch dressing, parsley, chives, ¼ tsp sugar (½ tsp for 4 servings), a squeeze of lemon juice, and a pinch of lemon zest to taste (save a bit for the next step). Stir in water 1 tsp at a time until mixture reaches a drizzling consistency. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
• Once cooled, carefully toss roasted chickpeas and sweet potato with remaining lemon zest to taste. • In a large bowl, toss together spinach, half the roasted veggie mixture, half the feta, and half the dressing (save the rest of each for serving). Season with a big pinch of salt and pepper.
• Divide salad between plates or shallow bowls. Top with remaining roasted veggie mixture, remaining feta, candied sunflower seeds to taste, and as much pickled shallot (draining first) as you like. Drizzle with remaining dressing. Serve with any remaining lemon wedges on the side.
Customer reviews
Review summary
Updated on Dec 2025- Flavor: Many loved the blend of spicy harissa, tangy pickled shallots, and sweet potato, creating a delicious mix of textures and tastes 🌶️.
- Ease of prep: Some found it time-consuming with multiple steps, while others appreciated how simple it was to put together.
- Suggestions: Consider adding more greens, as many felt the portion was too small for two servings.
- Portions: Several customers mentioned the meal was light; some added chicken or other proteins to make it more filling.
- Spice level: Use harissa sparingly at first; some found it very spicy even with half the recommended amount.
Reviews from our home cooks
Yummy and healthy. The harissa is a revelation. And who doesn't love candied sunflower seeds? Big win for my hard to please vegetarians and my die hard omnivores. It's hard to find recipes that satisfy both and this one does. Thank you!
Took a chance on something I suspected I would like and my husband would not. Surprise! He liked it and said we should order again. I prepared the salad so he would not have to comment on the things he maintains he doesn't like: sweet potatoes, chickpeas, and harissa. Hello Fresh gets flavor right.
This was possibly the best salad I've ever made. The harissa powder added a kick I wasn't expecting and the chickpeas made it even better!
This is definitely one of my favorite salads, great amount of spice, I love the pickled onions, and you can never go wrong with feta and chickpeas
More work than I am used to for a salad but it was worth it. I used less Harissa than called for and added chicken marinated in your hot honey. The flavors were very well balanced. I have to say that this is my new favorite salad.
This had great flavor! My bag was missing its shallot! But I subbed in an onion I had. Loved the spiciness of the harissa, the tanginess of the pickles onions, and the sweetness of the sweet potato, then the lemon in the dressing...just wow!
Very delicious recipe! The Harissa seasoning was VERY hot and I'm happy I only used a pinch. Great combination of flavors. I added slices of grilled chicken for my husband.
So unique and filling, loved it! Combination of ingredients was great and would have never thought of it myself. Sunflower seeds kind of clumped together but didn't bother me much, seasoning on chickpeas and sweet potato was yummy
It was very good but just not as good as some 4 star meals - the harissa was a bit too spicy. I think it might be good to suggest 1/3 of the packet to start with and add more after testing it. The dressing was good, sunflower seeds kind of got lost in the salad (my husband didn't even know they were there). Feta cheese would be better not mixed into salad at all - just on top.
Very good Salad with all kinds of colors and tastes. 10 min prep time is a little misleading, drying off spinach leaves and making sure washed chickpeas are 'extra' dry isn't a 10 min job :).
