The No-Cook Dinner I Always Make When I Get Back from Vacation

As a food writer, I am fortunate to have the opportunity to travel often. As someone who loves to eat my way through every city possible, this means in the week leading up to a trip, you’ll find me eating more fridge clean-out soups and salads and cobbled-together leftover meals than anything else. By the time travel day rolls around, I usually proudly leave a fridge containing only jars of jam and mustard behind. 

I travel easy, knowing I’m not wasting food I spent my hard-earned dollars on. But the day I return home, the food options are scant, to say the least. That’s where this Lemony Lentil Salad with Feta comes in. It comes together fast and doesn’t require any cooking at all, perfect after a long day of travel. The base ingredients—lentils, condiments, lemon juice and onion—are all things I always have in my pantry. And I can pick up the more perishable ingredients—red bell pepper, feta, parsley and cucumber—at the well-stocked bodega near my house or, in a pinch, I’ll swap them out for more pantry-friendly items. 

Though I love the juicy crunch of fresh bell peppers, I always have a jar of roasted red peppers to use in their place. While fresh parsley and dill add a bright pop of flavor, dried herbs can easily stand in for fresh here—I just add a bit more lemon juice to get the best flavor payoff. 

Feta cheese can spoil if left for a long time, but I've found a workaround: marinated feta. Now, this usually requires a special trip to the store right before I leave, but it’s worth it. Marinated feta cubes are suspended in seasoned olive oil, which is not only super delicious but helps preserve it for a bit longer. When I can, I’ll buy a jar right before I leave so I can make this salad when I get back.  

Cucumbers provide a good crunch, so if I’m craving that texture but didn’t pick up the cucumber, I’ll raid my fridge door for ingredients like pickles or a few rings of pickled banana peppers to satisfy my need for some crunch. If I use pickled or brined ingredients in place of fresh, I’ll be sure to rinse off some of the extra salt or reduce the salt in the dressing, to maintain the balance of flavors.

Even when I’m not traveling, I make this salad on the regular, often a double batch. Leftovers are wonderful; the flavors of the dressing soak into the lentils so it gets better and better as it sits. To make this a well-rounded meal-prep option, I’ll pick up a bag of arugula, a pint of cherry tomatoes and some grains I can cook and mix in, like farro or barley.

While lentils are a great source of vegetarian protein, sometimes I’ll grab a pack of veggie sausages or meatballs to add on top. I love a super-creamy salad, so I’ve also been known to mix in a scoop of strained yogurt or add a swoop to my plate and top it with the salad. If you can’t find cans of lentils or don’t want to go to the trouble of making them from scratch, know that canned chickpeas or white beans work well in this recipe too. 

And finally, an added bonus of this recipe, especially following a journey: It’s a total lifesaver when I want a gut reset when I come home. If you’re like me, traveling often means eating more desserts, pastries and rich foods than we usually do at home, plus air travel alone can cause a gastrointestinal slowdown. With 11 grams of fiber per serving, this salad can get things moving smoothly once again. Everything about this no-cook dinner, from fresh veggies to canned beans and easy swaps when your fridge is empty, makes it the perfect post-vacation meal.