High-Protein Watermelon Feta Salad
This recipe was created before I started documenting my recipes online, so there isn't a photo or video for it yet. But I've made it, loved it, and wanted to share it with you anyway. 🤎
Sweet, salty, fresh, and packed with protein — the easiest no-cook summer meal.
There is something about watermelon + feta that just screams summer.
This version adds a good serving of protein so you can eat it as an actual meal, not just a little side salad. It's juicy, crunchy, salty, fresh, and takes about 10 minutes to throw together.
Ingredients
For the Salad
- 4 cups watermelon, cubed
- 1 cup cucumber, diced
- 4 oz feta cheese, crumbled
- 8 oz cooked chicken breast, chopped or shredded
- 1/4 cup fresh mint, chopped
- 2 tbsp red onion, thinly sliced
- 2 tbsp pumpkin seeds or sunflower seeds
For the Dressing
- 2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
- 1 tsp honey
- 1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
- Salt, to taste
- Freshly cracked black pepper, to taste
Make It
- Add the watermelon, cucumber, chicken, feta, mint, red onion, and seeds to a large bowl.
- Whisk together the olive oil, apple cider vinegar, lemon juice, honey, Dijon, salt, and pepper.
- Pour the dressing over the salad.
- Gently toss everything together.
- Serve right away or chill for 15–20 minutes.
A little tip: If you're making this ahead, keep the dressing separate. Watermelon gets juicy as it sits, and nobody wants a soggy salad.
My Gym Girlies 💪
If you're eating this as a meal and want it to actually help you hit your protein goal, this is where I'd customize it.
Add more chicken if you need more protein, or swap the chicken for grilled shrimp or turkey. You can also serve it alongside Greek yogurt or cottage cheese for an easy protein boost.
Need more carbs around your workout? Add some roasted potatoes, rice, or a slice of homemade sourdough on the side.
And if you're meal prepping it, keep everything separate and build your salad when you're ready to eat.
Basically: don't be afraid to make the portion fit your goals. A "healthy" recipe doesn't have to mean a tiny portion.
My From-Scratch Girlies 🌿
Now for my girls who would rather grow it, make it, or know exactly where it came from.
Use the garden cucumber. Grab the mint growing by the back door. Slice up those sweet summer onions. Use your homemade apple cider vinegar and local honey in the dressing.
Have leftover roast chicken from yesterday? Throw it in.
Making your own feta or using cheese from a local farm? Even better.
This recipe is really just a starting point. Let the season decide what's going in the bowl.
That's one of my favorite things about cooking from scratch — you don't always need a perfect grocery list. Sometimes you just walk outside, see what's ready in the garden, and build dinner from there.
And honestly? You can be both. The girl who tracks her protein, lifts heavy, and wants to build muscle… and the girl who wants to grow her own food, make things from scratch, and spend her summer with a garden basket on her counter. Those things don't have to compete.
You can build a strong body and a rooted life.