Honey Sesame Halloumi Spinach Salad

By Yasmin Fahr

Updated April 28, 2026

  • Julia Gartland for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Spencer Richards.
Media 1 of 1
Ready In
20 min
Rating
5(80)
Comments
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Golden slices of warm, honey-glazed halloumi crown this simple spinach-and-chickpea salad. Briny halloumi is balanced by a sweet honey glaze, and the crispy, crunchy exterior contrasts with the warm and melty center. Nutty notes swim throughout the dish, in both the sesame seeds and the lemon-tahini dressing that gets tossed with spinach, cherry tomatoes and canned chickpeas. Like most salads, this one invites creativity: Pickled red onions, sliced scallions (cooked in the pan with the halloumi or tossed in raw) or fresh mint or basil would all complement the flavors of the dish. 

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Ingredients

Yield:2 to 4 servings

  • 4 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, divided 

  • 3 tablespoons olive oil, divided

  • 1 tablespoon tahini

  • 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon honey, divided

  • 1 (15-ounce) can chickpeas, rinsed  

  • 2 cups (12 ounces) cherry tomatoes, halved

  • 5 ounces baby spinach (about 5 packed cups)

  • Salt

  • 8 ounces halloumi, cut into ½- to ¾-inch-thick slices, blotted dry

  • 1 tablespoon white sesame seeds

Ingredient Substitution Guide

Preparation

  1. Step 1

    In a large serving bowl, whisk together 3 tablespoons of lemon juice, 2 tablespoons olive oil, the tahini and 1 teaspoon honey until smooth. Toss in the chickpeas, tomatoes and spinach; season with salt and set aside. 

  2. Step 2

    Heat the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil in a medium skillet over medium-high heat until hot. Add the halloumi to the pan; cook until the bottom is browned and it easily releases, 2 to 3 minutes. Use tongs to flip the halloumi and cook until just browned on the other side, about 1 minute more. 

  3. Step 3

    Top the halloumi with the remaining 1 tablespoon lemon juice, 1 tablespoon honey and the sesame seeds, and shake the pan to mix it together. Continue to turn the halloumi over, using them to stir the liquid and honey together, until browned all over and coated with the glaze and any seeds in the skillet, 1 to 2 minutes more. (If the honey threatens to burn, remove from the heat.) 

  4. Step 4

    Arrange the glazed halloumi on top of the salad and serve right away.

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    Ratings

    5 out of 5
    80 user ratings
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    Comments

    Tricia J

    Delicious! I've been a fan of halloumi ever since a trip to Cyprus 30 years ago. I'm glad it's easy to find here in SE Michigan and I enjoy trying new preparation methods like this recipe. A couple suggestions: 1. Since mint is used in halloumi I took a tip from head note and added fresh mint with the spinach (generous quarter cup for a half recipe). Also some fresh thyme. Great flavor addition! 2. I like my salads lightly dressed so probably would've been fine with half the dressing from step one. 3. I like the flavor of the glazed halloumi (from step 3) but think it would be more effective to chunk the halloumi just before adding the glaze. I cut it after removing from the pan but the glazing would've coated more evenly if I'd done that between steps 2 and 3. 4. Maybe warm the chickpeas?

    Susie

    This is so good. I added mint as suggested + cucumber + sugar snap peas and took the previous reviewer’s advice and used half the suggested amount of honey. I also didn’t have tahini so I used a spoon of hummus instead. It was delicious!

    Suzie S

    This is so good. We loved the halloumi glaze and will add a bit more next time. Followed a suggestion to dice it too which allowed the deliciousness to be evenly spread through the salad. Otherwise wouldn’t change a thing.

    Mary B

    Delicious as written - thank you!!

    Lemast

    Perfect as written. Will put on repeat.

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