9 Healthy Foods from the Mediterranean Diet

By: Lisa Valente, M.S., R.D.

If you’re trying to eat foods that are better for your heart, start with these nine healthy ingredients of Mediterranean cooking.

mediterranean vegan spaghetti squash

Pictured recipe: Vegan Pesto Spaghetti Squash with Mushrooms & Sun-Dried Tomatoes

Key ingredients of Mediterranean cuisine include olive oil, fresh fruits and vegetables, protein-rich legumes, fish and whole grains with moderate amounts of wine and red meat. The flavors are rich, and the health benefits for people choosing a Mediterranean diet, one of the world's healthiest, are hard to ignore—they are less likely to develop high blood pressure, high cholesterol or become obese. If you're trying to eat foods that are better for your heart, start with these nine healthy ingredients of Mediterranean cooking.

Don't Miss: 7-Day Mediterranean Diet Meal Plan

1. Broccoli Rabe

Broccoli Rabe with Olives & Garlic

Pictured Recipe: Broccoli Rabe with Olives & Garlic

To be Italian is to appreciate dark leafy vegetables, especially this earthily bitter brassica that pairs beautifully with bold ingredients like sausage, anchovy and hot pepper. Like other cabbage family members it's a nutrition superstar, providing plenty of vitamin C, potassium, calcium and fiber as well as carotenoids and cancer-fighting indoles and isothiocyanates.

2. Chickpeas

Mediterranean Chickpea Quinoa Bowl

Pictured Recipe: Mediterranean Chickpea Quinoa Bowl

Eaten daily, combined with grains and starches, beans provide high-quality protein along with folate, calcium, iron and zinc. They also offer benefits like healthy, filling doses of fiber (both soluble and insoluble), phytates and phyto­sterols; studies suggest beans may help manage diabetes, prevent colon cancer and reduce heart disease risk.

Related: 8 Ways to Follow the Mediterranean Diet for Better Health

3. Couscous

One-Skillet Salmon with Fennel & Sun-Dried Tomato Couscous

Pictured Recipe: One-Skillet Salmon with Fennel & Sun-Dried Tomato Couscous


4. Eggplant

Hasselback Eggplant Parmesan

Pictured Recipe: Hasselback Eggplant Parmesan

Beloved for its toothsome texture and neutral flavor that takes up sauces beautifully, eggplant gives meaty satisfaction to a cuisine in which meat traditionally made rare appearances. While not a nutritional powerhouse, eggplant contains some fiber and potassium; chlorogenic acid, a compound concentrated in eggplant skin, may have antiviral and cancer-fighting properties.

5. Hazelnuts

Peach & Roasted Beet Salad with Hazelnut-Yogurt Dressing

Pictured Recipe: Peach & Roasted Beet Salad with Hazelnut-Yogurt Dressing

Nut trees are almost as common as olive trees in Italy. Nuts are savored as snacks, ground into sauces and sprinkled on salads. They're loaded with heart-friendly monounsaturated fat; they're also rich sources of protein, fiber, vitamin E, folate, calcium and magnesium. Nut protein is also high in arginine, an amino acid that helps maintain healthy blood vessels.

6. Olive Oil

Grilled Summer Vegetables with Shallot-Herb Vinaigrette

Pictured Recipe: Grilled Summer Vegetables with Shallot-Herb Vinaigrette

Prized since antiquity (original Olympic winners were awarded jugs of it), olive oil is imperative in Mediterranean cookery, especially when it comes to preparing vegetables. Rich in monounsaturated fat and (in extra-virgin types) antioxidant polyphenols; many believe its wide use throughout the Mediterranean explains much of that region's low heart disease rates.

Related: Healthy Mediterranean Recipes

7. Peppers

Chicken Sausage and Peppers

Pictured Recipe: Chicken Sausage and Peppers

Fresh, roasted or dried and ground into complex sauces and pastes, peppers add color to Mediterranean dishes. And good nutrition: all types are rich in vitamins A and C, fiber, folate, beta carotene and vitamin K. Red peppers also deliver lycopene, as well as lutein and zeaxanthin—protective against macular degeneration.

8. Shrimp

Lemon-Garlic Shrimp over Orzo with Zucchini

Pictured Recipe: Lemon-Garlic Shrimp over Orzo with Zucchini

Wherever Mediterraneans live close to the sea, seafood is a staple protein in their diets; any and all kinds of shellfish and fish are celebrated, often several in the same dish. While fattier types like tuna supply heart-healthy omega-3 fatty acids, lean specimens like shrimp, squid and sea bass provide ample protein, niacin and selenium.

9. Tomatoes

One-Pan Chicken Parmesan Pasta

Pictured Recipe: One-Pan Chicken Parmesan Pasta

It's hard to believe these now-ubiquitous orbs weren't native to the Mediterranean region (grazie, Columbus); they're staples in every cook's larder, fresh, canned and in paste form. Tomatoes are packed with vitamin C and lycopene, a heart-protective antioxidant that may also help prevent some cancers (particularly prostate). Plus they're versatile enough to enjoy every day.

Related: 7-Day Mediterranean Meal Plan: 1,500 Calories

Watch: How to Make Mediterranean Chickpea & Quinoa Bowls