Quinoa salad is vegetarian perfection. Quinoa is a versatile food, similar to rice, but with 9 essential amino acids, making it a complete protein. It’s easy to prepare and super tasty. The salad recipe below makes an excellent meal, a tasty side dish, or a light snack. Serves 2-4.
Quinoa Salad Ingredients:
1 cup QUINOA (check current prices for quinoa on Amazon)
3 medium TOMATOES (chopped)
¼ cup RED ONION (finely chopped)
3-5 GARLIC CLOVES (minced)
½ inch GINGER (minced)
1 CUCUMBER (chopped)
1/3 YELLOW BELL PEPPER (chopped)
1 CARROT (thinly sliced)
¼ cup PARSLEY or CILANTRO (chopped)
3 Tbsp APPLE CIDER VINEGAR
2-3 Tbsp OLIVE OIL
2 Tbsp LEMON JUICE
SALT (to taste)
Quinoa Salad Direections:
Add 1 cup quinoa to 2 cups water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer 10-15 minutes (I find it usually takes about 15 minutes). Place cooked quinoa in bowl and let cool—doesn’t have to cool completely—by the time you get your other ingredients prepped, the quinoa will be cool enough.
Add vinegar, olive oil, salt, and stir well. Add onion, ginger, and garlic. I usually chop the onion fine and MINCE the garlic and ginger VERY WELL. The raw garlic and ginger adds lots of flavor and nutrition. Give the bowl a good stir and get these ingredients mixed thoroughly.
Add yellow pepper (red pepper is fine, but yellow makes a nice color contrast), cucumber, carrot. Sometimes I also add green onions—or even diced jalapeños if I’m looking for a little kick—feel free to experiment with any vegetables you enjoy in a raw state.
Mix ingredients and then add the tomatoes. I like to add the tomatoes last so they don’t get too beat up by the spoon. If you’ve got some parsley or cilantro on hand, throw that in as well—I make sure I’ve got some cilantro on hand when I’m making this dish. A bit of lemon juice is a nice finish and will also help keep the colors of the dish vibrant.
Give this quinoa salad recipe a try and let me know what you think, and bon appetit!
We still use rice, but not nearly as often (if I have to choose between eating ribs and rice or ribs and quinoa, it’s really not a choice, I choose rice every time–and I’m talking white rice!) but for MANY dishes, I’m losing the rice and going with quinoa. White rice doesn’t stand a chance against quinoa, but even brown rice doesn’t provide as much nutritional value–plus with quinoa being a complete protein, it’s a lot less hassle to fashion a meatless meal.
I’ve always got quinoa on hand now, and before using rice in a dish, I ask myself “will quinoa work here?” Sometimes the answer is NO, because rice provides great texture for many dishes–but more often than not, I go with quinoa.
Thanks for checking the quinoa salad out. If you like it, click a button or two below and share it!
And for another delicious salad idea, try this Cauliflower Super Salad Recipe.
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