This Quinoa Salad recipe is quick and easy to make and full of beautiful, fresh flavor! This is a great recipe for make-ahead lunches or to bring to a potluck. Save This Recipe! Enter your email and I'll send it straight to your inbox. Plus you'll get new recipes from me every week! By submitting this form, you consent to receive emails from Happy Healthy Mama.
Last week I shared how to cook quinoa. Whether you’ve been cooking quinoa for years, or you’ve just learned the technique, now you need to make this lovely Quinoa Salad. It’s my new favorite quinoa salad–I can’t get enough!
3 Reasons Why I Love this Salad (and you Should Definitely Make It)
- This quinoa salad is PERFECT for meal prepping lunch. When I first made it, I had it for lunch all week and I looked forward to lunch everyday.
- Everyone will love you if you bring it to your next potluck or gathering where you’re expected to bring a salad or side dish. Who doesn’t appreciate the healthy option that also tastes fabulous?
- It’s a nutritional powerhouse!! Along with the cooked quinoa, it has cucumbers, red peppers, fresh herbs, white beans, and sliced almonds. Everything in this salad has great nutritional benefits, as well as contributes to fantastic flavor and texture. It’s a win-win situation.
Recipe Ingredients–What You Need
This recipe is chock full of fresh, flavorful ingredients. These are all simple ingredients that are easy to find.
For the Quinoa Salad
- 3 cups cooked quinoa *
- 1 large seedless cucumber, diced
- 1 large red bell pepper, diced
- 1 (15 ounce) can white kidney beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 bunch of mint**, finely chopped
- 1 bunch of Italian parsley, finely chopped
- 1/2 cup sliced almonds
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
*Start with 1 cup dry quinoa to get 3 cups cooked.
For the Dressing
The salad is dressed with extra-virgin olive oil, apple cider vinegar, lemon juice, and just a touch of sweetener. It’s a simple and delicious dressing that works perfectly here.
- 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1 lemon, juiced
- 1/2 teaspoon lemon zest
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup or honey
Customize this Recipe
There are a few tweaks and customizations you could add here that I think would be amazing! As written, this is a vegan quinoa salad, but it doesn’t have to be. Use this recipe as your baseline, and then have fun and make it your own. Here are some ideas:
- Quinoa Salad with Avocado
- Quinoa Salad with Chicken (make it a meal in itself!)
- Quinoa Salad with dried cranberries
- Quinoa Salad with feta or goat cheese
See how just a little addition can change the salad up? Have fun!
This Quinoa Black Bean Salad looks incredible! I want to try it for sure. For a different flavor profile, try this Mediterranean Quinoa Salad with Chicken or (AND) this Crispy Chickpea and Kale Salad!
How to Make Quinoa Salad
You won’t believe how easy this recipe is! It’s ready to no time. Take a look at how simple these instructions are.
- In a large bowl, mix together all of the ingredients from the “for the quinoa salad” portion of the recipe.
- In a separate bowl, combine all of the dressing ingredients. Drizzle over the quinoa salad and toss to evenly coat. Enjoy!
This video shows you just how easy it is to whip this up!
I really think you’re going to love all the flavors and textures in this quinoa salad recipe. I hope you try it soon! If you try this Quinoa Salad recipe or any of my other healthy recipes, please let me know! I’d love to see a photo–share it on Instagram and I’ll feature you.
Please leave a comment and star rating below. It really helps other readers know which recipes are tried and true!
Print
Quinoa Salad Recipe
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 8 servings 1x
Description
This is a fresh, bright, and healthy quinoa salad recipe that is wonderful for meal prep lunches or a potluck!
Ingredients
For the Quinoa Salad
- 3 cups cooked quinoa *
- 1 large seedless cucumber, diced
- 1 large red bell pepper, diced
- 1 (15 ounce) can white kidney beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 bunch of mint**, finely chopped
- 1 bunch of Italian parsley, finely chopped
- 1/2 cup sliced almonds
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
For the Dressing
1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1 lemon, juiced
1/2 teaspoon lemon zest
1 tablespoon maple syrup or honey
Instructions
- In a large bowl, mix together all of the ingredients from the “for the quinoa salad” portion of the recipe.
- In a separate bowl, combine all of the dressing ingredients. Drizzle over the quinoa salad and toss to evenly coat. Enjoy!
Notes
*1 cup dry quinoa yields approximately 3 cups cooked quinoa
**I used one entire small package of mint, which was just under an ounce.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 0 minutes
Nutrition
- Calories: 384
- Sugar: 4.6 grams
- Fat: 29 grams
- Carbohydrates: 25.5
- Protein: 6.6 grams
You may also love my Warm Quinoa Salad or for a heartier salad try my Mediterranean Quinoa Salad with Chicken!
Healthy Quinoa Recipes
Want more quinoa recipes? Here are a few must-try recipes!
This is a family favorite recipe. It’s an updated, modern version of classic chicken noodle soup. Ditch the noodles and give quinoa a try!
This is a hearty stew that happens to be vegan! It’s perfect to make in the fall and winter.
Pumpkin Banana Quinoa Breakfast
Quinoa is NOT just for lunch or dinner. Quinoa makes a delicious porridge you can enjoy for breakfast, too.
What would be a good alternative dressing? I can’t manage that much acid with the vinegar, lemon juice and zest.
Maybe a tahini based dressing would be better for you? Find one here: https://happyhealthymama.com/rainbow-farro-salad.html#cls-video-container-fsocDDxT
This is crazy!!!! Just loved all these green vegetables, eager to try this at home 🙂
Amazing dish, I loved it and I tried it to impress my in-laws and it worked. Thanks for such a mouth-watering dish.
The information you shared is very good, it helps me a lot.
The point of view is not wrong, thanks to the writer who shared it, I was having trouble finding out more.
Last weekend I brought this salad to my husband and he fell in love with this salad. Everything in this salad has great nutritional benefits, so now he asks me to make it almost everyday.
Really such a amazing post dear.
I come here as the learner and get this recipe for make the salad and after read it Now I can prepare it as like the professional. Now this is also a plus point of my cooking which make very different from others
Would basil be a nice substitute for the mint? (my hubby doesn’t prefer mint)
Yes, basil would work here!