Easy Quinoa Salad Recipe (2024)

By Maria Lichty

Updated May 20, 2019

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This Easy Quinoa Salad is the BEST quinoa salad recipe! It is great for lunch, dinner, or the perfect side dish for potlucks and parties.

Best Quinoa Salad

Are you looking for a simple salad that you will absolutely LOVE? Yes, you can LOVE salad, if you don’t believe me, make this Easy Quinoa Salad. I guarantee you will love it. I make this quinoa salad almost every single week because it is that good and it is easy to throw together, especially if you have leftover quinoa in the fridge. I like to meal prep quinoa every weekend so I can easily toss this quinoa salad together! It is light, refreshing, and full of flavor. Plus, it is allergy-friendly making it a great salad for almost everyone!

Quinoa Salad Recipes

I love quinoa salads, a few of my favorites include:

Asian Quinoa Salad
Roasted Broccoli Quinoa Salad
Mediterranean Quinoa Salad
Berry Quinoa Salad

I could eat a quinoa salad every single day and sometimes I do. Especially, this Easy Quinoa Salad. It is my go to when I am craving good, healthy food. It always hits the spot!

Quinoa Salad Ingredients

I REALLY love this easy quinoa salad because it is made with simple and fresh ingredients…and ingredients you probably already have in your kitchen! YAY! You can whip this salad up at anytime.

So what’s in my favorite quinoa salad?

quinoa
spinach
tomatoes
cucumber
avocado
green onion

The ingredientsmight seem super basic and that is because they are, but I promise you that’s a GOODthing. We are bringing basic back! Oh, and there is also a rocking lemon dressing that takes about two seconds to whisk up that makes the salad the best quinoa salad ever. Don’t skip the easy dressing!

How to Cook Quinoa

Don’t be afraid of cooking quinoa, it is super easy to make. I love using quinoa because it is healthy, hearty, and a good source of protein. I like to make the quinoa in advance so the salad is easy to throw together. You can keep cooked quinoa in the refrigerator for up to one week.

Here are my tips for cooking perfect quinoa every single time!

Place the quinoa in a fine-mesh strainer and rinse under cold water.Rinsing removes quinoa??™s natural coating, called saponin, which can make it taste soapy or bitter. Drain.
For one cup of quinoa, you need 2 cups of liquid, water or broth. Cooking the quinoa in broth will add more flavor, but water is fine too.
In a medium saucepan, combine water or broth, the rinsed quinoa, and salt. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and cover with a lid. Cook for 15 minutes.
Remove from heat and let stand for 5 minutes, covered. Remove the lid and fluff the quinoa with a fork. Serve!

Healthy Quinoa Salad

This quinoa salad is vegan and gluten-free too! It makes a great healthy lunch, dinner, or side dish to any meal. I love taking this simple quinoa salad to potlucks and parties because everyone loves it and it only takes me minutes to make!

If you want to make the quinoa salad more of a main dish, you can add shredded chicken, chickpeas, or white beans.

This quinoa salad is best the day it is made, but I think the leftovers are good the next day too. The lemon in the dressing will keep the avocado from browning. If you want to meal prep the salad in advance, you can toss everything together except the avocado and the dressing. Add the avocado and dressing when ready to eat and the salad will be super fresh!

Make this quick and easy Quinoa Saladpart of your weekly routine. I know it is going to become a staple in your house, just like it is in ours. And I made a video to show you how easy it is!

How to Make Quinoa Salad

Easy Quinoa Salad

This fresh and healthy quinoa salad makes a great lunch or dinner. It is also a great side dish to any meal.

4.57 from 204 votes

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Review

Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Total Time 10 minutes mins

Cuisine American

Servings 6

Equipment

Salad Bowl (I use this Williams Sonoma bowl for large salads and entertaining)

Ingredients

For the Dressing:

1/4 cup olive oil
1 clove minced garlic
2 tablespoons lemon juice 1 large lemon
1 tablespoon golden balsamic vinegar or champagne vinegar
1 teaspoon pure maple syrup or honey
Kosher salt and black pepper to taste

For the Salad:

2 cups cold cooked quinoa
2 cups fresh spinach leaves chopped
1 cup chopped cucumber
1 cup halved grape or cherry tomatoes
1 large avocado pitted, peeled, and chopped
2 green onions sliced
Kosher salt and black pepper to taste

Instructions

First, make the dressing. In a small bowl or jar, whisk together the olive oil, garlic, lemon juice, vinegar, maple syrup or honey, salt and pepper. Set aside.
In a large bowl, combine quinoa, spinach, cucumber, tomatoes, avocado, and green onions.
Drizzle salad with dressing and gently stir until salad is coated with the dressing. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Serve.

Nutrition

Serving: 6g, Calories: 225kcal, Carbohydrates: 19g, Protein: 4g, Fat: 15g, Saturated Fat: 2g, Sodium: 19mg, Potassium: 419mg, Fiber: 4g, Sugar: 3g, Vitamin A: 1165IU, Vitamin C: 15.3mg, Calcium: 33mg, Iron: 1.7mg

Keywords quinoa salad

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Maria

I'm Maria and my husband is Josh. We share a love of cooking, baking, and entertaining. We enjoy creating recipes that are simple, fresh, and family friendly. We love sitting around the table with good food, good conversation, and good friends and family! Our kitchen is always open!
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