Quinoa Salad (Vegetarian)

As summer draws to a close, our garden is offering its final bounty. What better way to celebrate this harvest than by creating a vibrant and nutritious quinoa salad? This dish beautifully combines textures and flavors, providing a refreshing, light meal to ease us into the cooler months.

The Perfect Meal When “Craving Something Healthy”

When life gets hectic, it’s all too easy to resort to fast food and takeout. While convenient, this approach can quickly become expensive—and let’s face it, not the healthiest choice. That’s why everyone should have a go-to, quick, easy, and balanced meal on hand. My wife and I discovered this quinoa salad early in the summer, during a time when our garden was overflowing with cucumbers, tomatoes, and peppers. We realized we rarely eat cucumbers and needed a delicious way to make use of our bountiful harvest. Now, we already covered some ways we like to utilize the cherry tomatoes (like in the coconut lentil curry). However, we weren’t sure what to do with the cucumbers at first. Naturally, what springs to mind when you think of cucumbers? Mediterranean cuisine! This salad perfectly captures those vibrant flavors while providing a nutritious option for busy days.

Customize With What You Have!

The beauty of a recipe like this is that it simply serves as a general guide. If there are any components you don’t enjoy, you can simply remove it. If there is anything extra you have in your garden or fridge that you would like to include, throw it on in! As you’ll see, this recipe is vegetarian as is, but one common additive we choose is chicken breast. On the other hand, if you need it to go in the opposite direction, you can make it vegan by removing the feta cheese, and even throw in some of the piri-piri tofu.

How To Make Quinoa Salad

Quinoa Salad (Vegetarian)

Course: Lunch, DinnerCuisine: MediterraneanDifficulty: Easy

Servings

8

servings

Prep time

10

minutes

Cooking time

20

minutes

Calories

160

kcal

This salad perfectly captures the vibrant flavors of the garden while providing a nutritious option for busy days. Feel free to customize by removing or adding ingredients as you see fit!

Ingredients

• 8 oz quinoa

• 1 cucumber

• 1 red onion

• Fresh Parsley

• 1/2 cup dry lentils

• 1 pint cherry tomatoes (halved)

• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts

• 1 lemon

• 1/3 cup feta crumbles

• Salt (to taste)

• Black pepper (to taste)

• Balsamic vinaigrette (to taste)

Directions

• Cook the quinoa and lentils as outlined on their respective packages. (General cooking instructions can be found in the notes as well)
• While the quinoa and lentils are cooking, prep the vegetables and herbs. Cube the cucumber, dice the red onion, halve the cherry tomatoes, and chop the parsley.
• Once the quinoa and lentils are cooked, allow them to cool to room temperature.
• Once cooled, mix the quinoa, lentils, vegetables, chopped walnuts, and feta together. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
• Add the juice of one lemon, and top with balsamic vinaigrette (to taste).

Notes

• To cook the quinoa, first rinse it with cold water for a few minutes to wash off the bitter residue on the outside of the seed. Once rinsed, fry in your pot for a couple of minutes, before adding the water. Quinoa typically requires a 2:1 ratio of water:quinoa. You can also use a broth of choice if desired! Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer, before covering and cooking for 15-20 minutes. The water should absorb fully and the germ ring will be observed falling off of the seed when done.
• For the lentils, rinse them under cold water first. Then, bring water (or broth) to a boil (using a 3:1 liquid:lentil ratio). Add the rinsed lentils. Reduce the heat to a simmer, cover, and cook for ~20 minutes until tender. If there is excess liquid, you can drain it before serving.