Healthy Quinoa Recipes coming your way! I’m sharing my favorites, plus a new Quinoa and Veggie Salad that’s packed with flavor and a honey-lime dressing.
Healthy Quinoa Recipes: Quinoa Salads
I love quinoa, and my whole family does too—we eat it all the time! If you join us for dinner, you’ll probably find quinoa on the table.
This quinoa salad is a family favorite, along with many others. Here’s a list of our favorite quinoa salads for some meal inspiration:
- Quinoa Salad with avocado, tomatoes, cucumbers, and lemon-basil dressing.
- Caprese Quinoa Salad with mozzarella, tomatoes, avocado, and balsamic dressing.
- Quinoa Fruit Salad with fresh berries, mango, and citrus dressing.
- Kale and Quinoa Salad with berries and sweet balsamic dressing.
- Thai Quinoa Salad with mango, veggies, herbs, and peanut dressing.
- Sweet Potato-Quinoa Salad with roasted potatoes, avocado, and lemon dressing.
- Citrus Quinoa Salad with pistachios, citrus, and lemon dressing.
- Southwest Quinoa Salad with black beans, roasted corn, and cilantro-lime dressing.
- Quinoa Corn Salad with avocado, corn, beans, cilantro, and chipotle-lime dressing.
- Quinoa and Almond Salad with almonds, sunflower seeds, apples, and raspberry dressing.
- Greek Quinoa Salad with tomatoes, cucumbers, olives, feta, and Greek dressing.
- Quinoa Apple Salad with apples, pears, pistachios, cranberries, and lemon-poppy seed dressing.
Healthy Quinoa Recipes: Savory Entrees
Quinoa is great in so many savory dishes, not just salads. Here are our favorite quinoa dinner ideas:
- Quinoa Tacos with black beans, corn, tomatoes, and enchilada sauce
- Crockpot Quinoa with peppers, onions, and fajita seasoning
- Quinoa Enchilada Bake with Ground Turkey and Cheddar cheese
- Mexican Quinoa with butternut squash and black beans
- Chicken Quinoa Bowl with grilled chicken and mango salsa
- Bruschetta Chicken served over quinoa
- Crockpot Chicken Quinoa Soup with veggies and fire-roasted tomatoes
Healthy Quinoa and Veggie Salad
Now that we’ve talked about quinoa, let’s dive into this easy veggie quinoa salad recipe!
My top tip for chilled quinoa salads is to make the quinoa ahead of time. Once the quinoa is cooled, prep time goes faster. Waiting for quinoa to cook and cool takes time, so do it in advance!
If you’re making the quinoa and salad at the same time, here’s a quick cooling trick: Spread the cooked quinoa on a sheet pan in an even layer. Put it in the fridge (or freezer) for 10-15 minutes until it cools to room temperature.
Featured Comment
“I’ve been making this each Sunday night for weeks as a “prep” lunch for my husband and I. It’s a great way to keep lunch healthy and not get the 3pm sleepy feeling.”
– Karrie
Healthy Quinoa Recipes (Tips)
New to quinoa? Try some of these tips for success:
- Rinse quinoa in a fine-mesh strainer under cold water for 30 seconds to remove the bitter coating. Some quinoa comes pre-rinsed, so check the package.
- Let sit: After cooking, let it rest covered for 10-20 mins so the grains fully pop.
- Adjust liquid: If liquid remains, drain it. If quinoa isn’t tender and the liquid is gone, add a splash more.
- High in protein: Quinoa has about 24 grams of protein per cup.
- Season well: A little salt brings out the flavor in both the quinoa and the salad.
Storage
These healthy quinoa salads don’t keep well with dressing and avocado mixed in. Add dressing only to what you’ll eat.
Store the salad (without avocado) in the fridge for up to 3 days.
More Grain Filled Salads
Healthy Quinoa Recipes: Healthy Quinoa and Veggie Salad
Video
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 cup white quinoa thoroughly rinsed
- 3 ounces (4 cups) baby spinach coarsely chopped, lightly packed
- 1 (15.25-ounce) can corn drained, or 1-1/2 cups frozen corn (thawed)
- 1 (15.25-ounce) can black beans drained and rinsed
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes halved
- 5 to 6 green onions chopped, 3/4 cup
- 1/4 cup cilantro finely chopped
- Salt and pepper
- 1 large ripe avocado optional
- 4 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 2 teaspoons Dijon-style mustard
- 2 teaspoons honey use another sweetener for vegan
- 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 2 large limes
Instructions
- Prepare quinoa by rinsing it under cold water in a fine-mesh sieve to remove the bitter saponin coating. Combine quinoa and 2 cups water in a small pot over high heat. Bring to a boil, add 1 teaspoon salt, reduce heat to low, and cover the pot. Simmer 10–15 minutes or until liquid is absorbed. Remove from heat, keep quinoa covered, and let stand 10–15 minutes. Fluff with a fork and place in the fridge or freezer to cool to room temperature. Quinoa can be prepared 3–4 days in advance.
- Add all dressing ingredients to a jar, including 1/2 teaspoon lime zest and 4 tablespoons lime juice. Season to taste with salt and pepper, I add 3/4 teaspoon fine sea salt (use less if using table salt) and 1/4 teaspoon pepper; add to preference. Seal jar and shake vigorously to combine. Store in the fridge until ready to use. If making the dressing in advance, don’t be concerned if it separates or forms clumps—this is just the olive oil solidifying, which it does at cold temps. Remove from fridge 20–30 minutes before you need it; then shake it to remix.
- Lay the spinach out on a cutting board and run a knife through a few times to get a coarse chop. Drain corn or thaw frozen corn. Drain and rinse black beans. Halve cherry tomatoes. Chop the green onions and cilantro. Dice avocado if using.
- In a large bowl, toss together quinoa and spinach. Top with corn, black beans, cherry tomatoes, green onions, cilantro, and avocado. This salad doesn’t sit well with the dressing and avocado mixed in. Toss and add dressing to only what you’ll be eating at this time. Taste and adjust seasonings. Toss and enjoy!
Recipe Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Loved the salad 👌 it was yummy 😋 would like to make some healthy,less carbs, veggy options. Thanks
So glad to hear that! 🙂 Thanks Daksha!
Made this tonight and it was very tasty! Halved the dressing recipe (only had one good lime in the bunch), and it was plenty for the entire recipe for us. We also added feta cheese to the tops of our bowls. Will make again.
I’m so happy you guys enjoyed this Diane! Thanks so much for your comment! 🙂
Thank you for creating this! Just tried it for first time and it was delicious. I added the scallions on top of the quinoa when it came off the heat, to steam them a touch and take away a little of the “onioness”!!! Was perfect for me 🙂
I am so happy to hear you loved this Jenny! Thanks so much for your comment! 🙂
I was always scared to cook quinoa don’t ask why but I came across your recipe and said “hey why not?” Although I did not have spinach I substituted it with an avocado. It was so delicious my husband who’s a chef loved it!!! Next time I’ll try it with sautéed mushrooms.
I am seriously so happy to hear this! Thanks so much for your comment Stephanie! 🙂
Looks very delicious and I want to make it. What is the calories, fat %, protein, sugar levels on this recipe?
i’ll be honest i’ve been eating very unhealthy my entire life, mainly because that’s what i grew up with and healthy food is very expensive, but today i got a salad from chick fill-a (ironic i know) and it tastes better than ANY burger or pizza or any other garbage that i’ve ever tried.
while i love cherry tomatoes but they’re kinda expensive so hopefully regular tomatoes are not too bad with it every now and then lol
Regular tomatoes work too 🙂 Hope you love it!
I finally broke down and tried Quinoa this week and really liked it. This salad looks like a something my Bible Study/House Church members would enjoy. My question is the serving size. Does this make a salad meal for six or a side dish for 6?
So happy to hear you enjoyed it! 🙂 I’d say 6 for a large side dish 🙂
Hi! Is this recipe considered vegan? Thanks
Yes!
I always found quinoa as the best breakfast option for me and the new recipes here will help me to add a new flavor, thanks
Yay! I’m so happy I was able to help. Hope you enjoy! 🙂
I’ve just made this for my four year old who is lately a very picky eater, and WE BOTH LOVE IT!! Thank you for this wonderful recipe and for helping me get my kid to eat an unprocessed meal where the ingredients actually grew from the ground!
Ahhh it’s the best when you find a healthy recipe your kids will eat! My boys love this recipe too! Thanks Lindsay! 🙂