Nourish your body with this delicious Quinoa Superfood Salad!
One of the many reasons this Quinoa Superfood Salad is so fantastic is that it tastes so deeply satisfying. Adding a grain to a salad provides more nutrition, flavor, and texture as well as taking it from a “side” to a “main” dish. This is a meal in itself. It hits the spot as it delivers all the flavors we crave – sweet, sour, umami, bitter, and pungent.
This post is all about creating the most delicious and flavorsome Quinoa Superfood Salad.
What’s in the salad?
Honestly, it’s up to you. Think of this recipe as a suggestion. Use what you love and what you have. Here are a few suggestions to get you started:
- broccoli, or broccolini (or in the UK where I am at the moment, purple sprouting)
- baby leafy greens such as kale, spinach, chard, romaine, mixed lettuce
- cabbage, red or green
- cucumbers, for a nice bit of crunch
- peppers, all colors, hot and sweet
- olives, green, or black
- tomatoes
- fresh herbs, this is important as they impart such amazing flavor. Try mint, basil, cilantro, parsley, chives, and oregano, use what you love!
- Avocado
- Nuts and seeds – pumpkin, sunflower, sesame, flax, cashews, almonds, walnuts, pecans,
What about the dressing?
There are lots of delicious options here! Sometimes I enjoy a very clean oil-free dressing such as:
other options include:
- Herby Tahini Dressing
- Vegan Ranch Dressing
- Green Goddess Dressing
- Another brand I really enjoy is Well Your World which has a great variety of delicious oil-free dressings, seasonings, and mixes.
Can I make it in advance?
- The quinoa can be cooked in advance and will happily sit in the fridge for 3-4 days
- You can chop and assemble all the salad ingredients BUT I would suggest adding the herbs at the last minute
- Pour over the dressing just before serving
How can I cut down on time?
- Having a few packets of FROZEN quinoa is enormously helpful. It takes 3 minutes in the microwave to cook!
- Buy ready chopped veggies
- Use a store-bought dressing
What equipment do I need to make a Quinoa Superfood Salad?
- Good quality chopping knife
- Nice sized heavy-duty chopping board
- Some very pretty serving plates, like these from Clodagh McKenna
Quinoa Superfood Salad
A hearty, delicious, and satisfying Quinoa Superfood Salad
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 5 minutes
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
- Category: Salad
- Diet: Vegan
Ingredients
1 cup cooked quinoa
1 small bunch of broccoli, or broccoli rabe, steamed to just tender
1 1/2 cups assorted leafy greens, such as watercress, arugula, lettuce, chopped if large
3/4 cup fresh herbs, an assortment is lovely, mint, basil, parsley, cilantro, chives, etc
1/2 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
1/2 avocado, peeled and sliced
1/3 cup olives, pitted
1/2 English cucumber, deseeded and diced
1/4 cup toasted nuts and seeds, such as pumpkin, sunflower, cashew, walnuts, almonds
Zest and juice of a lemon
Instructions
- Steam the broccoli or broccolini until just tender. Drain and put aside to cool while you’re preparing the rest of the salad.
- Place the cooked quinoa in a large bowl
- Cut the steamed broccoli or broccoli rabe into bite-size pieces and add to the bowl
- Add all the other ingredients, and toss to combine.
- Drizzle over the dressing of your choice, I love this Bragg’s Oil-Free Vinaigrette
- Top with fresh herbs, and a further sprinkling of nuts and seeds
Keywords: Quinoa Superfood Salad
Looking for more deliciously healthy salads? Try these!
I hope you love this Quinoa Superfood Salad! If you do make it, please take a picture and share it on Instagram and I’ll repost it on my stories. I’d love to hear from you, please leave a comment and rate the recipe! Thanks so much and happy cooking:)
Chris David
Really delicious recipe. I love it yummy!!! It’s really awesome
★★★★★
Mary
Thank you Chris! I’m so glad you enjoyed it 🙂