A good quinoa salad is one of my go-to meals and I often experiment with different variations to have this superfood (if you didn’t know quinoa is a nutrition powerhouse and super rich in protein too). I’ve fallen in love with quinoa for its versatility and simplicity. Just recently I tried quinoa salad with a Mediterranean twist and was totally surprised how well it turned out.
The olives and tahini sauce give the salad a new dimension and flavor … the combination with basic veggies turns it into a simply amazing wholesome meal. What I like most about a good quinoa salad is that not only does it not take long to get ready, but that it is also quite filling too.
I N G R E D I E N T S
- 2 small cups organic quinoa
- 15-20 cherry tomatoes halved
- 1 cucumber diced
- 4-5 black olives
- 10 spinach leaves finely chopped
- Half small bowl toasted nuts (pine nuts, cashews and almonds)
Dressing:
- Lime juice and Himalayan salt as per taste
- 2 tablespoons tahini sauce
- Black pepper (optional)
D I R E C T I O N S
Cooking Quinoa
First up, cook quinoa. You need to start by rinsing the quinoa with filtered water and then transferring it in a saucepan. Typically the water quinoa ratio required is 2:1 – for one cup of quinoa 2 cups of water. So add water in the quinoa, add some salt and let it cook on the heat for about 10-15 minutes. The trick here is that when the quinoa discharges a white ring it means it’s ready.
Getting the ingredients ready
In the meantime, you can get the vegetables and nuts ready.
Grab a big mixing bowl, add tomatoes, cucumber, spinach, olives, cooked quinoa … and basically everything to the bowl, except the nuts. Add the dressing ingredients as well and give it a good mix. Finish with nuts on top.
Pine nuts mixed with cashew and almonds not only makes the salad crunchy but also a very nice nutty flavor, that gives the salad some depth.
Serve up in a big bowl and dig in! It is really delicious and the tahini sauce adds a nice creamy and earthy taste to it.
Serves: 2
Cook time: 20 minutes
Difficulty: 3/10
Gluten-free & Vegan
