I love quinoa. But I’m really not a fan of it by itself. Are you? My preference is to enjoy it when it’s “mixed” into something like a pesto quinoa salad or as a pilaf with garlic mushrooms. Mmmmm. I’ve been making this version of a Thai quinoa salad for years now but never really took the time to standardize the recipe. With some encouragement from friends and family, I finally did it.
Here are my pre-requisites for a quinoa salad:
I want it to be hearty enough to be a meal, so I need a solid source of protein. Enter the edamame bean! A ½ cup serving of edamame beans is about 12 grams of protein.
I want color. I eat with my eyes so against the quinoa I wanted to see some yellow, red, purple and green. A colorful meal also means I’m feeding my body variety of nutrients.
I want a good-for-you dressing. I’m not fearful of fat and my mantra has always been: it’s not the quantity of fat you eat, it’s the quality. The dressing for this recipe is largely based on peanut butter. Go for a natural PB that isn’t loaded with added fats, sugar or salt. The dressing also has lovely hints of ginger which is great for digestion and amping up the flavor of this salad.
I want it to still be good the next day. C’mon, we all know many salads don’t hold up more than 24 hours. Not this recipe! I prefer to keep the dressing on the side and pour on more as I need it. The quinoa salad itself stays perfectly fine for 3 – 4 days when kept refrigerated in an air-tight container.
This recipe is a hit, no matter where I go. My vegan and vegetarian friends and mama’s all LOVE it. It’s perfect for weekday lunches, as a side or for sharing at a potluck.
Okay, okay, recipe below!
- Salad:
- 1 cup uncooked quinoa
- 2 cups shredded red cabbage (we like to chop it pretty small)
- 1 red, orange or yellow bell pepper, diced
- 1 cup shredded carrots
- 2 cups edamame beans *steam/cook ahead of time
- ½ cup chopped cilantro
- ½ cup cashews
- 3 green onions, chopped
- For the dressing:
- ⅓ cup natural peanut butter
- 1 tbsp freshly grated ginger
- 3 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon honey (use agave if vegan)
- 3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 2 teaspoons sesame oil
- 2 tsp sesame seeds *optional
- juice of one lime
- Prepare quinoa: ensure you've thoroughly rinsed and strained it. Place quinoa in a small pot with 2 cups of water. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to low, cover and simmer until tender and the liquid has been absorbed. About 15 - 20 minutes. Fluff with a fork. Set aside and cool.
- To the quinoa add in cabbage, bell pepper, carrots and edamame beans. Fold this into the the quinoa.
- Prepare the dressing by mixing together all eight ingredients. I often use a handheld blender to do this job but you could totally use your muscles and a strong fork.
- Garnish with cashews, cilantro and green onion. Serve chilled (or eat it up right away).
Food photography done by the talented Ceone Dyck. To learn more about Ceone click here or follow her on Facebook.
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This is very good. Mine turned out a bit too salty so I would advise folks to do a little less soy sauce and/or use peanut butter with no salt added. I really like this salad. The dressing is creamy and tangy and it is a very fresh and pretty way to get in veggies and protein. Thank you for this post! I can tell this recipe will become a staple in our household.
This looks delicious!! Do you have any idea how many servings this might make for a lunch?
Hi Erica! If you stick to about 1 – 1.5 cups for a lunch serving you`ll definitely get 4 – 5 servings!
Hi! This was so so yum! Even teenage daughters love it! -any idea on a calorie count per serving??
LOVED this salad. I made a few adjustment due to what I had on hand—Bragg Liquid Aminos instead of soy sauce, coconut oil instead of soy, and walnuts instead of cashews. I also added half of jalapeno, minced, to the dressing. SO GOOD.
The recipe calls for cashews but from the images you’ve topped the salad with peanuts, which is better for this salad?
Whoops! Hi Megan – either or would work! I’ve used both peanuts or cashews depending on what I have on hand at the house! The peanuts would be more consistent with the sauce/dressing and tend to offer more of a crunch!