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This Easy Mediterranean Quinoa Salad is packed with protein and loaded with fresh Mediterranean flavors. It’s a hearty and healthy salad brimming with cucumbers, sun dried tomatoes, kalamata olives, onion, avocado, fresh lemon and mozzarella cheese – so good!
This Easy Mediterranean Quinoa Salad is packed with delicious goodies! The mix of flavors and textures is simply divine, creamy avocado mingle with quinoa, tangy sun dried tomatoes and soft mozzarella pearls, all covered in zesty and herbal homemade dressing – delicious!
If you’re after other delicious salad recipes, why not also try my Mexican Street Corn Salad or my Strawberry Spinach Salad with Feta!
Why you’ll love this Easy Quinoa Salad
- A delicious homemade dressing. This big bowl of loveliness is anointed with the most addictive marinade – made with fresh lemon juice, herbs and chili flakes – so good!
- Healthy. Protein packed quinoa is married up with loads of veggies – it’s delicious and nutritious.
- Versatile. Serve this as a side or a main with any of your favorite meats/proteins.
Ingredients you’ll need
- Quinoa
- Veggies: Onion, cucumber, bell peppers, sundried tomatoes.
- Avocado
- Kalamata Olives
- Mozzarella Pearls
For the marinade
- Lemon: Juiced
- Red Wine Vinegar
- Honey
- Herbs: Oregano and basil.
- Salt & Pepper
- Chili Flakes
- Garlic
How to make this Easy Mediterranean Quinoa Salad
- Cook the quinoa – Cook according to package instructions.
- Marinade – In a small bowl, mix the dressing/marinade, then add the quinoa and chopped veggies – toss well. Finally add in the avocado and mozzarella, toss again.
- Transfer to a dish, serve and enjoy!
Recipe notes and tips
- Make sure to rinse your quinoa before cooking it, this removes the bitterness.
- When cooking quinoa, you can add a couple of pinches of kosher salt to the water to flavor the grain as it cooks.
- You can use a rice cooker for the quinoa, make sure to use the same liquid-to-quinoa ratio and follow the instructions on your rice cooker.
- Cool you quinoa down in the fridge, if you like, before adding other ingredients, so it doesn’t heat up the other ingredients.
- You can use mozzarella pearls or diced mozzarella.
- You can swap sundried tomatoes for fresh, diced tomatoes.
- If you like a slightly more tangy hit to the salad, swap mozzarella for crumbled feta.
- For an extra pop of freshness, top this Easy Quinoa Salad with fresh cilantro or parsley.
- Taste for salt and adjust as needed, add more lemon juice too, if needed.
FAQ’s
Can I Make this Easy Quinoa Salad in advance?
Sure thing! You can cook the quinoa ahead of time, then prep and store the remaining ingredients in separate containers until you’re ready to assemble the salad. I wouldn’t recommend chopping the avocado more than a day in advance, otherwise it will brown, so make sure you add avocado near serving.
What are the benefits of quinoa?
Quinoa is one of the most protein-rich foods out there, it is a complete protein containing all nine essential amino acids. Quinoa also has almost twice as much fiber as most other grains. This power packed grain also contains highly beneficial minerals, such as iron and magnesium.
So overall a pretty awesome addition to your diet!
Swaps and mix ins for this Easy Quinoa Salad
This is a very versatile salad recipe, lots of swaps and mix ins you can play around with. Here are some ideas:
- Swap out sundried for fresh tomatoes.
- Swap mozzarella for crumbled feta or goat cheese.
- Add fresh basil instead of parsley.
- Add in some peppery arugula, baby spinach or massaged kale.
- Swap fresh peppers for roasted peppers.
Other delicious salads you might like
- Greek Pasta Salad Recipe
- Spicy Salmon Salad Recipe
- Crispy Chicken Caesar Salad Recipe
- Tomato and Burrata Salad
I hope you enjoy all the recipes I share with you, including this delicious and Easy Quinoa Salad recipe. I hope you try it, enjoy it, rate it and share it with your friends and family!
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Mediterranean Quinoa Salad
Ingredients
- 1 cup quinoa, uncooked
- 1/2 cup sundried tomatoes, petite diced, in oil
- 1/2 cup Kalamata olives
- 1/4 cup purple onion, petite diced
- 1 cup cucumber, sliced
- 1/2 cup red bell pepper, petite diced
- 1/2 cup fresh parsley, chopped
- 1 cup mozzarella pearls, or diced mozzarella
- 1 large avocado, cubed
Marinade
- 1 large lemon, juiced
- 1 tbsp. red wine vinegar
- 1 tsp honey
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1 tsp garlic, minced
- 1 tsp oregano, dry
- 1/2 tsp basil, dry
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper, freshly cracked
- 1/4 tsp chili flakes, optional
Instructions
- Cook the quinoa according to package directions.
- Meanwhile, cut/dice all your veggies. Add them into a shallow bowl.
- In a small jar or bowl, mix the marinade ingredients. Once the quinoa has cooked and cooled down a little, combine the quinoa, marinade and veggies together (without the cheese and avocado) and toss well.
- Once that step is done, add the mozzarella pearls and diced avocado in. Toss gently to coat well.
- Transfer to a dish and serve.
Notes
- Make sure to rinse your quinoa before cooking it, this removes the bitterness.
- When cooking quinoa, you can add a couple of pinches of kosher salt to the water to flavor the grain as it cooks.
- You can use a rice cooker for the quinoa, make sure to use the same liquid-to-quinoa ratio and follow the instructions on your rice cooker.
- Cool you quinoa down in the fridge, if you like, before adding other ingredients, so it doesn’t heat up the other ingredients.
- You can use mozzarella pearls or diced mozzarella.
- You can swap sundried tomatoes for fresh, diced tomatoes.
- If you like a slightly more tangy hit to the salad, swap mozzarella for crumbled feta.
- For an extra pop of freshness, top this Easy Quinoa Salad with fresh cilantro or parsley.
- Taste for salt and adjust as needed, add more lemon juice too, if needed.
