Southwest quinoa salad is a delicious, veggie-packed, and filling salad. You can eat it for lunch or even serve it with poached eggs and call it dinner! This salad features fluffy quinoa, corn, beans, bell pepper, avocado, and cilantro lime vinaigrette.
Ingredients
Below you will find information about the ingredients and how to prepare the recipe. For the measurements and detailed instructions scroll down to the printable recipe card.
Here’s what you need to make this easy recipe:
- Quinoa – I seasoned it with chili powder, cumin, and fresh garlic. You can add your favorite spices or increase their amount. You can cook quinoa in water or in vegetable/chicken broth for a boost of flavor, but I think cooking it in water is just enough since we’re adding aromatic spices. You can use any type of quinoa for this recipe, I used white quinoa but you can also use red or tri-color quinoa.
- Instead of quinoa, you could use couscous, bulgur, farro, pearl barley, orzo pasta, or millet groats.
- Vegetables/legumes – I used avocado, tomatoes, corn, bell pepper, and kidney beans (you can use black beans). You can add canned corn or use fresh corn on the cob – you can either bake corn or cook corn in the instant pot (the quickest method).
- Cilantro lime vinaigrette – very easy and flavorful – it’s made with olive oil, lime juice and zest, honey, coriander, lots of fresh cilantro, and Dijon mustard.
- What you could also add – this salad is well-filling as it is but you could add pan-fried/grilled chicken or shrimp to it or serve it with poached eggs! For a spicier salad, you could add de-seeded and chopped jalapenos or some chili powder/red pepper flakes to your dressing. You could also serve the salad with tortilla chips or tortilla strips for some more crunch.
If you like easy quinoa dishes, try also this 1-pot Mexican-inspired cheesy quinoa skillet.
How to make it
STEP 1: Cook quinoa: rinse quinoa on a sieve, drain well.
STEP 2: Heat olive oil in a small/medium pot, add garlic, chili powder, cumin, and cook for 20-30 seconds.
STEP 3: Add quinoa and stir well with the spices, cook, stirring, for 30-60 seconds. Add water, salt, and pepper. Stir well and bring to a boil.
Cover the pot, reduce the heat to low, and simmer for 15-17 minutes or until water is absorbed.
Take the pot off the heat, open it to release steam, then cover again, and leave to rest for 10 minutes.
Fluff the quinoa with a fork. Leave to cool.
STEP 4: Make the cilantro lime vinaigrette: Add all the ingredients to a medium jar, close the lid, and shake intensely until all the ingredients are well-combined.
Alternatively, you can make the dressing in a food processor (you won’t have to chop cilantro and garlic). Add all the ingredients except olive oil to a food processor container, mix until cilantro is finely chopped. Add olive oil and mix briefly at low speed until combined.
STEP 5: Prepare other ingredients: rinse beans and corn, drain well. Cut bell pepper and avocado into cubes. Cut cherry tomatoes in half if they´re small or in quarters if they´re larger.
STEP 6: Assemble: add all the ingredients to a large bowl. Stir until well combined. Season well with salt and pepper to taste.
Serve with lime wedges on the side.
Enjoy!
Top Tips
- Always rinse quinoa – it will prevent it from tasting bitter! Quinoa is naturally coated with saponins that can taste bitter and soapy.
- Rest the quinoa after it has been cooked – it will make quinoa more fluffy!
- Toss quinoa with the dressing while it is still slightly warm – it will absorb it more efficiently!
Storage
This salad stores well in the fridge for up to 24 hours. I like it most at room temperature but it can also be served cold or slightly warm.
To make it ahead, you can cook the quinoa and store it in the fridge for up to 3 days. Add vegetables and vinaigrette just before serving. Other websites recommend storing this type of salad for even 5 days for I personally don’t like to store fresh-cut vegetables and vinaigrette with fresh cilantro for more than 1-2 days. Try for yourself how this is working out for you.
I don’t recommend freezing this salad – the vegetables will be mushy!
Did you make this recipe? RATE THE RECIPE or tell me in the COMMENTS how you liked it! You can also add a photo of your dish. It would make me very happy and will help other readers. Thank you!!
Southwest Quinoa Salad
Ingredients
for the quinoa:
- 2 teaspoons olive oil
- 1 clove garlic pressed through a garlic press
- 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin
- 1 cup (190g) quinoa
- 1 3/4 cups water
- 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
- pinch of black pepper
for the cilantro lime vinaigrette:
- 1/4 cup (60ml) olive oil
- 2 tablespoons lime juice
- zest of 1 lime
- 1/2 tablespoon honey
- 1 clove garlic pressed through a garlic press
- small bunch of cilantro about 3-4 tablespoons chopped cilantro
- 1/4 teaspoon dried coriander
- 1/4 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- salt and pepper to taste
other ingredients:
- 2/3 of a can (14-oz or 400ml) black or kidney beans
- 1 can (14-oz or 400ml) corn or 1 1/2 cups (285g) corn kernels which is about 2 1/2 corn cobs
- 1 red bell pepper
- 1 avocado
- 10 cherry or grape tomatoes
Instructions
- Cook quinoa: rinse quinoa on a sieve, drain well. Heat olive oil in a small/medium pot, add garlic, chili powder, cumin, and cook for 20-30 seconds. Add quinoa and stir well with the spices, cook, stirring, for 30-60 seconds. Add water, salt, and pepper. Stir well and bring to a boil. Cover the pot, reduce the heat to low, and simmer for 15-17 minutes or until water is absorbed. Take the pot off the heat, open it to release steam, then cover again, and leave to rest for 10 minutes. Fluff the quinoa with a fork. Leave to cool.
- Make the vinaigrette: Add all the ingredients to a medium jar, close the lid, and shake intensely until all the ingredients are well-combined.
- Alternatively, you can make the dressing in a food processor (you won’t have to chop cilantro and garlic). Add all the ingredients except olive oil to a food processor container, mix until cilantro is finely chopped. Add olive oil and mix briefly at low speed until combined.
- Prepare other ingredients: rinse beans and corn, drain well. Cut bell pepper and avocado into cubes. Cut cherry tomatoes in half if they´re small or in quarters if they´re larger.
- Assemble: add all the ingredients to a large bowl. Stir until well combined. Season well with salt and pepper to taste.
- Serve with lime wedges on the side.
- Enjoy!
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