Quinoa Salad Recipe
This Quinoa Salad Recipe is a new favorite! Roasted sweet potato, red bell pepper, black beans, spinach, quinoa, crunchy pumpkin seeds, and soft cheese, all topped with a basil-lime vinaigrette—absolutely delicious!
Servings: 6 servings (as a side)
Cost: $12.54
Equipment
- Small blender or food processor
Ingredients
Salad
- 4 cups sweet potatoes see note 1
- 1 large red pepper
- 1-1/2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 (15-ounce) can black beans drained and rinsed
- Salt and pepper
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 cup uncooked quinoa I like tri-color
- 5 cups baby spinach coarsely chopped
- 1/2 cup roasted pumpkin seeds/pepitas or chopped pistachios
- 1/3 cup goat cheese or 1 small avocado, optional (for creaminess)
Dressing
- 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
- 1-1/2 tablespoons Dijon-style mustard
- 1/2 packed cup fresh basil see note 2
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 2 large limes
- 1/2 cup olive oil
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425°F (218°C). Peel and chop sweet potatoes into 1/2-inch cubes. Dice pepper into 1/2-inch cubes. Add both to a large sheet pan with plenty of room so veggies can roast (not steam). Drizzle with olive oil, cumin, salt, and pepper. (Add to taste; I add 3/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper.) Toss everything to coat, space out veggies, and roast for 15 minutes, flip veggies and roast an additional 10–20 minutes or until desired tenderness. Once tender, remove and toss drained and rinsed black beans with the potatoes. Set aside to cool to room temperature.
- Meanwhile, rinse quinoa in a fine-mesh sieve in cold water for about 30 seconds. In a medium pot, combine rinsed quinoa with 2 cups water. Season with salt (I add 1/2 teaspoon). Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, and cover the pot with a lid. Turn heat to the lowest setting and cook, covered, 15 minutes or until quinoa has completely absorbed the water. Turn off heat and let stand, covered, 5–10 minutes. After it’s finished steaming, remove lid and fluff quinoa gently with a fork. Set aside to cool to room temperature. In a hurry? Spread it on a sheet pan and slide it in the freezer for 15 minutes.
- Combine all dressing ingredients except oil in a small blender or food processor. Zest and juice limes to get 1 teaspoon zest and 3 tablespoons juice; add to blender. Season to taste with salt and pepper (I add 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoon pepper). Blend until basil is broken down. Add in oil and blend just until emulsified (do not over-blend). Transfer dressing to a large covered jar and refrigerate while you finish the salad.
- Coarsely chop the spinach. Toss spinach and completely cooled quinoa together. Add cooled sweet potatoes, pepper, and black bean mixture. Gently toss. Top with chopped avocado or goat cheese (if using) and pumpkin seeds.
- This salad does not store well after being dressed, so only add cheese, pepitas, and dressing to what that will be eaten immediately. Toss the salad with the desired amount of dressing. (You’ll have some leftover, depending on how dressed you like your salads. I use about 3/4 of the dressing, but add as much as you’d like.) Taste and season salad once more, adding a pinch more salt/pepper if needed to bring flavors alive. Enjoy immediately.
Video
Notes
Note 1: This recipe uses about 2 medium/large potatoes or about 1.3 pounds.
Note 2: If you happen to have fresh basil, perfect! If not, one standard .75 ounce packet is the perfect amount for this recipe!
Storage: This salad is best eaten immediately after being dressed, so if you want leftovers, only add cheese, pepitas, and dressing to the portion that will be eaten immediately. For more storage tips, read the last paragraph of the blog post.
Nutrition
Serving: 1serving | Calories: 402kcal | Carbohydrates: 46.1g | Protein: 10.8g | Fat: 21.4g | Sodium: 308.7mg | Fiber: 8.8g | Sugar: 7.1g