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Vegan Quinoa Salad

Published: Oct 29, 2019 Modified: Oct 30, 2019 by Alison Andrews This post may contain affiliate links

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Vegan Quinoa Salad

This vegan quinoa salad with a sesame soy dressing is simply bursting with healthy flavor and goodness. Delicious and satisfying. 

Vegan quinoa salad topped with fresh lime and avocado in a wooden salad bowl with salad spoons.

So, quinoa is all the rage because it’s healthy. Even people who prefer not to eat grains love quinoa. Because it’s not a grain, it’s a seed!

But I don’t eat it because it’s healthy (though it is), I eat it because it’s totally delicious.

It has a crunchy nutty flavor and mixed in with salad and a great dressing it makes the kind of meal to get very excited about.

I was reading this thing once where this personal trainer was going on about how if you tell people they can eat whatever they want then they will just eat pizza all day every day. No one would ever eat a salad.

Well, I took major issue with this because, firstly, who died and made him the arbiter of what others are ‘allowed’ to eat. Secondly, who needs to be given permission to eat whatever they want? You’re an adult, I’m an adult, we actually DO get to eat whatever we want! And then thirdly, what a load of hogwash.

I like pizza as much as the next person – probably more, it’s one of my favorite things (a good vegan pizza is something special!), but I don’t hold it in higher regard than I do salad.

And that’s because I eat salads like this vegan quinoa salad! Salad isn’t a chore or a duty, it’s a joy. I hope it is for you too. And if it’s not (yet) then this salad could be the one to turn it all around for you.

Vegan quinoa salad topped with fresh lime and sliced avocado in a wooden salad bowl with salad spoons.

How To Make Vegan Quinoa Salad

When I made my roasted stuffed butternut squash recipe, we stuffed the butternut with a quinoa salad (without lettuce though).

Jaye was so blown away by the quinoa salad alone before we stuffed it inside the butternut that I knew then that I needed to do a standalone recipe for a vegan quinoa salad.

Because yes, it is that good!

So this salad is a simple mix of cooked quinoa with shredded romaine lettuce, sliced cucumbers, sliced olives, cherry tomatoes, yellow bell pepper and avocado with some freshly squeezed lime juice over the top and some chopped chives. 

Sooo yum. 

Step by step process photo collage of assembling a vegan quinoa salad.

Sesame Soy Dressing

The dressing is also really simple and it’s a mix of sesame oil, soy sauce, maple syrup and crushed garlic. Pour it over the top of the salad, toss it up and then serve with some extra sliced avocado, a sprinkle of oregano and some fresh lime for garnish. 

Step by step process photos of making a sesame soy salad dressing.

How To Cook Quinoa

This salad uses 3 cups of cooked quinoa and you can really cook it any way you like. My favorite way to cook it though is to add 1 cup (170g) of uncooked quinoa (1 cup uncooked quinoa makes around 3 cups cooked) to a pot with 2 cups (480ml) of water. Bring it to the boil, and then turn down the heat to low, cover the pot and leave it to simmer until most of the water has been absorbed (about 15 minutes) and the quinoa is tender. 

Fluff with a fork and your quinoa is ready to go! 

Vegan quinoa salad topped with sliced avocado in a wooden salad bowl.

How Long Does This Salad Keep In The Fridge? 

If you think you’ll have leftovers then only add avocado and dressing directly to the portions that you serve. Keep the leftover salad and dressing separately in the fridge. That way the salad will keep nicely in the fridge until the next day, and you can then add more avocado and the remaining dressing to the leftover salad when you serve it.

As long as the salad and dressing are kept separate (and avocado only added to the portions served) then this can last 2-3 days in the fridge. 

Vegan quinoa salad lifting out of a salad bowl with wooden salad spoons.

More Delicious Vegan Salads!

  1. Vegan Couscous Salad
  2. Vegan Caesar Salad
  3. Vegan Chickpea Salad
  4. Vegan Greek Salad
  5. Vegan Macaroni Salad
  6. Vegan Pasta Salad

Vegan quinoa salad in a wooden salad bowl with a salad spoon.

 

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Vegan quinoa salad

Vegan Quinoa Salad


★★★★★

5 from 3 reviews

  • Author: Alison Andrews
  • Prep Time: 35 mins
  • Total Time: 35 mins
  • Yield: 4-6
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Description

This vegan quinoa salad with a sesame soy dressing is simply bursting with healthy flavor and goodness. Delicious and satisfying.


Ingredients

For the Quinoa Salad:

  • 3 cups Quinoa (cooked)
  • 3 cups Romaine Lettuce (shredded)*
  • 2 Small Cucumbers (sliced)
  • 16 Green Olives (pitted, and sliced in half)
  • 16 Cherry Tomatoes (sliced in half)
  • 1 Medium Yellow Bell Pepper (sliced)
  • 2 Medium Avocados (peeled and sliced)
  • 1/2 Small Fresh Lime (Squeezed)*
  • 1/4 cup Chives (chopped)

For the Sesame Soy Dressing:

  • 1 Tbsp Sesame Oil*
  • 2 Tbsp Soy Sauce*
  • 2 Tbsp Maple Syrup
  • 1 tsp Crushed Garlic

For Decoration:

  • Sliced Avocado
  • Fresh Lime
  • Sprinkle Oregano

Instructions

  1. Take 1 cup of uncooked quinoa and cook it according to package instructions or as per your preferred method. 1 cup of uncooked quinoa = approximately 3 cups cooked quinoa. Use it all in the salad.*
  2. When your quinoa is cooked, add it to a salad bowl along with shredded romaine lettuce, sliced cucumbers, green olives, cherry tomatoes, sliced yellow bell pepper and avocado. Toss together. Sqeeze half the lime over the top and throw in some chopped chives.
  3. Prepare the dressing by adding all ingredients to a bowl and mixing together. Pour over the top of the quinoa salad and mix in.
  4. Garnish the salad with some sliced avocado, fresh lime and a sprinkle of oregano.

Notes

*My preferred method for cooking quinoa is to place 1 cup of quinoa (170g) into a pot with 2 cups (480ml) of water.  Bring to the boil and then reduce heat to low, cover and simmer until the quinoa is tender and most of the liquid has been absorbed (~15 mins). Once cooked, fluff with a fork.

*This is approximately half a medium head of Romaine lettuce.

*The half small fresh lime squeezed equals around 1 Tablespoon of fresh lime juice. Use the other half of the lime as garnish for the salad.

*Toasted sesame oil is the most delicious for this, but regular sesame oil also works great.

*Use a gluten-free soy sauce or sub for tamari if you want this meal to be gluten-free.

*Prep time for this recipe includes time spent cooking the quinoa, because while the quinoa is cooking, you can prepare all the other ingredients and the dressing.

  • Category: Entree, Savory, Side, Gluten-Free
  • Method: Stovetop
  • Cuisine: Vegan

Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 1 Serve (of 4)
  • Calories: 402
  • Sugar: 14.9g
  • Sodium: 670mg
  • Fat: 19.3g
  • Saturated Fat: 2.7g
  • Carbohydrates: 52.3g
  • Fiber: 12.1g
  • Protein: 10.7g

Keywords: vegan quinoa salad

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About the Author

Hi I'm Alison Andrews, I'm the voice and cook behind Loving It Vegan. I love making delicious vegan food and creating vegan versions of all your old favorites, so that you’ll never feel like you’re missing out. Find out more about me here.

Loving It Vegan is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. This site may contain some of these links to Amazon.com. If you make a purchase through one of those links, Loving It Vegan will receive a small commission from the purchase at no additional cost to you.
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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Farida says

    October 29, 2020 at 9:11 pm

    Another recipe of yours that was a hit in our house ! Thank you ! I didn’t have salad so used kale instead (that I allowed to wilt in the pan as quinoa finished cooking). Making your apple crisp tomorrow !

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • Alison Andrews says

      October 31, 2020 at 11:52 am

      Wonderful! Thanks Farida!

      Reply
  2. Macedonio Sanchez Sarmiento says

    June 30, 2020 at 10:19 pm

    In a couple days I’ll prepare this delicious quinoa salad, I just checked and have all the Ingredients, chives,limes and cherry tomatoes fresh from the garden.
    Thank you!!!

    Reply
  3. Hazel says

    March 04, 2020 at 12:48 am

    One of the staples in my house, delicious.
    Tried it with cous cous, one time worked out really well.

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • Alison Andrews says

      March 04, 2020 at 12:54 pm

      Fantastic! Thanks for sharing! 🙂

      Reply
  4. Magdalena says

    February 06, 2020 at 1:48 pm

    Hello,
    Would you use something else with that salad instead of quinoa? To make it more varied and interesting

    Reply
    • Alison Andrews says

      February 06, 2020 at 2:02 pm

      Sure, you could try different things!

      Reply
  5. Denise says

    December 12, 2019 at 4:04 am

    Hi everyone,
    I think that tamari sauce is also made from soy. There’s an alternative called Coconut Liquid Aminos, made from coconut blossoms. It’s not as salty but adds just enough flavor. Your first photograph of the large round bowl of salad sure is beautiful – simply mouth-watering! I’ll definitely have to make this. Something I do before cooking any grain is to pre-soak (or sprout) overnight and rinse well to reduce amount of lectin. Something I learned is important for preventing and dealing with auto-immunity issues.

    Reply
  6. terry says

    October 29, 2019 at 5:01 pm

    i assume you let the quinoa cool off before adding the vegetables?

    Reply
    • Alison Andrews says

      October 30, 2019 at 10:46 am

      Hi Terry! I usually don’t, but I don’t mind it a bit warm. You can definitely let it cool first before adding the salad veggies. 🙂

      Reply
  7. lorraine says

    January 28, 2019 at 8:59 pm

    I added some cashews to it!! it was amazing !!

    Reply
    • Alison Andrews says

      January 29, 2019 at 10:35 am

      Wonderful! 🙂

      Reply
  8. Karen says

    August 24, 2018 at 2:57 pm

    I love this quinoa salad, it’s so filling and the dressing is totally divine!

    ★★★★★

    Reply

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Hi I’m Alison Andrews! I love making delicious vegan food and creating delicious vegan versions of all your old favorite dishes, so you can have your vegan cake and eat it too!

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