Simple Quinoa Salad with Lemon Dressing

This simple quinoa salad with lemon dressing is the perfect salad to bring when traveling or for a summer BBQ and your outdoor events because it can be served cold. You can load up this salad with your favorite veggies. The dressing is mixed with an oil free lemon dressing.

I wanted to figure out what to bring to my sons baseball tournament. Something that's healthy but doesn't need to be refrigerated and travels well.

I created and used oil free Lemon dressing for this salad. I swapped out the oil with the aquafaba, the liquid from the chickpea can, as an oil substitute. I like to limit the amount of extra fat if I can and therefore use oil free dressing. Most of the time people throw out the liquid from the chickpeas can but it can be very useful as an oil substitute for dressing. Also for making hummus or for baking as an egg substitute.

If there is a veggie you don't like you can easily swap out for one that you do.

Lemon Dressing Ingredients:

• Aquafaba (Liquid from the chickpea can)
• Lemon Juice
• Maple Syrup
• Salt and Pepper to taste

Quinoa Salad Ingredients:

• Quinoa
• Chickpeas
• Bell Pepper
• Cucumber
• Tomatoes
• Red Onion
• Mushrooms
• Fresh herbs of choice: parsley, basil, cilantro

How to Make the Simple Quinoa Salad:

This salad comes together very quickly once the quinoa is cooked. You are washing and rinsing the veggies and draining the can of chickpeas. Once the quinoa is cooked and slightly cooled, you can mix the ingredients together and mix in the salad dressing.

Step 1: Cook the Quinoa

Add quinoa to a fine mesh strainer and then rinse under cool water for 30-60 seconds. Combine the rinsed quinoa and water in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil and then reduce to a low simmer and cook. Cover until the liquid is absorbed by the quinoa, it takes about 10 to 15 minutes.

Move the saucepan off of the heat and cover for five minutes. This extra time allows the quinoa to steam and “fluff up.” Uncover and then fluff the quinoa with a fork. Set aside to cool slightly.

Step 2: Prep the veggies

While the quinoa is cooking, chop up the veggies into small bite size pieces. You can swap out any of the veggies or add in extra veggies that you have in your kitchen. Also, you could easily add in some chopped zucchini or spinach to the salad.

Step 3: Make the Lemon Salad Dressing

The dressing is very simple to make. Drain the chickpeas and save the liquid. The liquid is called aquafaba. This will be the oil substitute for the salad dressing, which makes this a low fat dressing.

To a small bowl add the aquafaba, lemon juice and maple syrup and whisk together. Salt and pepper to taste. Set aside for the quinoa salad.

Step 4: Creating the Simple Quinoa Salad

Mix everything together. Add the slightly cooled quinoa to a large bowl and mix in the chopped veggies.

Next add in the lemon salad dressing and combine all together. Salt and pepper to taste.

Refrigerate. The salad should be good in the refrigerator for 3-5 days. You can serve at room temperature.

This simple quinoa salad with lemon dressing is great when meal prepping for the week ahead or to bring a party. It's lively, bright, full of color and is vegan. It's even loved by my non-vegan friends.

For More Recipe Ideas that are great to bring to a party!

Simple Quinoa Salad

Simple quinoa salad is made chickpeas, veggies and oil free lemon dressing.

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Prep Time: 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes minutes

Course: Salad

Cuisine: American

Keyword: quinoa

Servings: 6

Author: Shelly Hughes

Ingredients

Salad

• 1 cup uncooked quinoa
• 2 cup water
• 14 oz Chickpeas plus the liquid in the can (aquafaba)
• 1-2 cup mushrooms, chopped
• 1 bell pepper, diced
• ¼ red onion, diced
• ⅓ cup chopped nuts (walnuts, cashews) or seeds of choice optional
• 2 cup chopped raw broccoli
• 1 cup tomatoes, chopped
• 1 cup cucumbers, chopped 3 mini cucumbers or half a large cucumber
• 2 tablespoon fresh parsley, minced or substitute basil
• 1 avocado, diced optional

Dressing

• ¼ cup aquafaba (liquid from the chickpea can)
• ½ lemon, squeezed (about 2 tbsp)
• 1 tablespoon maple syrup optional
• salt and pepper to taste optional

Instructions

Cook the quinoa

• Add quinoa to a fine mesh strainer, and then rinse under cool water for 30 seconds to a minute. Combine the rinsed quinoa and water in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil then reduce to a low simmer and cook, covered, until the liquid is absorbed by the quinoa, 10 to 15 minutes.

  Move the saucepan off of the heat and cover for five minutes. This extra time allows the quinoa to steam and “fluff up.” Uncover, and then fluff the quinoa with a fork. Set aside to cool slightly.

Lemon Salad Dressing

• Drain the chickpeas and set the liquid aside (aquafaba). To a small bowl add in ¼ cup of the aquafaba, fresh lemon juice and maple syrup and misk together. Salt to taste. Set aside.

Prepare the Simple Quinoa Salad

• To a large bowl add in the cooked quinoa and the chopped vegetables and mix together.
• Next add in the lemon salad dressing and combine all together. Salt and pepper to taste.

  Refrigerate. The salad should be good in the refrigerate for 3-5 days. You can serve at room temperature.

Tried this recipe?Mention @ShellyPlantBasedFoody or tag #shellyplantbasedfoody!