Quinoa Salad
This is another flexible dish that with the base of the quinoa and the dressing, you can make a lot of variations. Quinoa is a great grain that is gluten free and offers lots of nutritional value. So, the recipe basically consists of this: quinoa with salad dressing, veggies, and a protein. For veggies, I have used cucumber, red and orange pepper, cherry tomatoes, carrot matchsticks, and red onion. Any combination of crunchy veggies will work. For protein, we normally use chicken (grilled or shredded) but have also used salmon or shrimp. Top with a soft cheese -we prefer goat cheese but feta or fresh mozzarella is great too.
To get started, prep your veggies and protein. Mix up the salad dressing. Last, cook your quinoa and then mix it all up. We prefer it cold so I usually make in advance and leave in the fridge. Very delicious and very simple!
Quinoa Salad with Grilled Chicken
Ready in 30 minutes
Serves 4 people
INGREDIENTS
- 1 cup dried quinoa
- 1 red pepper
- 1 orange pepper
- 1/2 cucumber
- 1 lbs chicken
- 1/4 to 1/2 cup fresh cheese (goat, feta, or fresh mozzarella)
- Salad Dressing
- 1/3 cup olive oil
- 3 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 1 tbsp garlic powder
PREPARATION
- Trim and prepare chicken to grill. Toss in some olive oil and garlic powder for some flavor (or your favorite oil based salad dressing).
- Chop veggies
- Cook quinoa based on directions on box
- Grill chicken (usually 6 minutes per side works for thin chicken breasts). When chicken is done, slice into bite size pieces.
- Mix salad dressing ingredients
- Mix all ingredients together in a bowl
- Leave in fridge until ready to serve
- Enjoy!
TIPS
- Play around with combinations of veggies and protein.
- We prefer cool but this can be served right away.
- This is a great dish for potlucks or meal prep lunches.