A quinoa salad is a healthy gluten-free salad made of cooked quinoa and raw vegetables. Quinoa is high in plant-based proteins and fiber, making it a healthy grain for fulfilling, low Glycemic Index salads and perfect for diabetic lunches as an alternative to my Vegan Couscous Salad, Vegan Taco Salad, or Vegan Soba Noodle Salad. You use quinoa in salads like you will use any other grains like pasta or rice. First, cook the quinoa, following my quinoa cooking instructions below. Then, cool down the quinoa and add the lukewarm or cold quinoa into the remaining ingredients from the salad to create a high-protein salad recipe.
Ingredients and Substitutions
First, gather all the ingredients you need to make this easy quinoa spinach salad:
Quinoa – Cook your quinoa following the instructions provided on your brand packaging, my detailed guide on how to cook quinoa, or the instructions provided in the recipe card below. You can use leftover cooked quinoa as well. The recipe provides both uncooked and cooked quinoa amounts. Baby Spinach Leaves – Or arugula. Tomatoes – Or cherry tomatoes for a sweeter taste. Cucumber – Skin on, diced. Almonds – Roughly chopped. You can use any nuts and seeds you love, like pine nuts, walnuts, or pecans.
This vegan quinoa salad is delicious with its lemon dressing.
Extra-Virgin Olive Oil – That’s the best low saturated fat for salads with a lovely flavor. You can also use avocado oil if preferred. Lemon Juice – Either fresh or bottled. You can also use lime juice. Dijon Mustard – or American mustard. but this won’t bring as much zing. Salt and Pepper – to taste Italian Flat Parsley – Finely chopped. Other herbs that go well in this vegan quinoa salad recipe are cilantro and mint. Garlic Powder – Optional, don’t add for low FODMAP.
How To Make A Quinoa Spinach Salad
It’s very easy to make a quinoa spinach salad for lunch or as a side dish. All you need are a few ingredients and only 30 minutes to assemble this healthy salad recipe. The instructions below are for cooking quinoa in a saucepan, but if you want to cook them in a rice cooked to make sure it doesn’t stick, follow my quinoa in a rice cooker recipe.
Serving Suggestions
This spinach and quinoa salad is a fulfilling lunch on its own for a light summer lunch:
Protein – Quinoa is a complete plant-based protein as it contains all the essential amino acids you need on a vegan diet. Healthy Fats – Olive oil and almonds add a great balance of omega 3 and omega 6 fats. Both are important fat for cell membranes and inflammatory responses. Fibers, Vitamins, and Nutrients – Baby spinach, tomatoes, and cucumber add all the 3 essentials to make this vegan salad complete.
This quinoa salad is also a great side dish to bring to summer BBQ and matches very well any grilled plant-based meat, tofu steak, and more!
Recipe Variations
This spinach quinoa salad recipe is naturally low FODMAP, so it doesn’t use onion, garlic, or dried fruits in the salad or dressing. However, feel free to add some of the toppings below to this quinoa and spinach salad:
Dried Fruits – Cranberries go very well with spinach and quinoa. Red Onion – Finely chopped. Red Pepper – Finely diced. Avocado – Diced.
More Salad Recipes
Below I listed a few more vegan salad recipes for you to try and serve as a light lunch or vegan side dish.
