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Vegan Quinoa Salad + Zesty Garlic Dressing

top down view of healthy vegan quinoa salad in a bowl with items surrounding.
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Easy Vegan Quinoa Salad features colorful veggies, protein rich edamame and a zesty garlic-lemon dressing. It’s perfect for lunch, dinner or make ahead meals!

Ingredients

Units Scale

Quinoa Salad

  • 1 cup dried quinoa
  • 1 3/4 cups water
  • 1 cup edamame
  • 1 can (14oz) chickpeas (about 1 1/2 cups)
  • 1 1/2 cups English cucumber, chopped
  • 1 yellow bell pepper, chopped
  • 1 cup carrots, chopped
  • 1/2 cup cherry tomatoes, sliced in half
  • 1/2 cup red onion, diced
  • 1/2 cup fresh parsley, chopped (optional)

Zesty-Garlic Dressing

  • 4 garlic cloves, minced
  • 2 medium lemons, juice of
  • 2 tablespoons Dijon or stone ground mustard
  • 1 – 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, optional
  • salt + pepper, to taste

Instructions

Quinoa: Gently rinse quinoa under running water to remove any dust. In a medium-sized pot, add quinoa and 1 1/2 cups water, bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat, and simmer for 15 minutes. Once done, remove cover and let stand 15 minutes, fluff with a fork. Perfect quinoa! Alternatively, use this easy Instant Pot Quinoa.

Dressing: While quinoa is cooking, combine all the dressing ingredients in a small bowl, taste for seasoning, and let set.

Prep produce: Chop and dice your remaining vegetables, except the edamame. Place chopped vegetables and edamame in a large bowl, add the dressing, tossing gently to coat.

Assemble: Once ready, add quinoa to the vegetables and toss together. Serve with a little more sea salt & cracked pepper and squeeze of lemon on top.

Serve at room temperature or chilled.

Makes about 8 cups.

Serves 4 – 6

Store: Leftovers can be kept for 5 – 6 days in the refrigerator in a covered container.

Notes

Add some chopped cilantro, basil or parsley.

Try adding a sprinkle of pepita’s (pumpkin seeds), sunflower seeds or hemp hearts for extra flavor and texture.

Adjusting for dietary restrictions

  • Oil-free: Skip the oil in the garlic dressing for an oil-free quinoa salad.
  • Soy-free: Replace the edamame with extra chickpeas or other beans of choice.
  • Nightshade-free: Omit the tomatoes, adding any other veggie you like.

Find it online: https://simple-veganista.com/garden-quinoa-salad-w-zesty-garlic/