Zesty Quinoa Salad

This healthy and refreshing zesty quinoa salad works great as a lunch, light dinner, potluck dish, or even for a picnic.  

It’s made with simple whole food plant-based ingredients like red bell pepper, jalapeño, red onion, cilantro, black beans, avocado, and lime juice.  Adding fresh lime juice and fresh cilantro brightens up this plant-based quinoa salad, making it light and flavorful.

The zesty quinoa salad recipe is vegan/vegetarian, oil-free, whole food plant-based, and gluten-free!  It comes together in about 30 minutes and can even work for meal prep. For more easy refreshing salads try my vegan fruit salad with lime juice, summer berry salad, or vegan strawberry spinach salad with avocado.

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• Ingredient notes
• Quinoa
• Tips
• Instructions
• Storage
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Ingredient notes

Simple ingredients for a simple zesty salad!

Quinoa - White or tri-color work best.  But use your favorite or what you have on hand.

Fresh or frozen corn - Quickly thaw frozen corn by placing it in a colander and running hot water over the corn, stirring to break up any frozen pieces.  Thoroughly drain the frozen corn to not add excess liquid to the vegan quinoa salad.  You can also substitute fresh or frozen corn with about one can of drained corn.

Black beans - One can of drained and rinsed black beans or use 1 ½ cups of cooked black beans.  They can also be replaced with pinto beans or chickpeas.

Cherry tomatoes - They hold their shape well and don’t have as many seeds. If you substitute with another type of tomato that has a lot of seeds and is watery, you may want to de-seed the tomato to not add too much liquid to the salad.  

Red onion - I finely dice these when adding them to the quinoa zesty salad.  If needed, you can leave this out or substitute it with scallions.

Red bell pepper - This can be substituted with a different color bell pepper.

Jalapeño - Remove the seeds and ribs to reduce heat or leave it out.  I prefer to finely dice it.

Fresh cilantro - If you’re not a fan of cilantro leave it out or use parsley if you’d prefer.

Fresh lime juice - Use fresh lime for the best flavor.

Avocado - Just like in guacamole, the lime juice will temporarily help prevent the avocado from browning.

Quinoa

Quinoa has a nutty, earthy flavor, and white or tricolor quinoa works well in a salad.  I haven’t tested the recipe using only red or black quinoa, but it should work too.  Red quinoa has a chewier and even nuttier flavor compared to white quinoa.  Black quinoa has an earthier flavor with a slight sweetness.  Actually, tricolor quinoa is just a mixture of white, red, and black.

Tips

• Fresh or canned corn can be used instead of frozen corn.
• The beans can be interchanged with any other cooked bean.
• If you don’t like cilantro, it can be left out.
• The stems of the fresh cilantro have a lot of flavor, use them too but finely chop them so you don’t have large pieces.  Trim off the woodier ends and finely chop the more tender ends of the stems closer to the leaves.
• Deseed the jalapeño to decrease the heat.
• I think the salad tastes better served immediately, but if you’re prepping this ahead of time, wait to add the avocado until ready to serve. 

Instructions

Cook ½ cup of quinoa according to the instructions on the package, and let it cool.  While it’s cooling, prep all of your other ingredients.  The frozen corn can be thawed by placing it in a colander and running warm water over it.  Use your hands to break up any large frozen chunks. Then let it drain before adding it to the salad.

Finely dicing the red onion and jalapeño ensures you don’t get a giant piece while you’re eating the quinoa salad.  Add all of the ingredients to a large bowl and stir gently to combine.  If serving now, add the diced avocado, otherwise wait to add it when you’re ready to consume.  

Storage

The lime juice will only temporarily help the avocado from turning brown in this quinoa zesty salad.  If you are prepping ahead of time, wait on adding the avocado until ready to serve. Store in an air-tight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days.

Related recipes

• Vegan strawberry spinach salad
• Chickpea tuna salad sandwich (no mayo)
• Vegan curry chickpea salad
• Curry chickpea salad wrap
• Vegan Peanut Noodles
• Creamy tahini soba noodles
• Vegan Creamy Tomato Pasta

As always, I hope you enjoy this quinoa zesty salad with avocado and black beans! If you like the recipe, feel free to rate it and leave a comment.

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