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Greek Quinoa Salad

Greek Quinoa Salad | Gather & Dine

There was a time in my life when I didn’t like olives or feta, but now I love them both.  Ten years ago, I would have never wanted to eat a Greek salad, but now I think I could eat one everyday.  I try to keep this in mind when my kids turn their heads away from some of the meals I lovingly labor over for them.  When I think about how much my tastes have changed over the years, I have hope that theirs will too.

Along with feta and olives, this simple Greek Quinoa Salad has tomatoes, cucumbers, and red onion with a bright red wine and lemon vinaigrette dressing.  Use the ripest tomatoes possible for the best taste and texture.  If you make this salad ahead of time,  save some of the dressing and add it right before serving.

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Greek Quinoa Salad
 
Ingredients
  • For the Salad:
  • 1 cup quinoa
  • 2-3 ripe roma tomatoes, diced
  • ½ English cucumber, diced
  • ¼ cup red onion, small diced
  • ¼ cup kalamata olives, pitted and sliced
  • ⅓ cup feta cheese, crumbled

  • For the Dressing:
  • 3 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon red wine veingar
  • 1 teaspoon lemon juice
  • 1 teaspoon dried oregano
  • ½ teaspoon sea salt
  • ⅛ teaspoon pepper
Instructions
For the Salad:
  1. In a medium pot, boil 6-8 cups of water over high heat. Rinse the quinoa in a fine mesh strainer. When the water is boiling, slowly add the quinoa and boil uncovered for 11-14 minutes. After 10 minutes, start checking the quinoa for doneness. The quinoa is done when the "dot" in the middle of the quinoa starts to disappear and when some of the white filaments start to come off the seeds. Drain the quinoa over a fine mesh strainer and let cool.
  2. In a large bowl, use a wooden spoon to combine the quinoa with the rest of the ingredients. Add ¾ of the dressing and toss thoroughly. Season to taste with extra salt and pepper. Toss in the remaining dressing right before serving.
For the Dressing:
  1. In a small bowl, use a wire whisk to blend ingredients.
Notes
adapted from Alice Water's The Art of Simple Food

 

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Black Bean Quinoa Salad

Black Bean Quinoa Salad

Whenever I make this vibrant and colorful salad, I feel happy and healthy.  I learned a great tip for making quinoa from Lorna Sass’s book Whole Grains Every Day, Every Way.  She recommends making the quinoa as if cooking pasta, rather than cooking rice.  This means draining the extra cooking water rather than letting the quinoa sit to absorb all of the water.  Ever since I started making quinoa this way, there has been no more mushy quinoa and it’s done perfectly every time. This is my own version of a salad that I once saw at the prepared foods counter at Whole Foods.  It keeps well for several days in the fridge and is great for packing lunches or picnics!

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Black Bean Quinoa Salad
 
Ingredients
  • For the Salad:
  • 1 cup red quinoa, uncooked
  • 1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
  • 1 cup cooked corn, fresh or frozen
  • ½ red pepper, chopped
  • ⅓ cup cilantro, chopped
  • ⅓ cup red onion, finely chopped

  • For the Dressing:
  • 1½ tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
  • ½ teaspoon fine grain salt
  • ⅛ teaspoon pepper
  • juice of ½ lime
Instructions
For the salad:
  1. In a medium pot, boil 6-8 cups of water over high heat. Rinse the quinoa in a fine mesh strainer. When the water is boiling, slowly add the quinoa and boil uncovered for 11-14 minutes. After 10 minutes, start checking the quinoa for doneness. The quinoa is done when the "dot" in the middle of the quinoa starts to disappear and when some of the white filaments start to come off the seeds. Drain the quinoa over a fine mesh strainer and let cool.
  2. In a large bowl, use a wooden spoon to combine the quinoa with the rest of the ingredients. Add the dressing and mix thoroughly. Season to taste with extra salt and pepper.
For the dressing:
  1. In a small bowl, use a wire whisk to blend ingredients.

 

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