Mediterranean Quinoa Salad

Quinoa Salad with tomato, cucumber, feta cheese and olives. Packed with protein, fiber and so much flavor!

If you love quinoa like we do, check out kale and quinoa salad and Southwest quinoa salad. Our favorites!

Quinoa Salad

Mediterranean quinoa salad with tomato, cucumber, feta cheese and Kalamata olives. Packed with protein, fiber and flavor it makes easy healthy dinner, meal prep for the week (place in Mason jars for lunches) or bring to a potluck.

Hooray for summer when we can eat salads and don’t feel cold!

Why Quinoa Is Good For You

Do you feel like the hype over quinoa and kale are over? Me too. I think these 2 food items either have become staples for those who like them or have been gladly forgotten. And I’m so happy we are at this stage of new normalcy because social media stopped screaming that kale is a cure for all or is a life threatening vegetable.

Quinoa (pronounced “keenwah”) is one of few plant-based foods that is a source of complete protein that contains 9 essential amino acids. Our bodies can’t produce it, so this quality is especially important for vegans and vegetarians. Quinoa is also very high in fiber, manganese and has low glycemic index.

Easy Ingredients

This easy quinoa salad is a spin off of a Greek salad. All there is to it:

• Tomato
• Cucumber
• Bell pepper
• Avocado
• Olives
• Red onion
• Feta cheese
• Olive oil, cumin, parsley and lemon juice.

Tip: You can wing this cold quinoa salad depending on the contents in your fridge. Use lime juice or any vinegar instead of lemon, goat cheese in place of feta, and green onion or cilantro replaces parsley beautifully.

How to Make Mediterranean Quinoa Salad

Healthy summer quinoa salad is the best way to use up leftover quinoa. If you don’t happen to have any, you can cook quinoa 2 ways.

2 Ways to Cook Quinoa for the Salad

Stovetop: I personally like to cook quinoa with a ratio of 1 cup dry quinoa to 1.5 cups water. Unlike most packages that state 1:2 ratio. Bring to a boil, cook on low for 12 minutes, let stand for 5 minutes and fluff. This way quinoa comes out less mushy.

Instant Pot: I’m obsessed with Instant Pot quinoa. It takes 30 seconds of prep and I walk away. Quinoa comes out fluffy and each grain separate after 9 minutes.

Types of Quinoa You Can Use

For best quinoa salad, I would recommend to use white, red or tri-colour quinoa. Most common quinoa is white quinoa. I specifically like the addition of red quinoa in a salad (tri-colour mix would have it) because its seed has a harder outer shell. It also has more earthy and sweeter taste.

You can cook a bunch of quinoa in advance, freeze and thaw as needed. Perfect thing to do in summer. Again, highly recommend the pressure cooker quinoa haha.

Does Quinoa Salad Go Bad?

The beauty of this quinoa cucumber feta salad is that it tastes better with each day. As grains soak up the olive oil, cumin and lemon juices, salad gains more and more flavor. I would say it is good for up to 3 days refrigerated.

Make ahead? Sure. Add all ingredients to a bowl, cover and refrigerate for up to 24 hours. Stir right before serving.

Need More Cold Quinoa Salad Recipes?

• Broccoli quinoa salad with toasted almonds – so easy and good!
• Quinoa tabbouleh salad – a hit at a potluck 100%.
• Kale and quinoa salad with apples and warm cozy cinnamon dressing.
• Blueberry quinoa salad with avocado, toasted pecans and basil.
• Quinoa black bean salad complete with plant-based protein.

Mediterranean Quinoa Salad

Print Recipe

★★★★★

5 from 3 reviews

Easy Quinoa Salad with tomato, cucumber, feta cheese and olives. Packed with protein, fiber and so much flavor!

• Author: Olena of ifoodreal.com
• Prep Time: 10 minutes
• Cook Time: 12 minutes
• Total Time: 22 minutes
• Yield: 6 servings 1x
• Category: Salad
• Method: Cook + Chop
• Cuisine: Mediterranean

Scale 1x2x3x

Ingredients

• 1 cup quinoa, dry
• 1 medium tomato, chopped
• 1/2 long English cucumber, chopped
• 1 large bell pepper, chopped
• 2 large avocado, chopped
• 1/4 cup red onion, minced
• 1/2 cup parsley or cilantro, finely chopped
• 1/2 cup feta cheese, crumbled
• 20 Kalamata olives, pitted
• 3 tbsp olive oil, extra virgin
• 1 lemon or lime, juice of
• 1 tbsp cumin, ground
• 1/2 tsp salt
• Ground black pepper, to taste

Instructions

1. Cook quinoa as per package instructions or… Stovetop: I personally like to cook quinoa with a ratio of 1 cup dry quinoa to 1.5 cups water. Unlike most packages that state 1:2 ratio. Bring to a boil, cook on low for 12 minutes, let stand for 5 minutes and fluff. This way quinoa comes out less mushy. Instant Pot: I’m obsessed with Instant Pot quinoa. It takes 30 seconds of prep and I walk away. Quinoa comes out fluffy and each grain separate after 9 minutes.
2. In a large salad bowl, add tomato, cucumber, bell pepper, avocado, onion, cilantro, feta cheese, olives, lime juice, oil, cumin, salt and pepper.
3. Fluff quinoa with a fork and add to the bowl. Stir gently to combine and serve cold or warm.

Store: Refrigerate covered for up to 2 days.

Make Ahead: Add all ingredients to a bowl, cover and refrigerate for up to 24 hours. Stir right before serving.

Notes

You can wing this cold quinoa salad depending on the contents in your fridge. Use lime juice or any vinegar instead of lemon, goat cheese in place of feta, and green onion or cilantro replaces parsley beautifully.

★ Did you make this recipe? Please give it a star rating in the comments.

2243.9 g68 mg9.4 g29.6 g7.1 g5.6 mg

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