Rainbow Veggie Quinoa Salad! Get ready to power up with this protein-packed salad!

This colorful Rainbow Veggie Quinoa Salad features a delightful blend of quinoa and an array of fresh vegetables, all tossed in a delectable Asian-inspired peanut dressing that will tantalize your taste buds. The light yet flavorful peanut dressing perfectly complements the natural goodness of the veggies, allowing their freshness to take center stage in every bite. Whether you’re looking for a wholesome lunch option or a satisfying side dish, this wholesome salad is sure to be a crowd-pleaser that will leave you craving more!

Whole Food Plant Based, Vegan, plant based, oil free, refined sugar free, no highly processed ingredients and gluten free.

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Dive into this mouthwatering Asian-inspired veggie salad that will tantalize your taste buds with each delightful bite. The light yet flavor-packed dressing elevates the fresh veggies to a whole new level of deliciousness.

Trust me, you simply must give this irresistible salad a try—it’s a flavor explosion waiting to happen!

Tips for Success:

• Flavor Profile: This protein-packed salad features cooked quinoa and a variety of veggies all coated in a fantastic Asian-inspired peanut dressing. The peanut dressing is light, yet still packed with flavor which allows the veggies to shine through.
• Cooked Quinoa: This quinoa in this dish is light and fluffy. In other words, the quinoa absorbs all the liquids and fluffs up.  We use a 1:1 ratio of dry quinoa to water to create this light and fluffy quinoa.  Feel free to cook the quinoa with your own tried and true method to achieve your favorite cooked quinoa texture.
• Cooking Quinoa: Be sure to have the quinoa thoroughly rinsed and ready to go before the water comes to a boil to avoid evaporating any liquid since only one cup of water is used.
• Quinoa: We used white quinoa.  Feel free to use your favorite quinoa, for example, tri-color, etc.
• Rinsing Quinoa: It is important to thoroughly rinse the dry quinoa to remove any bitterness.
• Pre-Rinsed Quinoa: Feel free to use pre-rinsed quinoa if you wish; however, we suggest rinsing it (just to drench it) for the purpose of this recipe as the wet quinoa works well with achieving a fluffy quinoa when working with a 1:1 quinoa/water ratio.
• Chickpeas: Chickpeas are a hearty bean and work well in this salad. If you are not a fan, then feel free to leave them out and ramp up the quinoa or other veggies.
• Table Salt: If using table salt, you should use less table salt than the amount listed in the ingredients as sea salt crystals are larger than table salt crystals. Since table salt crystals are very fine, less table salt is required to season a dish. We would suggest starting with about 1/4 to 1/2 the amount of sea salt listed. You can always add more salt but cannot take it away. We recommend using sea salt as it is less refined than table salt.

Leftovers and Freezing:

Leftovers will generally keep 5 days in the refrigerator.  Store in a covered container.

This salad cannot be frozen.

Pantry Products:

• Tamari: We used San J Tamari Soy Sauce, Gluten Free, Reduced Sodium. You can substitute the tamari with reduced sodium soy sauce, Braggs Liquid Aminos, or Braggs Coconut Liquid Aminos. We recommend using reduced-sodium products.
• Sea Salt: Please adjust the sea salt based upon your family’s sea salt preferences and/or based upon dietary needs. 

Kitchen Equipment:

• Small stockpot with a lid (for cooking the quinoa)

If you try this vibrant salad, we would love to know if you enjoy it as much as we do! Please leave us a review! Post a picture on Facebook or Instagram and tag us! We would love to hear from you.

Rainbow Veggie Quinoa Salad

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• Author: Monkey and Me Kitchen Adventures
• Prep Time: 15 Minutes
• Cook Time: 15 Minutes
• Total Time: 30 Minutes
• Yield: 4-6 Servings 1x
• Category: Salad, Lunch
• Method: Stovetop
• Diet: Vegan

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Description

This colorful Rainbow Veggie Quinoa Salad features a delightful blend of quinoa and an array of fresh vegetables, all tossed in a delectable Asian-inspired peanut dressing that will tantalize your taste buds.

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Ingredients

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• 2/3 cup dry quinoa, rinsed well
• 2/3 cup water
• 1/8 teaspoon sea salt (+/-) * 

Salad Ingredients:

• 1 – [ 15 oz. can ] chickpeas, drained and rinsed *
• 1 red bell pepper, diced
• 2 cups shaved purple cabbage
• 1 cup mini cucumbers, small dice
• 1 cup grated carrots
• 1 cup chopped green onions 

Peanut Dressing Ingredients:

• 2 Tablespoons natural peanut butter
• 3 Tablespoon reduced sodium tamari *
• 2 Tablespoons pure maple syrup (+/-) *
• 3 Tablespoons + 1 teaspoon red wine vinegar
• 1 teaspoon minced ginger
• 1 teaspoon onion powder (+/-)
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder (+/-)
• Pinch to ¾ teaspoon sea salt (+/-) *

Optional Ingredients:

• Chopped roasted peanuts

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Instructions

1. Place 2/3 cup of water and 1/8 teaspoon sea salt into a small-sized stockpot, bring to a boil, add the rinsed quinoa, stir well, then reduce the heat to a simmer. Cover the pot with a lid and simmer for 15 minutes. Remove the stockpot from the heat and allow to sit covered, undisturbed for 5 to 10 minutes, then fluff with a fork. Then dump the cooked quinoa onto a plate, spread it out to cool. Allow to cool completed, set aside.
2. Place all the Peanut Dressing Ingredients into a small bowl, whisk well until smooth and emulsified, set aside.
3. Place all the Salad Ingredients (including the cooked and cooled quinoa) into a large bowl, mix well to combine, then pour the Peanut Dressing over top, mix well. Serve and enjoy! Refrigerate leftovers.

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Notes

*Please reference the blog post for Tips for Success, Pantry Items Used, Storage and Freezing, and Kitchen Products Used.

*Sea Salt:  Please adjust the sea salt based upon your family’s sea salt preferences and/or based upon dietary needs.

*Servings:  4 to 6

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