Quinoa Salad Recipe By Dr. Sonia Goel

Quinoa Salad Recipe 

By Dr. Sonia Goel

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Hello friends!! I am Sonia Goel from Health First Kart. Today I am sharing my way old fantastic recipe for Quinoa Salad. And this is my special favorite recipe because it is made from fresh real whole ingredients and it’s packed with protein and veggies. This recipe is also vegetarian and gluten free so it is a real crowd pleaser.

It’s part of our healthy living recipe collection. So, before we get started let’s focus on the ingredients we need for making this amazing summer blend.

• One and a half cup of water
• One-fourth cup of extra virgin olive oil.
• One-fourth cup of lemon juice.
• Some lemon zests.
• Two cloves of garlic (chopped and minced).
• Rock Salt (according to taste).
• Black Pepper (According to taste).
• Chopped mint leaves (one cup).
• Chopped Parsley leaves (one cup)
• A Cup of Cherry tomatoes.
• A cup of Chopped Cucumber.
• Chopped Scallions.
• One Cup of boiled Cheek Peas.
• Vegan Feta Cheese
• And a large cup of raw Quinoa Seeds.

Now, we are going to prepare the Quinoa.

So, into a saucepan add one and a half cup of water and the cup of uncooked quinoa seeds. I call it ‘star of my show’. Add that in and give it a stair. Keep the lid closed and start cooking in high flame. Once it comes to boil reduce the flame to medium-low and then let it simmer for 15-20 minutes or until all the liquid is absorbed.

Now, let me tell you a bit about ‘Quinoa’ in a layman’s language.

Even though Quinoa is grouped with grains, it is technically a seed. Quinoa is a really amazing food for health freaks because it contains proteins. So, it’s very good for vegetarian type diets or even as a meat substitute. It is also gluten-free so it’s perfect for those who are on a gluten-free diet. It’s very quick and easy to make and it’s delicious.

Now, in a large bowl put the chopped mint, parsley, cherry tomatoes, scallions, chickpeas, and cucumber. Then add lemon zest, lemon juice, chopped garlic and a generous dribble of extra virgin olive oil. 

This is our ‘lemon vinaigrette’ dressing. This will be our real tastemaker and that will add an extra ‘zing’ to it.  

And lastly, add salt and pepper according to your taste. Now, I love making a homemade dressing with real fresh whole ingredients just like this and you can see it’s super simple and takes no time at all. Toss all of these together and put it aside. Wait until your quinoa is cooked.

Here, I’ve cooked the quinoa for 15 minutes and it just doubled in size. Remember, while cooking the quinoa don’t add too much water as it will be water in texture and trust me you will not like that. 

So, for a cup of quinoa add just one and a half to two cups of water. You will know your quinoa is cooked when you will see the little white germ pops and circles the seed and the quinoa gains a light translucent consistency.   

To transfer the quinoa into the bowl always use a fork or a wooden spatula to fluff it up just like you would do with rice. And then using two forks mix all of these together. 

As soon as the herbs hit the warm quinoa, this refreshing bright flavor comes right out of the bowl. Then, I’ve got my tangy creamy vegan feta cheese right over the top. Now, it’s my secret recipe and as I promised I will share this with you in another blog post.

Now, I am going to finish it off by transferring it into a nice big beautiful serving dish. 

So, there you go guys, seems like our summer blend of quinoa salad is ready. And it turns out really delicious and tasty as always.

Do see my Quinoa Salad video for further tips and tips.

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