Quinoa is such a great source of protein and it’s so versatile! It’s a great way to add protein to main dishes, salads, and soups, and it’s a great base to make veggie burgers.

For a base of a salad like this, I prefer red quinoa. It has a little bit more of a bite to it and doesn’t clump as easy as white quinoa. Red quinoa is also great as a salad topping, it adds a little protein to a otherwise low protein salad.

This quinoa salad is so colorful and incredibly simple! There’s barely any prep work to do and the vinaigrette is super simple and delicious. To make this recipe even easier I buy pre shredded carrots at Trader Joe’s. Another added bonus to this recipe – you don’t need any special tools! Just a saucepan, knife, and a container to make the dressing will do the trick.

Colorful Red Quinoa Salad

Makes 6-8 servings

Ingredients:

2 cups red quinoa, uncooked
1/2 small red cabbage, shredded
1/2 cup slivered almonds
1 1/2 cups shredded carrots (I buy pre shredded at Trader Joe’s)
3/4 cup english cucumber, seeded and diced

Vinaigrette:

1/3 cup grapeseed oil
3 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
1 tablespoon honey
1 teaspoon soy sauce
1/4 teaspoon sesame oil
Salt and Pepper

How to:

1. In a medium saucepan, place quinoa and 3 1/2 cups water. Cook until the water is absorbed. Set aside to cool.

2. Place all of the vinaigrette ingredients in a jar or container with a lid and shake together.

3. Dice cucumber, shred carrots and cabbage.

4. Mix together the veggies, almonds, and quinoa in a large bowl.

5. Right before serving, dress the salad. Enjoy!

*This salad will keep nicely for 3-5 days in a fridge, just be sure to leave the vinaigrette and almonds on the side until serving.

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If you have any questions, comments, or recipe requests, please feel free to leave a comment or contact me. Also, if you make this recipe, please let me know what you think!