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    Easy Vegan Mexican Quinoa Salad

    Jul 30, 2020 · 20 Comments

    Jump to Recipe
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    This Easy Vegan Mexican Quinoa Salad is full of delicious flavor and a variety of textures while offering nutritious ingredients.  It is simple to prepare and uses mostly pantry ingredients you likely have on hand like dry quinoa and canned black beans.  It has a Southwestern flavored dressing that makes this quinoa salad so addictive.  This quinoa salad holds up well in the refrigerator making it an excellent meal prep option.

    Easy Vegan Mexican Quinoa Salad

    Easy Vegan Mexican Quinoa Salad

    This Easy Vegan Mexican Quinoa Salad seems so simple and yet every time I make it I'm so amazed and how good it is!  All you need to prepare this salad is quinoa, black beans, green onions, red bell pepper, red onion and cilantro.  The quinoa and black beans provide plant-based protein while the red bell pepper offers immune-boosting vitamin C.   The dressing is simple too: olive oil, lime juice, maple syrup, cumin, garlic and salt.  Boom!  You are done!

    Easy Vegan Mexican Quinoa Salad

    How to Make Easy Vegan Mexican Quinoa Salad

    I make the quinoa using my Perfectly Cooked Quinoa Method: Stovetop or Instant Pot.  While the quinoa cooks I whisk the dressing together in the serving bowl.  Then, I chop up my veggies and herbs.  When the quinoa is done I toss everything together and enjoy immediately or store for meal prep.

    Mexican Quinoa Salad Recipe

    Health Benefits of Quinoa

    Quinoa is one of my favorite pantry staples.  It is light and absorbs flavor wonderfully.  It adds great texture to salads.  It is so easy to prepare and offers such amazing health benefits.  It is loaded with fiber (one serving has over 5 grams) and is considered a complete protein with all eight essential amino acids.  This makes it a great source of plant-based protein for vegans.  In fact, it has more protein than any other grain.  Quinoa is a good source of folate, magnesium, iron, phosphorus and many phytochemicals.  It also offers important minerals such as calcium, potassium, copper and zinc.

    Meal Prep Mexican Quinoa Salad

    Looking for more quinoa recipes?

    These are all vegan and gluten-free recipes with quinoa:

    Mango-Avocado Quinoa Salad with Toasted Pepitas

    Mediterranean Quinoa Salad

    Crispy Quinoa Falafel Bowls

    Roasted Veggies & Crispy Chickpeas over Quinoa with Garlic Maple Tahini Drizzle

    Roasted Beet Noodles Over Quinoa with Parsley Pesto

    Quick & Easy One-Pot Curried Quinoa & Chickpeas

    Crispy Quinoa and Avocado Salad with Strawberry Vinaigrette

    One-Pot Sweet & Spiced Quinoa Lentil Salad

    Berry-Cherry Quinoa Salad with Candied Walnuts and Balsamic-Shallot Vinaigrette

    Print
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    Easy Vegan Mexican Quinoa Salad

    Easy Vegan Mexican Quinoa Salad


    5 from 9 reviews

    • Author: Elaine Gordon
    • Total Time: 35 minutes
    • Yield: 8 1x
    • Diet: Vegan
    Print Recipe
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    Description

    This Easy Vegan Mexican Quinoa Salad is full of delicious flavor and a variety of textures while offering nutritious ingredients.  It is simple to prepare and uses mostly pantry ingredients you likely have on hand like dry quinoa and canned black beans.  It has a Southwestern flavored dressing that makes this quinoa salad so addictive.  This quinoa salad holds up well in the refrigerator making it an excellent meal prep option.


    Ingredients

    Units Scale
    • 1 cup uncooked quinoa (cooked in the Instant Pot with 1 cup of water)*
    • 1 (15 ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed
    • 1 red or orange bell pepper, stem and seeds removed, diced
    • 4 green onions, diced
    • ½ red onion, finely diced
    • 1 cup packed fresh cilantro, large stems removed, leaves chopped

    Dressing

    • 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
    • 2 limes, juiced
    • 1 tablespoon pure maple syrup
    • 1 garlic clove, minced
    • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
    • 1 teaspoon fine salt

    Instructions

    1. Cook the quinoa in the Instant Pot*.  While the quinoa cooks prepare your dressing and other ingredients.
    2. In a large mixing bowl combine the cooked quinoa with the black beans, red bell pepper, onions and cilantro.  Whisk the dressing well and pour overtop the salad.  Stir well to combine.  Enjoy immediately or store in an airtight container (or separate smaller airtight containers for lunch on-the-go).  Salad lasts in the refrigerator for up to five days.

    Notes

    *Use two cups of water if using the stovetop to cook the quinoa.  Use my stovetop method for perfectly cooked quinoa.  Either way this yields about 3 cups of tightly packed cooked quinoa.  The cooked quinoa measures 4 cups when fluffed with a fork and not packed tightly into the measuring cup.  This recipe uses 1 cup of uncooked quinoa which for me yields 4 cups of fluffy unpacked cooked quinoa.

    In the Instant Pot put the quinoa and water in the pot and cook on Manual high pressure for one minute.  Then, press off and allow it to naturally release for 15 minutes.  Remove lid and fluff with a fork.  Allow to slightly cool before adding to the salad.

    • Prep Time: 15
    • Cook Time: 20
    • Category: Side Dish or Entree
    • Method: Instant Pot or Stovetop
    • Cuisine: Mexican

    Nutrition

    • Serving Size:
    • Calories: 183
    • Sugar: 3.7 g
    • Sodium: 369.4 mg
    • Fat: 5.1 g
    • Saturated Fat: 0.7 g
    • Trans Fat: 0 g
    • Carbohydrates: 28.7 g
    • Fiber: 6.1 g
    • Protein: 6.8 g
    • Cholesterol: 0 mg

    Keywords: Mexican quinoa salad

    Did you make this recipe?

    Tag @eatingbyelaine on Instagram and hashtag it #eatingbyelaine

    Recipe lightly adapted from Detoxinista.

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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Jamie says

      September 07, 2020 at 7:39 pm

      5 stars 5 stars 5 stars! I made this salad recently for a get together and everyone LOVED it and asked for the recipe. I added avocado and it was just perfect! Thanks for sharing with us!






      Reply
      • Elaine Gordon says

        September 08, 2020 at 11:00 am

        Thank you SO much! I'm so happy to hear you love it so much and it was such a hit at your gathering! I love adding avocado to it too!

        Reply
    2. Hannah says

      November 25, 2020 at 10:32 pm

      This recipe is on my weekly meal rotation and has been made by many friends after trying it at my house. It’s a hit with everyone! So refreshing and delicious






      Reply
      • Elaine Gordon says

        November 25, 2020 at 10:35 pm

        Thank you so much for letting me know, Hannah! So great to hear! This is on my weekly meal rotation as well. Everyone is always pleasantly surprised by this one!

        Reply
    3. Myriam says

      December 21, 2020 at 7:09 am

      Love this salad! As one person said I add avo and switched out the red peppers for cherry tomatoes. Also leave out the maple syrup from the dressing. The cumin salad dressing is the cherry on top!






      Reply
      • Elaine Gordon says

        December 21, 2020 at 10:58 am

        Thank you so much, Myriam! It is my favorite and I make it a couple times a month for meal prep. Love to hear about substitutions and what works so thank you for sharing and taking the time to comment/rate!

        Reply
    4. Natalie Bench says

      December 31, 2020 at 2:58 pm

      I love this salad!! So good and fresh, thank you so much. Definitely will make it again soon. Makes a good amount too and isn't hard to put together.

      Reply
      • Elaine Gordon says

        January 04, 2021 at 10:38 am

        Thank you so much, Natalie! It is one of my absolute favorites and I make it a couple times a month. It definitely makes a good amount, I agree! I'm so happy to hear you enjoyed it and it was easy to pull together! Happy New Year!

        Reply
    5. Katia says

      April 21, 2021 at 12:58 am

      One of our favorite recipes ever! This salad is a complete meal for me and it’s so delicious!






      Reply
      • Elaine Gordon says

        April 21, 2021 at 10:14 am

        Thank you so much, Katia! I'm so happy you love it too! 🙂

        Reply
    6. Shanna says

      April 21, 2021 at 10:56 am

      Perfect side dish! Easy to make! Stays fresh for days! Add to lettuce and you have a salad!






      Reply
      • Elaine Gordon says

        April 21, 2021 at 12:05 pm

        Thank you SO much, Shanna! So happy you enjoy this one! I love the idea of adding to lettuce - I surprisingly haven't tried that yet!

        Reply
    7. Stephanie says

      April 26, 2021 at 11:44 pm

      Loved this recipe and dressing and can see how versatile it will be with switching out ingredients as well! Definitely adding this into rotation right now 🙂






      Reply
      • Elaine Gordon says

        April 27, 2021 at 4:05 pm

        Thank you so much, Stephanie! Yes, very adaptable recipe to what you have on hand. And the dressing is one of my faves :). We make this dish pretty much weekly over here! So glad you enjoyed! Thank you again! Best, Elaine

        Reply
    8. Kathryn says

      April 28, 2021 at 3:08 pm

      I love this salad! I make it once a week in warm weather. My favorite lunch!
      Just made it today.






      Reply
      • Elaine Gordon says

        April 30, 2021 at 10:36 am

        Yay! So happy to hear that, Kathryn! I make it all the time here too! it is always so nice to have on hand for a quick and easy lunch that satisfies! So glad you enjoy this one too! Best, Elaine

        Reply
    9. Danielle M says

      August 21, 2021 at 9:29 pm

      I love this recipe! It is so easy and delicious, and a perfect lunch for a busy week. The dressing is a perfect balance of flavors. I add cheddar cheese and diced jalapeño to my mix, and alternate between warming it in the microwave or eating it straight from the fridge. If you’re looking for a work week lunch, don’t hesitate to make this one!






      Reply
      • Elaine Gordon says

        August 24, 2021 at 10:47 am

        Thank you so much, Danielle! So happy you enjoy this one too! I love it for during busy work weeks too! I also sometimes like it warm vs cold depending on my mood! Thank you again! Best, Elaine

        Reply
    10. Summer says

      December 25, 2021 at 9:27 pm

      Wonderful flavor and beautiful colors - I could eat this everyday! Stores well in fridge love to have it prepped ahead of time and I usually make a double batch. If you don't have limes use lemons I love it both ways. Super simple meal prep by just adding one can of tuna.






      Reply
      • Elaine Gordon says

        December 27, 2021 at 9:56 pm

        Thank you so much, Summer! I'm so happy you enjoy this recipe as much as I do! Best, Elaine

        Reply

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