Summer is just around the corner. Which means… BBQs!
I love summer weather and having more excuses to get together with friends. And where there are friends, there is food. Duh.
This quinoa salad is a great, quick, easy and healthy side dish to bring to any social gathering, cookout {for all you Texans}, BBQ {for all you Californians}, or potluck! It’s easy to make, you can prep it ahead of time, and it’s free of gluten, soy, dairy, and nuts and it’s vegan.
And did I mention it’s delicious? It’s light, refreshing and yet just the right amount of filling.
quinoa salad
what you’ll need:
- quinoa
- 1 can organic black beans
- celery
- cucumber
- bell peppers {any color; I used red and green}
- green onion and/or red onion {I used both}
- Himalayan pink salt
- unsweetened coconut yogurt {I use So Delicious brand}
- coconut aminos and/or balsamic vinegar {I used both}
- liquid coconut oil {I use this MCT oil from Amazon}
- lemon and/or lime juice {I used lime simply because it’s what we had}
how to prep:
What I love about this dish is that you can prep the veggies ahead of time. Two days ago, I was prepping salads for dinner and I simply set aside the chopped veggies for this side dish in some glass tupperware and stored it in the fridge until today.
If you are prepping it all at once, start with the quinoa so you can allow it to cook + cool while you prepare the veggies.
- prepare quinoa as explained on package {I did 1 cup quinoa + 2 cups water, brought to a boil and let simmer, covered, for 15 minutes}, set aside and allow it to cool
- rinse and chop 1/3-1/2 c. each of celery, cucumber, bell peppers, and onion {this is not an exact science and you don’t need to be exact; throw in whatever veggies you want!}
- rinse 1 can black beans in strainer and add to veggie mix
- add cooled quinoa
For the “dressing,” there’s freedom in adding however much of each thing you want! What I do:
- sprinkle generously with salt
- drizzle with balsamic vinegar, coconut aminos, lime juice + MCT {coconut} oil
- add 4 dollops of {~4 T.} unsweetened coconut yogurt
Stir well, cover, and place in fridge until it’s time to go!
Enjoy!
