Today’s recipe has been a staple in our house over the last 2 years. Chad first made this quinoa salad when we wanted a side to some grilled salmon. And we have pretty much been making it ever since. I love a light, yet filling and hearty side dish and bonus points if it’s healthy and gluten free.

I also love this easy quinoa salad because it’s very versatile, so you can use anything you have on hand. We will make it for a side dish or meal prep a big batch and eat is all week at lunch or dinner.

Here are the parts of it…

Quinoa - I love quinoa because it’s light yet filling and gluten-free! Quinoa is also great for its health benefits - like protein, fiber, folate, and magnesium. A win-win in my book.
Vegetables + other mix-in’s – we will use whatever we have on hand, but our go-to combo is onion, bell peppers and tomatoes. We also sometimes add in olives or zucchini if we have either on hand.
Cheese – we use crumbled Feta cheese the most but will use parmesan if we don’t have feta.
Italian or similar oil-based dressing – you can use a homemade recipe or a favorite bottle of Italian dressing, either work perfect! I usually go the easy route for me and just use a bottle of a fav dressing.
Herbs – I love using fresh herbs from our garden, which is why I find ourselves making this recipe the most in the warmer months. This past week, I did a mix of thyme, oregano and basil. But really any combo of herbs or one herb is great. Such as thyme, oregano, basil or parsley. I also will just use chopped fresh basil.

Those were just some ideas and the recipe below has our go-to combo. I have even made this with just parm, herbs and homemade Italian dressing. It was great that way, too! I don’t really measure anything, I just kind of eye-ball and add more if I want more. You kind of adjust it to your liking.

The best part about this recipe is that it is also great for meal prep. I will make a big batch on a Sunday and then enjoy it all week long. The hardest part is making the quinoa, which isn’t even hard (for some reason I just feels hard!), it just takes a few steps. You rinse the quinoa and then prepare according to the directions on the package. Usually involving putting on the stove with water and bringing to a boil and then covering and simmering for 15 minutes. It is similar to making rice.

This recipe is not an exact one with measurements, but more of a method and you can use whatever produce you have on hand and add more or less of an ingredient depending on your preference. This would also be a fun side to take to a cookout! Leftovers store well all week in the refrigerator.

Easy Quinoa Salad

Cooked Quinoa
fresh herbs - we will use fresh Basil and/or thyme and oregano
chopped red or white onion
cherry tomatoes, halved
chopped bell pepper (we love yellow bell pepper)
feta cheese
Italian dressing (we stir it up and taste and decide if you want to add more)
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Cook the quinoa according to package directions.
Mix all of the ingredients up in a bowl and add salt and pepper to taste.
Enjoy! Store any leftovers in an air-tight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.