Asian Quinoa Salad
A quick and easy healthy quinoa salad dressed in sweet and tangy Asian flavors, loaded with tons of veggies!
Since it’s the eve of Halloween, I am attempting to eat healthy in preparation of devouring all the Halloween candy tomorrow. See, I’m being smart and planning ahead. That way, I don’t have to kill myself with a 10-mile run to work off all those Kit Kat bars, which is my ultimate candy weakness.
So here’s my go-to clean eating meal before the big day: a bowl of Asian-style quinoa dressed in a sweet and tangy sesame vinaigrette loaded with all sorts of veggie goodness – shredded cabbage, avocado, bell pepper, carrots, corn and green onion – but feel free to add in your favorite kinds of veggies. If you need more protein, you can also add in tofu or shredded chicken breast. And you can’t forget about those crispy noodles for that added crunch. I cheat a little bit and always add a little extra in my bowl!
Asian Quinoa Salad
Ingredients
- ½ cup quinoa
- ¼ cup shredded red cabbage
- ¼ cup diced red bell pepper
- ¼ cup grated carrots
- ¼ cup corn kernels
- 1 green onion, thinly sliced
- 1 avocado, halved, seeded, peeled and diced
- ¼ cup chow mein noodles, for serving
For the sesame vinaigrette
- 6 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 1 clove garlic, pressed
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1 teaspoon soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon grated ginger
Instructions
- To make the vinaigrette, whisk together rice wine vinegar, garlic, sesame oil, sugar, ginger and soy sauce in a small bowl; set aside.
- In a medium saucepan, cook quinoa according to package instructions.
- In a large bowl, combine quinoa, cabbage, bell pepper, carrots, corn, green onion and avocado. Stir in sesame vinaigrette.
- Serve immediately, topped with chow mein noodles, if desired.
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What a beautiful looking salad and I love all of the ingredients, especially the sesame vinaigrette (would pair so well with quinoa!). Thanks for a delicious recipe.
What gorgeous color in this salad!! It looks insanely delish!!
This photograph is awesome. The light is just perfect and the colors are so bright and wonderful. Makes me want quinoa right now. Any kind!
Looks delicious! Quinoa has tons of protein so you really don’t need to add any other proteins.
Now any time I see perfect-looking avocados in your dishes, Chung-Ah, I will think of you gingerly carrying them around the grocery store in your hands while you shop. 🙂 Love the flavors in this quinoa – what a great, light side or lunch!
Chung-Ah, this salad is beautiful and the flavors sound nicely balanced. I’ll need this on Nov. 1 as I’m recovering from a candy coma!
Love when healthy food looks THAT good!! I wish I was smart like you and tried to eat healthy tonight — I’ve already broken into the bag of candy meant for the kiddos in the neighborhood.. Oops!
I’m so tempted to break into the halloween candy right now.
Love all the colors and that sesame vinaigrette!
GET OUT OF TOWN. This is gorgeous, Chung-Ah! Love all those healthy, colorful ingredients and flavors! This is a must make for sure.
I am, without a doubt, giving this a try! I am totally hooked on quinoa, Chung-Ah.
Oh, yes. This looks like the perfect pre-Halloween meal! It looks wonderful! 🙂
you can never go wrong with a quinoa salad and this one just looks amazing!
Yum! I love how colorful AND healthy this dish is. Totally perfect for the day before Halloween or the day after (to cure that candy hangover!).