Recipe creation is a funny thing. There are those moments when no amount of testing produces the result I’m looking for. I’ll put so much work into a recipe, only to have it fall short after hours (or days) of work. Vegan baked goods are notorious for being fussy at times, especially when trying to make something wholesome without sacrificing flavour. I usually toss the recipe into my reject pile, in case I’m ever crazy enough to dig it out. Sometimes I am. Other times, I don’t want anything to do with it. ever. again.
Then there are moments, like this salad recipe, that come together effortlessly. With no real plan or guide, I just follow my instincts and taste buds. That’s the best kind of recipe! Summer dishes shine like this which is why I love creating new dishes this time of the year. Things are more simple and the fresh ingredients speak for themselves.
On Friday, we were rushing to get out the door for a weekend at the in-laws and I had a small window of opportunity to throw some food together. I usually try to bring a big batch of Vegan overnight oats, some snacks like hummus and crackers and fruit, and a hearty grain and bean salad. Booze, to balance it all out. Thankfully, I had some cooked quinoa in the fridge and then from there I pulled out a few ingredients from the crisper, decided on an overall flavour, and then whisked together a simple dressing to pour on top.
Black beans. Quinoa. Green onions. Carrots. Cilantro. Cumin. Lime. Love.
Oh, and don’t forget to shoot some quick photos before throwing it into a container and flying out the door!!
Fresh. Delicious. Ready in the amount of time it takes to cook a batch of quinoa. I’ll take it!
If you’re looking for a simple salad to prepare for a road trip, picnic, or just a light lunch, I hope you’ll give this a try! I like to make it the night before and let it sit in the fridge overnight. I have a few more family gatherings this week due to some very special visitors and I already plan on making it at least two more times this week. What can I say, when I like something I want to make it all the time.
Tangy Cilantro-Lime Quinoa Salad
Yield
4 servings
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
This black bean quinoa salad is so fresh and tangy! It's delicious paired with creamy avocado and fresh pita bread or crackers. If you're not as big of a fan as I am of tangy/acidic dressings, feel free to reduce the amount of lime juice called for.
Ingredients
For the salad:
- 1 cup uncooked quinoa (or 3 cups cooked)
- 1 (14-ounce/398 mL) can black beans (or 1 1/2 cups cooked), drained and rinsed
- 1 1/2 cups fresh cilantro, finely chopped
- 3 medium carrots, julienned (about 1 1/2 cups) or 1 large chopped and roasted sweet potato
- 4 green onions, thinly sliced
- Fine grain sea salt and black pepper, to taste
- Lemon-Tahini Dressing (optional)
- Sliced avocado (optional)
- Endurance Crackers, pita bread, or crackers of choice (optional)
For the dressing:
- 5 to 5 1/2 tablespoons (75 to 82.5 mL) fresh lime juice, to taste
- 4 tablespoons (60 mL) extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 large garlic cloves, minced
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 2 teaspoons (10 mL) pure maple syrup, or to taste
- 3/4 teaspoon fine grain sea salt, or to taste
Directions
- To prepare the quinoa: Rinse quinoa in a fine mesh sieve. Add into pot along with 1.5 cups (375 mL) water or veggie broth. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low-medium, and then cover with a tight-fitting lid. Simmer for 14 to 17 minutes until the water is absorbed and the quinoa is fluffy. Remove from heat and steam with the lid on for 5 additional minutes. Fluff with fork and chill in the fridge for at least 15 minutes.
- In a large bowl, toss the quinoa, drained and rinsed black beans, cilantro, carrots (or roasted sweet potato), and green onions.
- Whisk together the dressing in a small bowl or jar. Adjust to taste if desired. Pour onto salad and toss to combine. Season with salt and pepper to taste until everything pops.
- Spoon into bowl and drizzle on some Lemon-Tahini Dressing. Top with sliced avocado and serve with Endurance Crackers, if desired.
Tip:
- The flavours tend to mellow when this salad sits in the fridge, as the quinoa absorbs the dressing a lot. I recommend giving it a "refresh" by adding a squeeze of lime juice, a drizzle of olive oil, and more seasonings to taste. Stir it all together, and taste.
Nutrition Information
(click to expand)
Another thought – this would also be fantastic with diced avocado and/or mango! Summer tomatoes too. Have fun playing around with the recipe…it’s a good one to adapt.
I just made this for the first time tonight and it is delish! My fiancé is notoriously picky, and he actually tried it (win!), and even said he liked it (double win!). I will definitely be making this in the future. Thanks!
Wow – this was really good, I swapped out veggies to what I had on hand, and it was still awesome. Thanks for the recipes as we work to transition to healthier eating!
Made this tonight as a side for some vege fajitas. Delicious! So fresh, fast and easy. Look forward to finishing the rest for lunch tomorrow!
hiya, i am probably one of the only people that doesnt care for quinoa. what would you substitute for it?? thanks
I’ve been reading your blog for years but I never commented. But I have to say, I absolutely love this recipe! I’ve made it so often and everybody loves it. Every time we’re invited to a BBQ or a party, people ask me to bring this dish. And they’re all meat eaters!
I am a personal trainer in the eat clean discipline looking for quick, but health recipes and THIS ONE IS ONE OF MY FAVORITES!!! The combo of nutritious, quick, and easy cannot be beat!!
Trainee’s come into the training office and everyone is always curious about this dish. I always offer a bite, and everyone is surprised how good it is! Now I have to try another recipe on this site as I have made this particular one about 15 times in the last two months (twice a week.) Although I will continue to make this because it’s not getting old, I’m just curious how delicious some of the other recipes are : )
Made this for lunch yesterday. Made it the day before and found the dressing had been soaked up and gone away, so added another half quantity of dressing just before service. It was delicious. Most of the people at lunch had either never even heard of quinoa and those that had, couldn’t pronounce it properly – they were all intrigued! I’d made this salad as I’m vegetarian, but don’t particularly like potatoes, but had made up a load of Jersey Royal New Potatoes for the meat and veg brigade, but everyone LOVED this salad and at the end of the day, the quinoa had gone and we had a few potatoes left over, which was really unexpected. Thank you for this recipe – it’s a keeper, and a great one to add/subtract whatever you have/haven’t got in your fridge, atlhough I think the cilantro is a must.
Yum! I printed this recipe out ages ago and I have never made it. Well I made it last night to take for work lunches…it is delicious. I don’t know why I waited so long to make it. I added some fresh snap peas instead of green onions (since I detest onions), and used red quinoa instead of regular since that is what I had on hand. Yum, Yum!
LOVED this salad! The dressing was a perfect combination of sweet and savoury.
I am new to the vegan world and am loving what you offer Angela!
Okay, here’s what this recipe inspired… Brown rice (cooked with a little coconut oil), black beans, scallion, mango, cucumber, jalapeno, cumin, lemon juice–and sprinkled with a bit of shredded coconut! Fantastic. (I’m on Day 48 of being a vegan :-)
Soooo delicious! And really easy to make too – too good to be true!
I just made this salad and it is hands down the best quinoa salad I have ever had!! Thank you so much for posting :)
I made this today and it was just perfect. I added a cucumber and grape tomatoes (just cause I had them on hand) and because I was short on quinoa, used amaranth for half the grain. I toasted the cumin before grinding it and adding it to seasoning and that was a nice special touch to what was already the perfect blend. Thank you so much Angela!
Love this salad, especially with the lemon tahini dressing! I’m making it again now for the second time. Delicious!
Just made it for lunch and it was awesome! I absolutely loved the combination of the flavours; thank you so much for the recipe!
it says lime-tahini dressing. Should there be tahini in it?
Always looking for good vegan, gluten free recipes…. And this one is delicious! Not too salty, not too sweet, just right. Pop goes my taste buds! Love it…keep ‘Em coming.
This was absolutely fantastic and so flavorful. I made the lemon-tahini dressing to go with it, and it really added a great extra kick. Plus, it was quick and easy to make. I’ll make this again for sure!
Oh my gawd, this salad, with the tahini sauce and side of hummus, is absolutely to die for. Don’t skip the tahini sauce! It’s worth every scrumptious bite. Thanks so much!!
This has become one of my most favorite recipes!! The flavor combination is seriously mind-blowing!!! Keeping this forever and ever!!! THANK YOU SO MUCH for such an incredible recipe!