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Easy Christmas quinoa salad

Christmas Quinoa Salad Recipe

5 from 3 votes
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Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 15 minutes
Servings: 6 servings
Author: Shashi
This healthy Christmas Quinoa Salad is packed with a plethora of flavors, textures, and colors! And you can have this vegan side dish ready in about 15-20 minutes.

Ingredients

  • 3 tbsp olive oil
  • 4 garlic cloves
  • 1 inch piece of ginger
  • 1 medium yellow onion
  • 2 stalks celery
  • 2 jalapeño’s
  • 1 red bell pepper
  • 1 1/2 cups Broccoli florets
  • [OPTIONAL] 2 tsp coriander powder
  • [OPTIONAL] 1 tsp smoked paprika powder
  • [OPTIONAL] 1 tsp ground cayenne
  • 1/2 cup Pecan pieces
  • 1/4 cup dried Cranberries
  • 1/2 cup uncooked quinoa or 1 1/2 cups cooked quinoa
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • [OPTIONAL] red chili flakes for garnish

Instructions

  • If you do not have any cooked quinoa on hand, add 1/2 cup of quinoa to a pan along with 1 cup of water. Bring it to a boil. Then, cover and let simmer for about 12-15 minutes.
  • Peel the onion, garlic, and ginger.
  • Chop up the onion, garlic, and ginger.
  • Add the olive oil to a large frying pan over medium heat/flame and add in the chopped onion, ginger, and garlic. Let saute for about 5 minutes.
  • Meanwhile, rinse and chop up the celery stalks, red bell pepper, and jalapeno. If you do not want this salad to be too spicy, scrape out some of the jalapeno seeds.
  • Break up the broccoli florets into bite-sized pieces.
  • Add the celery, red bell pepper, jalapeno, and broccoli florets.
  • If using the spices, also add in the coriander, smoked paprika, and cayenne.
  • Stir all ingredients well and let saute for about 3-4 minutes.
  • Add in the cooked quinoa, pecans, and cranberries, and stir well.
  • Season with salt and pepper to taste.
  • If desired, garnish with chili flakes and serve warm or serve cold, tossed with some greens.

Notes

This is a versatile quinoa salad with many optional elements and suggested substitutions. As with a lot of the recipes I share, this recipe is about you having fun experimenting in the kitchen. So add beans or any other veggies you like, and make up a creation you will enjoy!

Nutrition

Serving: 1g | Calories: 230kcal | Carbohydrates: 24g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 14g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 12g | Sodium: 80mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 8g
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