Nutritious and delicious, this Southwest Quinoa Salad will quickly become a summertime staple with its sweet pops of corn, earthy bell pepper, mild green onion, and zingy jalapeno lime dressing.
Quinoa (pronounced KEEN-wah, not Quinn-O-AH, as I say it to myself when spelling it out) has been enjoying the limelight in the healthy food world alongside other nutritious noshes like chia seeds and cauliflower.
I'm not one to jump on health food bandwagons, especially with unfamiliar (or unpronounceable) products. After all, healthy food is only worth incorporating into your diet if it tastes good or you can easily make it taste good. Otherwise, what's the point?
Quinoa piqued my curiosity because I assumed it would be similar in flavor and utility to brown rice, but lighter. My assumptions of the quirky pseudo-grain (technically, quinoa is a seed) were correct.
Quinoa has a fun, fluffy texture and nutty flavor, making it a great base for grain salads or serving as a substitute for rice (think: stir-fry veggies over quinoa) or as a side dish for Mexican beef tips or Tex Mex ground beef .
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Why You Will Love This Recipe
- Sneaky Healthy Dish. This Southwest-inspired Quinoa Salad is a nom-worthy way to sneak in some serious nutrition. It's light, well-balanced, and the jalapeno lime vinaigrette is damn delicious.
- Great for Make Ahead. The best part is that this salad holds up well, even days later. I happily ate this salad on days 3 and 4 without complaint - no excess of liquid pooling at the bottom of the container and no soggy, sad vegetables.
- Versatile. It makes a perfect side dish to accompany grilled proteins or incorporated into a fun main dish, like a taco salad bar!
Ingredients
To make this fabulous and light southwestern quinoa salad recipe, you will need the following ingredients for the base of the salad. You could use whatever vinaigrette you'd like to bring the ingredients together (southwestern style dressings encouraged!), but the recipe for jalapeno lime vinaigrette I'm providing pairs beautifully.
- White quinoa: Make sure you rinse it before cooking or it'll wind up bitter-tasting.
- Vegetables: Corn, green bell pepper, and green onions. I often reach for canned corn, but go ahead and use fresh if it's in season! Dice the green bell pepper finely, and give the green onions a thin slice.
- Vinaigrette: A homemade jalapeno lime dressing made with freshly squeezed lime juice, a jalapeno, extra virgin olive oil, and a few choice seasonings is super easy and SO good. It pushes the southwestern flavors in this quinoa salad recipe beautifully (see recipe card below). You can also try this southwestern quinoa salad with a dill pickle salad dressing or creamy salsa dressing to change up the flavors.
Be sure to check the recipe card for the full list of ingredients and quantities needed.
Variations & Suggested Additions
This salad is easy to customize! Try adding cheese, vegetables, fruit, and more!
- Cheese - feta, goat cheese, parmesan
- Vegetables - kale, cucumber, tomato, spinach, zucchini
- Fruits - mango, pomegranate, dried cranberries
- Protein - shredded chicken, bacon bits, black or pinto beans
- Also - why not avocado, sunflower seeds, pepitas or even croutons?
How to Make Southwest Quinoa Salad
- Cook the quinoa. Add 2 cups of water, ½ teaspoon salt, and 1 cup of rinsed white quinoa to a pot. Bring to a boil. Immediately reduce heat to low and cover. Cook for around 15 minutes, or until there is no more water in the pot. Remove from heat. Spread the quinoa out on a sheet tray to cool.
- Make the dressing. Blend together the dressing ingredients, except for the oil, for 15-20 seconds. Check to make sure the jalapeno is nicely pulverized. If not, blend for a few more seconds. Hit blend again and slowly drizzle in ¼ cup of extra virgin olive oil, blending for 20-30 seconds to emulsify.
- Make the salad. Add the cooled quinoa, along with corn (strained if using canned, cooked and kernels removed from the cob if using fresh), bell pepper, and green onions to a bowl. Pour half of the vinaigrette into the bowl and gently stir a few times to combine. Add the rest of the vinaigrette and stir a few more times.
This recipe was adapted from Quinoa, Black Bean, and Mango Salad found in the cookbook The Best Mexican Recipes: Kitchen-Tested Recipes Put the Real Flavors of Mexico Within Reach (which is a fantastic cookbook! I recommend you check it out!).
Expert Tips
- For best results, let the salad chill for 2 hours before serving. This allows time for the flavors to meld and the salad to chill. Before serving, give the salad a good stir.
- Store the salad covered in a sealed container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
- Enjoy as a side dish with everything from chipotle tuna salad sandwiches to chipotle chicken quesadillas to crispy air fryer tacos.
Recipe FAQs
For best results, use within 5 days. Keep the Quinoa Salad stored in a lidded container in the refrigerator, and give it a big stir before serving.
Of course! This is one of those salads that gets better as it sits. I recommend making this salad at least 2 hours before serving, but making it a day ahead would be ideal to ensure the flavors meld.
If you tried this southwest quinoa salad recipe (or any other recipe on Midwexican), please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it turned out in the 📝 comments below!
Southwest Quinoa Salad
Ingredients
Corny Quinoa Salad
- 1 cup white quinoa dried quinoa, rinsed
- 2 cups water
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 15-ounce can corn (or use fresh corn if it's in season)
- 1 green bell pepper finely diced
- 5 green onions finely sliced
Jalapeno Lime Vinaigrette
- 5 tablespoons lime juice (about 2 small limes)
- 1 jalapeno seeded
- ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon dried basil
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil (use a good quality EVOO with a mild flavor)
Instructions
- Add 2 cups of water, ½ teaspoon salt, and 1 cup of rinsed white quinoa to a pot. Bring to a boil. Immediately reduce heat to low and cover.2 cups water, ½ teaspoon salt, 1 cup white quinoa
- Cook for around 15 minutes, or until there is no more water in the pot. Remove from heat. Spread the quinoa out on a sheet tray to cool.
- Add 5 tablespoons lime juice, 1 seeded jalapeno, ½ teaspoon cumin, ½ teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon garlic powder, and ½ teaspoon dried basil to a blender. Blend for 15-20 seconds. Check to make sure the jalapeno is nicely pulverized. If not, blend for a few more seconds.5 tablespoons lime juice , 1 jalapeno, ½ teaspoon ground cumin, ½ teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon garlic powder, ½ teaspoon dried basil
- Hit blend again and slowly drizzle in ¼ cup of extra virgin olive oil, blending for 20-30 seconds to emulsify.¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
- Add cooled quinoa, along with corn (strained if using canned, cooked and kernels removed from the cob if using fresh), bell pepper, and green onions to a bowl. Pour half of the vinaigrette into the bowl and gently stir a few times to combine. Add the rest of the vinaigrette and stir a few more times.1 15-ounce can corn, 1 green bell pepper, 5 green onions
- Serve with garnishes like crumbly cheese or red pepper flakes, if desired.
- For best results, let chill 2 hours before serving. Keeps in a covered container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
Notes
- For best results, let the salad chill for 2 hours before serving. This allows time for the flavors to meld and the salad to chill. Before serving, give the quinoa salad a good stir.
- Store the salad covered in a sealed container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
- Feel free to try with a different dressing like this creamy salsa dressing or dill pickle salad dressing.
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