Blueberry Quinoa Salad
Packed with fresh blueberries, crunchy cucumber, dreamy avocado and fresh basil, this blueberry quinoa salad is perfect for lazy summer days! Easy, healthy and quick to pull together, it’s finished with a creamy lemon vinaigrette! Vegan and gluten free!
It’s hot, it’s humid and you’re looking for an easy, breezy summer recipe. One that’s tasty, fresh and super simple to pull together.
Maybe one that’s packed with produce and is excellent for those get-out-the-grill / slip-on-those-flip-flops kinda vibes?
Well then look no further than this blueberry quinoa!
Filled with juicy fresh berries, crunchy veggies + walnuts, fluffy quinoa, and a fantastic maple lemon vinaigrette, it’s just what you need during the dog days of summer.
Because there are oh so many ways to enjoy this jazzy little number.
- Whip it up for dinner and serve with your favorite cooked (or grilled!) protein of choice.
- Pack it up and enjoy as a light lunch during the workweek.
- Make it in advance and bring to any potluck, party or picnic (as it’s excellent served warm, cold OR at room temperature).
She’s a beauty this one! And is ready to rock and roll alllll summer long.
How To Make Blueberry Quinoa Salad
So, this simple berry quinoa salad only takes about 35 minutes to prepare. Here’s how it goes down:
Cook the quinoa. First, we cook the quinoa on the stovetop until nice and fluffy.
Chop the veggies. While the quinoa is cooking, we chop up all the mix-ins, like cucumber, spinach, red onion, walnuts, basil and avocado.
Make the dressing. Next, we whisk together all the ingredients for our lemon vinaigrette in a small bowl.
Toss to combine. And finally, we mix together the cooked quinoa, blueberries, all the veggies and dressing. A little sprinkle with some extra salt and pepper and we are off to the races!
Tips & Tricks For This Blueberry Quinoa
- Let’s talk how to prep this dish. Get the quinoa cooking and THEN chop all your veggies / make the dressing. This will cut down on the overall recipe time by about 13 to 14 minutes.
- Don’t skip rinsing your quinoa! Unless it comes pre-rinsed that is. This step removes any bitter or soapy flavor, thus improving the taste of the final product.
- Along those lines, after your quinoa has finished cooking, be sure to let it rest covered for 5 minutes. This gives the quinoa a chance to fluff up, again improving the texture of the final dish.
- And finally, you’ll need about half a medium cucumber and less than half of a small red onion to get the quantities listed down below.
How To Store
Prepare the recipe as directed, except leave out the avocado. Let the salad cool to room temperature, then transfer to an airtight container.
It will keep like this in the fridge for up to four days. Stir in the avocado right before enjoying.
Additional Quinoa Salad Recipes You Might Enjoy!
- Cranberry Quinoa Salad
- Fall Quinoa Salad
- Summer Veggie Quinoa Salad
- Kale and Quinoa Rainbow Salad
- Crunchy Broccoli Quinoa Salad
- Cucumber Quinoa Salad
- Strawberry Quinoa Salad
Did you make this recipe? Rate and review it down below! I’d love to hear from you.
Blueberry Quinoa Salad
Packed with fresh blueberries, crunchy cucumber, dreamy avocado and fresh basil, this blueberry quinoa salad is perfect for lazy summer days! Easy, healthy and quick to pull together, it’s finished with a creamy lemon vinaigrette! Vegan and gluten free!
Ingredients
For the salad:
- 1 cup uncooked quinoa, rinsed
- 2 cups water
- 1 ½ cups fresh blueberries
- 1 cup chopped english cucumber
- 2 cups lightly packed baby spinach leaves, roughly chopped
- ½ cup thinly sliced red onion
- ½ cup raw walnuts halves, chopped
- ½ cup chopped fresh basil
- 1 medium avocado, pitted and diced
For the dressing:
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon pure maple syrup
- 1 tablespoon tahini
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
Instructions
For the salad:
- Add the quinoa and water to a medium saucepan. Bring the mixture to a boil, then cover, reduce the heat and let simmer for about 15 minutes, or until the liquid is absorbed. Turn off the heat and let sit covered for 5 minutes, then fluff the quinoa with a fork.
- Transfer the quinoa to a large bowl and let cool for about 15 minutes.
- To the bowl, add the blueberries, cucumber, spinach, red onion, walnuts, basil and avocado. Toss gently to combine.
For the dressing:
- Add all the ingredients for the dressing to a small bowl and whisk until smooth. Pour into the bowl with the quinoa and toss again to combine.
- Taste and season with salt and pepper as desired (I usually add about ¼ teaspoon or so more salt). Serve!
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 8 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 262Total Fat: 16gSaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 13gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 171mgCarbohydrates: 26gFiber: 5gSugar: 6gProtein: 7g
Nutrition data shown is an estimate provided by an online calculator and is for informational purposes only. It should not be considered a substitute for a medical professional’s advice.
This is an amazing salad! All the ingredients go so well together, especially blueberries and fresh basil. I also love tahini in the lemon vinaigrette. I didn’t have spinach handy so I substituted dandelion for spinach and it was equally yummy. This will be my go-to salad for a healthy and nutritious lunch.
So happy to hear this Milan! Thanks for taking the time to let me know 🙂
I love adding fruit to different dishes, it helps to satisfy my sweet tooth and keep it healthy. This is a wonderful combination of ingredients for any meal.
How I love a good quinoa salad! Nobody else in my house likes it, which is fine because I love having it all to myself to eat during the week for lunch. This is happening soon!
haha more for you! Hope you enjoy! 🙂
This would be a favourite! Love the combo of flavours, Ashley.