Simple Vegan Quinoa Salad

When I was a child, my mom and grandma made simple and traditional salads, but since I started to cook, I’ve tried a lot of salad recipes using many different ingredients. I’ve never made quinoa salad before, because quinoa is hard to find here in Spain and is also really expensive. My dad is Ecuadorian, so he ate quinoa hundreds of times when he was a child, but he almost never cooks and if he does, he makes simple dishes he learnt in Spain because he’ve lived here since he was very young.

Quinoa is really easy to cook, you just need to stir it into boiling water, cover and simmer over medium heat until done. The ratio is 1 cup of uncooked quinoa to 2 cups of water. And it’s ready in only 10 or 15 minutes! Use vegetable broth to make the quinoa tastes even better.

This salad is quite simple, you only need to cook the quinoa and add the rest of the ingredients. I used avocado, olives (I’m Spanish, so I love them!!!), Cherry tomatoes, carrot and corn, but feel free to use your favorite veggies. If you don’t like quinoa or you can’t afford it, use rice instead.

It’s important to eat salad all year long, not only in summer. If you don’t like salads, try many recipes and use your favorite veggies. Maybe you should try salads made with legumes, rice or quinoa, but don’t forget to add fresh leafy greens, vegetables or fruits.

This salad is delicious with not salad dressing, but I added extra virgin olive oil to make it tastier, but keep it simple. I try to avoid oils on my daily basis and there are many delicious dressings you can use like lemon juice or balsamic vinegar. If you have an oil-free salad dressing recipe, please leave a comment!

Use capers instead of olives if you want to reduce the amount of fat in the recipe. I recommend you to add avocado to the salad because is a super healthy fat and tastes amazing. I think avocados are one of my favorite foods in the world!

About 8 years ago, when I wasn’t vegan, I went to a fast food with a friend. I ordered a salad because I was on a diet and my friend ordered a burger and french fries. I read the nutritional information and I realized my salad had only 100 calories less than the burger + the french fries! Many people think all salads are healthy, but it’s not true, a salad can be really high in calories and fat and it can be made with junk food too. Don’t add animal products to your salads, avoid high fat store bought dressings and add as much fresh veggies as you can. Use healthy fats like avocados, nuts or seeds.

You need to try this quinoa salad, is ready in less than 20 minutes and everyone can make it because is so simple! If you make it, please leave a comment or tag a picture #simpleveganblog on Pinterest or Twitter.