Mediterranean Quinoa Salad
This Mediterranean quinoa salad is vibrant, flavourful & has a combination of cooked and raw ingredients giving it great texture. The quinoa can be prepped ahead of time to make it a quick and easy salad to make. Toss everything together or arrange things in little sections on a big platter. Perfectly paired with BBQ meat - Chicken, Lamb chops or steak, take your pick.
Serves 4
Effort: Easy
Prep: 20 mins
Cook: 20 mins
Gluten Free
Ingredients
1/2 packet Quinoa with sundried tomato & olives - Thistle Be Good
2 tbsp olive oil
1 large zucchini, halved lengthways & sliced
1 large yellow capsicum, cut into squares
1 red onion, diced into large chunks
1 punnet cherry tomato, halved
1/3 cup sundried tomato, chopped
1/3 cup Kalamata olives or other black olives, sliced
1 clove garlic, minced
1/3 cup feta - 50-70g
Vinaigrette
4 tbsp olive oil
3 tbsp lemon juice
zest of 1/2 lemon
1 cup basil leaves
1/4 tsp salt
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 220c/ 180c fan. On a baking tray arrange the zucchini, capsicum & onion and spay with a little oil then season well. Place in the oven and cook for 15 mins until soft and just cooked through. Remove and leave to cool.
Cook the quinoa as per the packet instructions: 1/2 packet quinoa & 225 ml of boiling water. Bring to the boil & reduce to a simmer. Cook for 18-20 mins until all the water is absorbed. Set a side to cool.
To make the vinegarette; combine the ingredients in a jug or a bowl and puree with an stick blender or use a food processor/standing blender. If you don’t have anything to blend with, simply chop the basil very finely with a knife and mix the dressing by hand.
Add the olives, sun-dried tomatoes, garlic and some of the dressing to the quinoa and mix through.
Place the quinoa on a serving dish and top with the cooked vegetables, cherry tomatoes, feta and drizzle with the remaining dressing.
Garnish with fresh basil leaves & lemon wedges before serving.
Hints & tips
Quinoa - Knowing when your quinoa is ready - during the cooking process a small white spiral appears and some separate from the grain. This is the germ of the grain and is quite normal. If it doesn’t appear before the water is absorbed add a little more and keep simmering on low until the grains pop open.
Veggies - You can pan fry or grill the veggies if you prefer. Improvise with whatever you have on hand like roasted or grilled eggplant, fennel, asparagus, green beans or spinach.
Dressing - Mix it into mayonnaise or yoghurt for a creamy dressing. Make a double batch and store leftovers in the fridge in a jar for other uses such as pasta salad or steak marinade.
Feta - Shaved parmesan can be used instead of feta or you can keep it dairy-free if you like.
Serving suggestion - This salad is a great BBQ accompaniment. It pairs perfectly with any grilled meat of choice. It would also be delicious as a side dish to a summer roast lamb or chicken.
Portion size - Serves 4 as a side salad or two with leftovers. Double it up by using the whole packet of quinoa and doubling the other ingredients. Leftovers are great for lunches.
Storage - Prepare the quinoa a head of time - storge in the fridge for 3 days before use.
Stoarge the salad for 3 days in a air tight container. Not suitable for freezing.
