Cold quinoa salad is one of the best quinoa recipes, and it’s easy and fast to make. If you don’t know how to cook quinoa, check out my previous post by clicking here!
A Quinoa Recipe That Makes You Feel Good.
Quinoa is a seed that you cook like a grain. However, one of the great things I’ve noticed about it, ladies you’ll LOVE this, is that it doesn’t go to my hips and stomach like pasta and rice tend to do. I eat it at least four times a week and don’t get that bloated feeling that I often get after eating pasta. My friend, Lee, eats quinoa as much as I do and she has crohn’s and IBS and it agrees with her body also. If I ate pasta that much, you’d have to roll me around to get anywhere, and that’s even if I’m working out, which I do 5-6 times a week. As we women age, it’s harder to maintain our weight without changing our diet. However, since everyone is different, we all need to see what works for our individual bodies.
Quinoa is a complex carb, like oats, millet, and brown rice. Complex carbs take the body longer to digest. This means you maintain a steady/healthy blood sugar level. White pasta, which is processed and refined, breaks down faster causing your blood sugar to increase or spike. When it then drops you’ll find yourself hungry again or just not feeling as well. The glucose from the complex carbs provides your body and brain with the energy needed to get you moving. When you maintain your blood sugar level you have more energy throughout your day and don’t have spikes or crashes that leave you feeling tired and worn out. So always try to choose whole grains, whole foods, and fresh fruits as much as possible.
There are many different ways of making quinoa and I plan to share more recipes in future posts. This cold quinoa salad is one of my favorites. It’s easy and simple to make, and you can adjust it based on what foods you like, so feel free to be creative and experiment. Try it with red wine vinegar or balsamic vinegar, either way it will come out great. Find what makes your taste buds happy.
Cold Quinoa Salad:
Note: **1 cup of dry quinoa = 3 cups cooked quinoa**
3-4 cups of cooked quinoa
1 cup red pepper, small diced (you can use all colors of peppers)
1 cup cucumber, small diced
1 can of black beans
3 small scallions, sliced thinly
Cold Quinoa Salad Dressing:
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
3 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
½ lemon
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
Himalayan sea salt and pepper to taste
Mix the quinoa, red pepper, cucumber, black beans, scallions, salt and pepper together in a bowl. In another bowl whisk all the dressing ingredients. Pour the dressing over the quinoa salad and toss gently with a spatula or two forks. Eat immediately or refrigerate and enjoy your cold quinoa salad later.
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Let me know what YOU do and how it comes out! Leave me a comment below!
As Always ~ Remember
Eat Clean ~ Stay Lean
Risa
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