Thai Quinoa Salad with Fresh Herbs and Lime Vinaigrette
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Packed with protein and fresh veggies, this flavorful Thai quinoa salad is a healthy eater’s dream!
This vibrant and fresh Thai Quinoa Salad is adapted from one of my favorite cookbooks, Raising the Salad Bar by Catherine Walthers. Similar to my Southwest-style quinoa salad, it’s a healthy eater’s dream: flavorful, chock-full of protein and veggies, satisfying, and low in fat. I usually make it as a light lunch, but you can also serve it alongside other Asian-style dishes for dinner—or make it a meal in itself by adding cooked shrimp, crab, or lobster.
“Delicious! This is a go-to recipe for my family. Great salad to pack and go.”
What You’ll Need To Make Thai Quinoa Salad
- Quinoa: The base of the salad, quinoa is a high-protein seed that’s fluffy and slightly crunchy. Though it looks like couscous and is eaten like a grain, it’s actually related to leafy greens like spinach and Swiss chard.
- Bell Pepper, Carrot, and Cucumber: A trio that adds sweetness, crunch, color, and crispness to the salad.
- Scallions: Contribute a mild oniony sharpness.
- Cilantro and Mint/Basil: Offers a fresh, herby flavor typical of Thai cuisine.
- Lime Juice: Adds acidity and brightness.
- Fish Sauce: Not fishy but savory and salty, this dark, pungent condiment is frequently used in Southeast Asian cooking. If possible, buy a brand imported from Thailand or Vietnam. And don’t worry about buying a large bottle—it keeps forever.
- Vegetable Oil: The base of the dressing; blends the flavors together and coats the salad ingredients.
- Sugar: Counteracts the acidity and saltiness of the salad, adding a touch of sweetness.
- Red Pepper Flakes: Lends a spicy kick.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
Step-by-Step Instructions
Begin by cooking the quinoa. The key to success is not following the package instructions, which always call for too much liquid and result in mushy quinoa. The ideal ratio is 1 cup of quinoa to 1-2/3 cups of liquid. Simply combine the water, salt and quinoa is a pan and bring to a boil. Turn the heat down to a simmer, cover the pan and cook until the quinoa is done, about 15 minutes. You’ll know it’s done when the little white “tails” sprout from the grains.
While the quinoa cooks, prepare the vegetables. For the cucumbers, I like to use English (or hothouse) cucumbers because the skin is edible and you don’t need to peel them. They’re sometimes called seedless cucumbers but you still need to seed them, otherwise, they’ll make your salad watery.
Slice the red pepper into bite-sized pieces, thinly slice the scallions and shred the carrot.
Next, make the dressing by combining the fresh lime juice (no bottled stuff!), sugar, vegetable oil, red pepper flakes and fish sauce in a small bowl.
Whisk until the sugar is dissolved.
Combine the quinoa with the dressing, vegetables and fresh herbs.
Toss the salad.
Transfer to a serving bowl and garnish with more fresh herbs, if desired.
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Thai Quinoa Salad with Fresh Herbs and Lime Vinaigrette
Packed with protein and fresh veggies, this flavorful Thai quinoa salad is a healthy eater’s dream!
Ingredients
For the Salad
- 1 cup quinoa, rinsed (or pre-washed)
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 red bell pepper, cut into bite-sized strips
- 1 carrot, peeled and grated
- 1 English cucumber, seeded and diced
- 2 scallions, white and green parts, finely sliced
- ¼ cup freshly chopped cilantro
- 2 tablespoons fresh chopped mint or basil (optional)
For the Dressing
- ¼ cup freshly squeezed lime juice, from 3-4 limes
- 2½ teaspoons Asian fish sauce
- 1½ tablespoons vegetable oil
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (use less if you don't like heat)
Instructions
- Add quinoa, salt and 1⅔ cups water to a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to low, cover, and cook for 15 minutes, until the water is absorbed and the quinoa is cooked. You'll know it is done when the little "tails" sprout from the grains. (If necessary add 1 to 2 tablespoons more water if the quinoa is not cooked by the time all the liquid is absorbed.) Transfer to a serving bowl and let cool in the refrigerator.
- In the meantime, make the dressing by combining the lime juice, fish sauce, vegetable oil, sugar and crushed red pepper flakes in a medium bowl. Whisk until the sugar is dissolved.
- Once the quinoa is cool, add the red bell peppers, carrots, cucumbers, scallions, fresh herbs and dressing. Toss well, then taste and adjust seasoning with more salt, sugar and lime juice if necessary (I usually add a bit more of all). Chill in the refrigerator until ready to serve. This salad keeps well for several days in the fridge.
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (4 servings)
- Calories: 263
- Fat: 8g
- Saturated fat: 1g
- Carbohydrates: 42g
- Sugar: 10g
- Fiber: 5g
- Protein: 7g
- Sodium: 603mg
- Cholesterol: 0mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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Would it make a huge difference if I used safflower oil or olive oil instead of vegetable oil?
Hi Danielle, I think this is best with vegetable oil because it’s so mild tasting, but several readers have used olive oil successfully so you could go that route. Enjoy!
Delightful and refreshing salad is my new go to weekly staple. Fresh, flavorful and easy to make. Double some of the ingredients to make a different quinoa salad for some variety!
Yum! This is the first time, ever, that quinoa actually turned out for me! Usually, I purchase a limited quantity of quinoa at the Bulk Barn because I don’t want to “commit”. But I took a leap of faith and went all in! Yay, me! I served this salad alongside your salmon recipe here https://www.onceuponachef.com/recipes/baked-salmon-honey-mustard-pecan-crust.html. Wow!!! This salad recipe is such a nice change to the usual.
So good. The brand of fish sauce makes ALL the difference. Haven’t gone wrong with any of your suggestions- ate the heck out of this last night!
This dish is delicious! I love to cook and I slightly altered this recipe. I cooked the quinoa in vegetable broth, added daikon radish and mangos, subtituded macadamia nut oil instead of vegetable oil and used smoked Thai chili paste instead of pepper flakes to the dressing. YUM!
We have yet to make anything from Once Upon a Chef that disappoints. This recipe has become one of our staples. It’s easy, healthy, adaptable, can be made in advance & keeps well for a fast go-to lunch. I’ve used zucchini instead of cucumber, added snow peas and cherry tomatoes. The dressing has that perfect blend of salty, spicy, sweet & sour. Enjoy!
We love this salad for lunch or dinner when I add chicken or shrimp. It jazzes up quinoa and is particularly great on a hot summer day. It’s one of those salads that is still delicious for a couple of days or can be made ahead.
This quinoa salad is the BOMB! Very easy to assemble with all ingredients already on hand. Fresh and satisfying taste, but different enough that guests will think you went to far more trouble than you did.
Thanks, Jenn, for a great recipe that will be used often, very Florida friendly year-round!
At my house, we love this salad.
I did added red onion, just because we love onion!🤗, and I also added some chapped garlic, it came out great.
This salad has been a regular in my weekly meal prep. I love having it in the fridge for a light and healthy lunch. It is the prefect combination of flavors and textures!