Red Quinoa Tabouli Salad
Quinoa (pronounced “keen-wah”) is a somewhat unknown South American grain-like seed. It is a great alternative to wheat and other grains and can be substituted in many dishes. High in fiber and a complete protein, its nutritional value far exceeds any traditional grain.
I recently discovered quinoa while attempting to make a tabouli that my gluten-free husband could eat — I was a little skeptical at first, but I now prefer quinoa over the cracked wheat/bulghur in my tabouli. As far as the different varieties of quinoa, I prefer the red. This salad is potent and energizing and extremely good for you! For those of you needing to be gluten-free, you won’t have to go without your tabouli anymore. This healthy and delicious salad takes a bit of prepping, but it is well worth it.
Ingredients:
- 1 cup of red quinoa cooked and cooled
- About 1 cup of chopped fresh Italian flat leaf parsley
- About 1/3 cup of chopped fresh mint leaves
- About 1/3 cup thinly sliced green onions 0r 1/3 chopped red onion
- About 1 cup seeded and diced roma tomatoes
- About 3/4 cup seeded and diced cucumber
- 1 clove of minced garlic (optional)
- Fresh juice of 1 lemon
- About 1/4 cup of extra virgin olive oil
- Sea salt and pepper to taste
- A dash of allspice (optional)
Directions:
- Follow instructions on preparing the quinoa. Tip: rinse quinoa (before cooking) in a strainer with cold water. Cook until quinoa is translucent and the white thread-like germ separates. Set aside until cool or refrigerate.
- In a food processor, chop parsley and mint.
- Hand chop the tomatoes, cucumber, onion and garlic.
- In a large bowl, combine cooled quinoa, parsley, mint, onions, tomato, cucumber, garlic, lemon, olive oil, salt and pepper.
- Chill for 30 minutes before eating.
- Serve with pita bread or corn tortilla chips (to dip) as a gluten-free option.
Sorry, no photo on this one.
This is by far the best Quinoa Tabouli Recipe ever! And I too prefer the flavor of the Red Quinoa- plus it looks beautiful in this salad. I used a basil infused olive oil which added another layer to the flavors. Excellent!
My daughter made a similar quinoa tabouli & it’s quickly become a family favorite!! We’ve been gluten free since last summer, & love adding to our recipe selection.
I got a cuke, cherry tomatoes & fresh basil today from the Farmer’s Market – am chilling the salad sans tomatoes, will add them tomorrow just before serving, & have used basil as the green herb.
When I cook quinoa, I usually add 1 Tbsp Teff (African Millet) & 1 T chia seeds before cooking – they’re tiny but nutrient dense, & enhance the already great quinoa.