Do I love quinoa? No.
Do I love this luscious and juicy summery salad, which does, in fact, contain quinoa? YES.
If you are a quinoa hater – I think I can get you on board with this quinoa salad. I really do.
This gem of a salad is a win for anyone who:
- Can appreciate a really good textured salad – I mean, look at all the little bite sizey bits!
- Prefers to hang out in the sun instead of spending hours cooking (aka THIS RECIPE IS SO EASY)
- Does or does not like quinoa – we accept all
- Appreciates a good meatless meal
- Goes weak in the knees for big, juicy, summery flavor
The amount of texture and flavor here is staggering. We have quinoa and corn making the base, marinated tomatoes as the juicy crown jewel, avocado to butter things up, shallot, chives, cilantro, lime zest and lime juice to wake you ALL THE WAY up, and Cotija cheese for just the tiniest bit of something creamy / crumbly (just omit if you’re vegan).
Let me just say this: it’s been a long time since I loved a quinoa salad as much as I love this one.
And maybe just a salad in general.
Healthy, but not too healthy. Punchy, textured, and craveable at all hours. Colorful and happy. Exactly how I like to eat.
And if you keep the avocados out until just before serving, it can be a lunches-made-ahead thing that will keep the mood high all the week long.
Quinoa, you win.
Check Out Our Video For How To Make Corn, Avocado, and Quinoa Salad:
Corn, Avocado, and Quinoa Salad with Marinated Tomatoes
Total Time: 30 minutes
Yield: 6 generous servings 1x
Description
The perfect summery quinoa salad – fresh corn, buttery avocado, nutty quinoa, juicy marinated tomatoes, and tons of fresh herbs. SO GOOD.
Ingredients
Scale
- 1 cup quinoa, uncooked
- 4 ears raw sweet corn, kernels cut off the cob
- 1–2 cups marinated tomatoes and their juices
- 1 shallot, minced
- lots of fresh cilantro and chives, minced
- 1–2 limes, juice and zest
- olive oil to taste
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 cup Cotija cheese (optional)
- 1–2 avocados, diced
Instructions
- Cook quinoa according to package directions.
- Toss cooled quinoa with corn, tomatoes and juice, shallots, herbs, lime juice and zest, olive oil, and salt.
- The mixture will hold up pretty well for a few hours in the fridge (or even for a day or two, if you don’t mind that it will look a little less perky). Wait to toss in your avocado and cheese just before serving for optimal freshness, and if it’s been sitting for a while, give it one more salt / oil / lime juice treatment to wake it all up. YUMYUMYUM.
Equipment
Notes
If you’re using regular tomatoes instead of marinated tomatoes, you’ll want to add some fresh grated garlic, salt, and olive oil to compensate for the missing juices!
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Category: Salad
- Method: Toss
- Cuisine: American
Keywords: corn salad, quinoa salad, tomato salad, summer salad, salad for potluck, cookout recipe
One More Thing!
This recipe is part of our collection of incredible corn recipes. Check it out!