This gluten dairy free salad is definitely one of my family favorites. If you love peanut butter, you are definitely going to want to try this one!
It’s perfect on it’s own as a lite lunch or dinner, or goes super good with some barbecued chicken or fish. Quinoa is a super food that is rich in nutrients, fiber and protein and combined with the peanut butter will help keep you feeling full and satisfied.
Thai Peanut Quinoa Salad
Ingredients
- Salad
- 1 1/4 cup uncooked quinoa
- 2 cups water
- 2 cups shredded purple cabbage
- 1-2 cups grated carrot
- (or use a ready to go coleslaw mix)
- 1 cup thinly sliced snow peas or sugar snap peas
- 1/2 cup chopped cilantro
- 1/2 cup thinly sliced green onion
- 1/2 cup chopped cashews
- Peanut Sauce
- 1/2 cup smooth peanut butter
- 5 tablespoons reduced-sodium tamari or soy sauce
- 2 tablespoon maple syrup or honey
- 2 tablespoon rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
- 2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger
- 1 lime, juiced
- Pinch of red pepper flakes
Instructions
- Cook the quinoa: First, rinse the quinoa in a fine mesh colander under running water. In a medium-sized pot, combine the rinsed quinoa and measured water. Bring the mixture to a gentle boil over medium heat, then reduce the heat to medium-low and gently simmer the quinoa until it has absorbed all of the water. Remove the quinoa from heat, cover the pot and let it rest for 5 minutes. Uncover the pot and fluff the quinoa with a fork. Set it aside to cool. (Here’s how to cook millet.)
- Meanwhile, make the peanut sauce: Whisk together the peanut butter and tamari until smooth (if this is difficult, microwave the mixture for up to 30 seconds to loosen it up). Add the remaining ingredients and whisk until smooth. If the mixture seems too thick to toss into the salad, whisk in a bit of water to loosen it up (I didn’t need to do this).
- In a large serving bowl, combine the cooked quinoa, shredded cabbage, carrot, snow peas, cilantro and green onion. Toss to combine, then pour in the peanut sauce. Toss again until everything it lightly coated in sauce. Taste, and if it doesn’t taste quite amazing yet, add a pinch of salt and toss again.
- This salad keeps well, covered and refrigerated, for about 4 days. If you don’t want your chopped peanuts to get soggy, store them separately from the rest and garnish just before serving.
These recipes are the property of Christina Lake Fitness
Recipe adapted from cookieandkate.com
