This apple quinoa salad is a fun and healthy lunch or light dinner recipe, and packed with nutritious ingredients. A very quick and simple salad, it's vegan, gluten free and low histamine and comes together in less than 30 minutes!
Love quinoa salads as much as my family does? Perhaps you may like to see my turmeric cauliflower salad with quinoa and my quinoa and fennel salad, which feels especially perfect in the fall months.
This apple blueberry salad is fresh and light, mixing sweet fruit with protein-packed quinoa to make it a bit heartier. Lovely as a lunch salad on its own, or as a side in smaller portions for picnics or summer BBQs.
This recipe was updated on 14 February 2022 with an amended recipe, tips and photos.
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⭐ Why you'll love this recipe
- Fresh and light - the combination of quinoa, fruit, nuts and seeds feels light and is perfect for an easy vegan lunch.
- Protein packed - with the plant-based protein of quinoa, nuts, seeds and the tahini dressing, this has a variety of vegan protein sources.
- Quick and simple to make - this quinoa salad requires very little 'hands on' time and comes together in less than half an hour.
🍎 Ingredients
This vegan apple quinoa salad comprises fresh produce and pantry staples. You will need:
- Quinoa - the main ingredient, and source of plant-based protein. You can use a white quinoa, as in these photos, or a quinoa blend.
- Apples and blueberries - the sweet fruit of the salad.
- Pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds and pistachios - give such a good crunch, as well as flavour.
- Coriander / cilantro - for lots of flavour. See below for variations if you aren't a fan!
- Extra virgin olive oil - I suggest using extra virgin olive oil rather than regular olive oil for better flavour and health benefits.
- Tahini - for the dressing.
- Salt - to season.
📖 Recipe variations
Swap fruit in and out to preference. You may like to include pears, or other berries. For my low histamine readers, you may wish to avoid strawberries.
A herb-based dressing such as the basil dressing in my asparagus salad can be used in place of tahini.
Swap out coriander for another herb such as parsley if you prefer.
🔪 Step by step instructions
Making this apple quinoa salad is very easy, with just a few steps and a little prep time.
Step 1
Cook the quinoa according to packet instructions, and then set aside to cool.
Step 2
Make the tahini dressing by combining tahini and water, and stirring until it becomes a sauce-like consistency.
Step 3
Combine the diced fruit, nuts, seeds, quinoa and herbs in a bowl. Drizzle over the dressing and then stir well to combine. Season with salt, as required.
💭 Recipe tips and notes
- Ensure the quinoa is fully cooked, and then set aside. I place in a fine mesh sieve over a bowl so that any excess water can drain off.
- You can use white quinoa or a quinoa blend.
- Adjust the dressing with more tahini or water to get the consistency you prefer.
- Swap out coriander for another herb, such as parsley if you prefer.
📋 Frequently asked questions
The seeds will open up so you can see their 'tails' when they are cooked through.
Yes, quinoa is gluten free, as are the other ingredients in this recipe.
Simply swap out the nuts for more seeds if you prefer!
🥗 More salad recipes
Find lots of salad recipes here on the site, including my refreshing cucumber beetroot salad and these recent recipes to try out:
I’m always in the kitchen, so come join me on Instagram, Facebook and Pinterest to be the first to hear of new recipes. And please do leave a star rating ⭐ if you tried the recipe!
📖 Recipe
Apple Quinoa Salad
Ingredients
- ¼ cup quinoa dry weight
- 1 apple diced
- handful blueberries halved
- 2 tablespoon pumpkin seeds
- 1 teaspoon sesame seeds optional
- 2 tablespoon pistachios
- 1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tablespoon tahini
- 3 tablespoon water
- pinch salt
- pinch black pepper optional
Instructions
- Cook the quinoa according to packet instructions.
- Make the tahini dressing by combining the tahini with water and stirring until it forms a sauce. Adjust the amount of tahini and water to get the consistency you prefer.
- Once cooled, combine the quinoa with the other ingredients. Drizzle over the tahini dressing.
Notes
- Allow the quinoa to drain of any excess water by setting aside in a fine mesh sieve over a bowl after cooking.
- Adjust the consistency of the dressing by adding more tahini or water to preference. More tahini will thicken the dressing, and more water will thin.
- tahini (sesame), which scores 1. Please note that it is a potential allergen.
- black pepper, which scores 2.
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