I’m always in the search for healthy and super quick weekday meals. This quinoa salad with cilantro, tomato, & cucumber makes the cut with flying colours!

My body loves cooked food though I would like to eat more raw food. I have friends who are on the raw food thang and swear by it! According to WebMD, “You’ll also get nutritional perks (from the raw food diet). Most of what you eat are plant based foods that are high in vitamins, minerals, fiber, and phytochemicals. And it’s true that cooking can zap some water soluble vitamins like vitamins B and C. Eating lots of veggies and fruits is good for you.”

Anywho, quinoa salad with cilantro, tomato, & cucumber is my regular raw-food-ish kind of meal. Though I cook the quinoa, I leave all the other veggies fresh. It’s the perfect balanced of cooked and raw which makes is so delicious.

This meal probably takes a total of 20 minutes to make and start eating, including cooking the quinoa! Feel free to adjust the vegetables to whatever you have available. Basically the combination of garlic and lemon can make anything taste zesty and yummy 🙂

This recipe makes enough for 2 hungry people or 4 if you’re using as a side. For the two of us, it usually makes enough for leftovers for lunch the next day as well 😉

Serves: 2-4

Ingredients for Quinoa Salad with Cilantro, Tomato, & Cucumber

1 cup cooked quinoa

1 can chickpeas or black beans, or any other bean you fancy! (or one cup beans soaked and cooked)

4 green onions, chopped

4 cloves garlic chopped

1/2 cup baby tomatoes, halved (optional if avoiding nightshades)

1/3 cup fresh cilantro, chopped

1/2 cup diced cucumber

1/4 cup olive oil

1 avocado diced

1/4 cup feta crumbled, optional

3 hard boiled eggs, optional

1-2 lemons juiced (to taste)

salt & pepper to taste

Directions for Quinoa Salad with Cilantro, Tomato, & Cucumber