Crunchy Cashew Thai Quinoa Salad w/Ginger Peanut Dressing
- Yield: 6 1x
Ingredients
Units
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For Salad
- 3/4 cup uncooked quinoa
- 1 cup 1-2 c shredded red cabbage, depending on how much crunch you like
- 1 red bell pepper, diced
- 1/2 red onion, diced
- 1 cup shredded carrots
- 1/2 cup chopped cilantro
- 1/4 cup diced green onions
- 1/2 cup cashew halves or peanuts (honey-roasted is good)
- 1 cup edamame or chickpeas (optional)
- Fresh lime, for a bit of tang
For Dressing
- 1/4 cup all natural peanut butter
- 2 tsp freshly grated ginger
- 3 tbsp soy sauce, gluten-free if desired
- 1 tbsp honey
- 1 tbsp red wine vinegar
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- 1 tsp olive oil
- water to thin, if necessary
Instructions
- To cook quinoa: Rinse quinoa with cold water in mesh strainer. In a medium saucepan, bring 1 1/2 cups of water to a boil. Add in quinoa and bring mixture to a boil. Cover, reduce heat to low and let simmer for 15 minutes or until quinoa has absorbed all of the water. Let sit 5 minutes with the cover on, off the heat. Fluff quinoa with fork; place in large bowl and set aside to cool for about 10 minutes. You should have a little over 2 cups of quinoa.
- To make dressing: Combine peanut butter and honey and heat to loosen it up.
- Add in ginger, soy sauce, vinegar, and both sesame and olive oil and stir or whisk until mixture is smooth and creamy. If you want a thinner dressing, simply stir in a teaspoon or two of water or olive oil.
- Add as much or as little dressing as you’d like to the quinoa. Start out with a little bit of dressing and add more to suit taste preferences.
- Next fold in red pepper, onion, cabbage, carrots, and cilantro into the quinoa. Garnish with cashews and green onions.
- Serve chilled or at room temperature with lime wedges if desired.
