Southwest Quinoa Salad

Southwest Quinoa Salad. Do you love Southwest flavors? Well here is a delicious Southwest Quinoa Salad for you to try!  BBQ sauce, corn, black beans, tomatoes, and avocado give this quinoa salad its Southwest flavors everyone adores.  This vegetarian version is a delicious, fresh-tasting salad loaded with your favorite Southwest flavors!  It’s a perfect salad to bring to a summer barbecue or a picnic.

Southwest Quinoa Salad…

This Southwest quinoa salad is not only loaded with protein, it’s packed with wonderful nutrients including vitamins A, and C, along with calcium and iron.

We found out that May is National Salad Month! What a perfect month to celebrate with a delicious and healthy salad!

We love making salads this time of year and especially ones that are truly loaded with veggies. And this one is a keeper.

How to Make Southwest Quinoa Salad?

I was given a can of petite diced tomatoes the other day and decided to try them in this salad.  These tomatoes are sweet-tasting already diced for you, and add the fresh salsa flavor to this quinoa salad.

Plus, some barbecue sauce was added to this salad. With its sweet and hickory smoke flavors, I didn’t need to add any salt or pepper to it.  But by all means, you can if desired.

Once the quinoa has been cooked, the rest of the ingredients are easily added and mixed into a large bowl, then chilled to marinate before serving.

Simple. Easy. …and Delicious!

Just before this salad was served, a touch of fresh lemon juice is added.  It was the perfect finishing touch to make this recipe flavorful and fresh tasting.

Reasons to LOVE this Southwest Quinoa Salad…

• Like all quinoa salads, this one is incredibly simple to make and can be made up to one day ahead. 

• Super easy to make. It actually took me less than 20 minutes. Then chill.  

• It makes enough to feed a crowd.

• Loaded with vitamins, iron, protein, and calcium.

• A ton of flavors with delicious textures.

 

*Full recipe card below! 

Ingredients Needed for Southwest Quinoa Salad…

For this recipe, you will need the following ingredients:

• 1 cup quinoa

• 2 cups of vegetable broth (or chicken broth)

• 1 (28-ounce) can RedPack petite diced tomatoes, drained

• 1 cup of frozen corn

• 1 (15-ounce) can of black beans, rinsed and drained

• 3 Tbsp. barbeque sauce of your choice (I used Kansas City Masterpiece)

• 1 avocado – chopped

• 3 green onions – chopped

• 2 Tbsp. chopped cilantro

• salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste

• Optional: 2 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice

Directions:

1. Cook the quinoa with vegetable broth, follow the directions on the box, then set the quinoa aside to cool for 5 minutes.

2. In a large mixing bowl, combine corn, black beans, tomatoes, green onions, and cooked quinoa.  Stir in barbecue sauce and 1/2 the chopped avocado.  Add salt and fresh cracked pepper, to taste.

3. Transfer to a serving bowl or platter. Top with cilantro and the remaining chopped avocado. 

4. Cover with clear wrap and chill for 1 hour or more before serving.
Optional: Stir in fresh lemon juice just before you serve it.

Yields: 6 to 8 servings

Need Additional Protein?

Try adding some shredded or diced cooked pork or chicken to this salad, about 2 cups.   It’s also a great way to use leftover chicken or pork from the night before.

For More Quinoa Salads… try these!

•  try Quinoa Tuna Salad
• Easy Kale and Quinoa Salad
• Quinoa Salad Mediterranean Style!
• Cucumber and Quinoa Salad
• and our Quinoa Tabbouleh Salad

Enjoy!

Don’t forget to Pin and Share!   …. thanks!

For more delicious salads …try these!

• Healthy Apple Bok Choy Salad
• Best Broccoli Salad (Keto)
• Mom’s Best Carrot Salad
• Green Beans and Carrot Salad Italian Style
• Chickpea Salad

Hello friends!  Are you cooking with us?  If you make our Southwest quinoa salad, we’d love to know how it turned out! Please let us know by leaving a review and a star rating below.  Sharing your experience and insights will help all our readers, and it helps us too!

Or snap a photo and share it on Instagram; be sure to tag us @2sistersrecipes.

Also, NEVER MISS our Recipes!  Enter your email and Subscribe to the 2 Sisters Recipes and get all new recipes “FREE” and reminders of some great older ones too! 

Thanks for stopping by! 

Happy and Healthy Cooking! 🙂

thanks for stopping by…

xo anna and liz