You’ll find yourself making this cold quinoa arugula salad over and over again! Not only is this quinoa and arugula salad incredibly flavorful with its bright lemon vinaigrette, but it’s also ready in just 15 minutes prep. Each serving of this vegan quinoa salad has a whopping 19 grams of plant based protein making it a great make-ahead lunch or dinner side to grilled drumsticks, grilled thighs, or veggie burgers with toppings. One bite and I think you’ll agree, it’s the best quinoa salad!
If you’re anything like me, the idea of quinoa is good…but plain quinoa is not. But when we add some flavor, color, and crunch? It’s a whole different story. And this quinoa and arugula salad will show exactly what I mean. My napa cabbage slaw, kale salad, salmon Caesar salad, and kale apple slaw are other great salads to try next.
Estimated reading time: 8 minutes
- What You'll Love About Quinoa Arugula Salad
- Quinoa and Arugula Salad VIDEO
- Ingredients to Make Quinoa Arugula Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette
- How to Make Quinoa and Arugula Salad
- FAQs
- What is quinoa salad made of?
- Is quinoa salad served hot or cold?
- Is quinoa arugula salad vegan?
- What to add to quinoa salad?
- Can I add a protein to this salad?
- Storage Instructions
- What to Serve with Quinoa and Arugula Salad
- Want More?
- More Quinoa Recipes
- Let me Meal Plan for you!
What You’ll Love About Quinoa Arugula Salad
- Fresh and bright flavors
- An interesting mix of textures
- Works for main salad or side salad
- Satisfying, it has 20 grams of plant-based protein
- Easy, takes just 20 minutes to make
- Made with just 7 simple ingredients
- Can be meal prepped ahead to take on the go
Quinoa and Arugula Salad VIDEO
Ingredients to Make Quinoa Arugula Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette
This amazing quinoa salad is made with just 7 ingredients, plus salt and pepper:
- Quinoa: Ahhhh, the star of this quinoa arugula salad! Make a big batch and freeze it for later. I love to make it in my rice maker for easy and perfect quinoa every time. You can easily prep this ahead 2-3 days.
- Arugula: This peppery green is perfect in salads. It adds great flavor bite and a gorgeous deep green shade. If arugula is a little too much for you, you could also use torn butter/bibb lettuce or red leaf lettuce. These greens don’t hold up quite as well once dressed, so dress them right before you eat the salad.
- Lemon Vinaigrette: I added lemon juice and zest to the vinaigrette to give it that light lemon flavor that I love in salads this time of year. You’ll also want to use shallot, dijon mustard, maple syrup, and olive oil.
- Chopped Almonds: I added chopped almonds for some extra staying power and a necessary crunch. I prefer to toast them yourself, but you can use any type of nut. Hemp seeds would also be delicious and add great crunch.
How to Make Quinoa and Arugula Salad
This is an overview on how to make this amazing quinoa salad, the detailed instructions can be found below in the recipe card.
FAQs
What is quinoa salad made of?
It depends on the salad, but many quinoa salads are made with a base of quinoa, some vegetables, some protein (beans, cheese, protein), and a dressing to bring it all together.
This cold quinoa salad is made with quinoa, arugula, a lemon vinaigrette, and almonds.
Is quinoa salad served hot or cold?
It depends on the salad! Many can be served either way but the beauty of a salad like this is that it tastes great cold or at room temperature.
Is quinoa arugula salad vegan?
It will vary based on the recipe and ingredients. This vegan quinoa salad is both vegetarian and vegan.
What to add to quinoa salad?
A general rule of thumb is to include the grain, some veggies for texture, some cheese or protein to make it filling, a dressing to bring it together, and some cheese or nuts for extra crunch and flavor.
Can I add a protein to this salad?
If you want a really filling salad, I recommend topping it with some garbanzo beans, sunflower seeds, hemp seeds, chopped hard boiled eggs, grilled lemon chicken, or air fryer salmon.
Storage Instructions
Store this leftover healthy quinoa salad in the refrigerator for 1-2 days. For best results, store all of the components separately so that the arugula doesn’t get soggy.
When you’re ready to serve, take the dressing out of the fridge to come to room temperature (if you forget, run the jar under warm water) and assemble salad, dress, and toss together. Sprinkle with roasted almonds.
How to meal prep
It works well as a prep-ahead salad. If you want to make it more than a day or two in advance, I recommend prepping and portioning all of the components.
You can prep the components, divide into portions and then store in meal prep salad bowl so all you have to do is remove from fridge, toss with dressing and sprinkle with almonds.
What to Serve with Quinoa and Arugula Salad
More Quinoa Recipes
If you like this arugula quinoa salad recipe, you might also like some of these other quinoa-based recipes:
- Chicken Quinoa Hummus Bowls – A great summer meal that’s the second meal using grilled lemon chicken.
- Mexican Black Bean Quinoa Salad – Full of flavor, vegetarian protein, and is best made ahead and served cold.
- Summer Quinoa Salad – This salad has the best summer produce (zucchini, tomato, and basil!) and is perfect for parties and get-togethers.
- Healthy Quinoa Cakes – Designed for young kids, but adults LOVE them too!
- Pizza Quinoa Casserole – Traditional pizza flavors in a quinoa casserole form.
Let me Meal Plan for you!
In a dinner time rut? Overwhelmed with the task of meal planning? It’s time to hand over meal planning to a pro!
This done-for-you plan can easily be customized and your grocery list is made with the click of a button – all while you sit in the school pick up line.
You’ll save time, save money, waste less food, and go into meals calm instead of stressed. Your dinner is planned and your grocery list is made and everything is conveniently delivered to an app so you can print it out, access from your phone, or computer.
The BEST Quinoa Arugula Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 6 servings 1x
- Category: Salad
- Method: Stove
- Cuisine: Vegetarian
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
The BEST quinoa and arugula salad recipe is bright, fresh, + flavorful. The perfect side to a grilled dinner or easy lunch. Ready in just 20 minutes.
Ingredients
For the Salad:
- 1 cup raw quinoa
- 8 cups arugula, washed
- 1/2 cup almonds, roasted and chopped
For the Vinaigrette:
- 2 Tbsp. lemon juice (about one lemon)
- 1 Tbsp. lemon zest
- 3 Tbsp. olive oil
- 1 Tbsp. maple syrup or honey
- 3 Tbsp. minced shallots (about one)
- 1/2 tsp. sea salt
- 1/4 tsp. black pepper
Instructions
- Prepare quinoa as directed and let cool.
- In a small bowl, whisk together all vinaigrette ingredients. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Toss quinoa, arugula, and dressing together. Sprinkle with chopped almonds.
Notes
- This salad is best made ahead of time to let the flavors deepen, and it’s great the next day.
- Use maple syrup for a vegan salad.
Keywords: quinoa arugula salad, quinoa and arugula salad, cold quinoa salad, vegan quinoa salad, best quinoa salad
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allie@sweetpotatobites
This looks so light and refreshing – I love using lemon vinaigrettes on salads!
Jen @ Pretty Little Grub
That salad dressing sounds really fresh. Perfect for spring/summer salads. Thanks for the recipe!
erin
So making this for dinner. PERFECT meal for such a grey dreary day here in Minnesnowta (and, yes, it is snowing… waaahhhhh!).
Emily
I heard. WTF is all I have to say about snow in (basically) May.
Hyedi
Yum! This looks awesome. I love the idea of adding the almonds for some crunch and staying power 🙂
Mercedes@Satisfy My Sweet Tooth
Um, has Bon Appetit recruited you for photographing their recipes yet? Wow, gorgeous! I love anything lemony, so I know that I would love this light salad! What a great lunch to bring to work!
Emily
You are too kind! I’ve been loving it for work.
sarah k @ the pajama chef
ohhh yum. i don’t love plain quinoa either. this looks utterly fabulous!
Lori
This sounds great! Arugula is my favorite green so I welcome all new ways to use it. Delicious!
Eileen
Simple, light, healthy and packed with protein. Love it! I love adding quinoa to my salad as well. In fact, I’ve done quinoa, kale and blueberries.
Kathleen
I just made this and it was delicious! I added some dried cranberries to it as well.
Emily
So glad to hear that! I’m going to try adding cranberries next time I make it!
Lauren
Is the 1 cup quinoa dry or already cooked? Looking forward to making this tonight!
Emily
Dry quinoa, and then prepare as directed. I hope you like it! 🙂
kara
this salad is amazing! It’s deliscous and addictitve!
Emily
I’m so glad you think so Kara, thanks for letting me know! 🙂
Tammy
Made this last night and it was lovely. I had forgotten to get almonds when I was out but used pine nuts. Love the vinagrette.
Emily
So glad you enjoyed it, Tammy! Love the swap with pine nuts. 🙂
Brigitte Bilodeau
I Made this last week with lemon marinated grilled chicken ….I didn’t add the almonds because I had meat,
I could have added toasted walnuts …anyway I never make a recipe twice unless I really love it and this one is easy and so tasty ..the dressing is super good I added more lemon juice because I like it tangy…but it is super good and simple …I grow arugula so it’s from my garden so fresh and good I added spinach to…
Thanks
Emily
YAY! You made my week! (I’m really jealous that you have arugula from your garden!)
Brigitte Bilodeau
You should grow arugula it is super easy ….I love your recipe it is so versatile …I have so much Swiss chard from my garden , I love all these power greens…
Thanks
Gia
LOVEd this recipe! Added a fried egg on top and sliced avocado as a protein-pick-me-up and fell in love. So simple yet so delicious!
Emily
OMG, drool-worthy additions! I’ve got to try it.
Reid Ness
This has become a staple in our household. It is a particularly good with fish.
★★★★★
Emily
That’s so great to hear! Thanks, Reid!
Phil
This sounds delicious, I’m definitely gonna try this one!
One thing though: You say that this salad is vegan, even though it contains honey, which is an animal product. The description should be updated to classify it as vegetarian. A good alternative could be maple syrup.
Emily
You are so right! I thought there was a note in there explaining that, but it may have been missed when I updated the post. Thanks for letting me know, I’ll update. 🙂
Natalie Sadler
This is the best salad ever!
★★★★★
Emily
This is the best comment ever! Thank you, SO much. So glad you like it.
Bonnie Sullivan
We love this recipe! It’s a staple for us especially in the summer. It’s so fresh and flavorful. We like to add sliced snap peas and some Parmesan cheese, sometimes some cubed chicken.
★★★★★
Emily
Oh I love ALL of those addition ideas! Yum! Thanks for sharing.