Healthy Quinoa and Avocado Salad

Happy New year to all my readers. I hope this year brings you much joy and happiness.

The holiday season is a time of decadent and indulgent food. So, post the indulgent couple of weeks, I thought it was time for me to whip out some healthy dishes and I made a healthy and nutritious quinoa salad last evening to go along with some chicken. My husband and son are more of ‘meat and potatoes’ kind of guys and they looked very sceptically at my quinoa salad. To my joy they both liked it and happily ate it.

This salad is easy to put together. It does not have any oil added in the dressing and I love that about this salad.

I made the quinoa in my rice cooker. That made it so much easier, I did not have to think about it and while the quinoa was getting done, I got all the other ingredients organised and was ready to mix it all together once the quinoa was done.

To make the quinoa I used chicken stock, you can use water instead but the stock definitely adds more flavour.

Ingredients

Quinoa – 2 cups

Chicken Stock – 4 cups

Black Beans – 1 can, drained and rinsed

Corn kernels – 1 can, drained and rinsed

Cherry or grape tomatoes – 1 cup, chopped (loosely packed)

Cucumber – 1 cup (loosely packed)

Red Onion – ½ – ¾  cup (according to personal preference), finely chopped

Avocado – 1

Taco Seasoning – 2 teaspoons (this amount is only an approximate it will vary according to individual taste)

Method

1. Rinse the quinoa well and using a strainer to drain all the water.
2. Pour the chicken stock and let the rick cooker do its thing. The time it takes in the rice cooker will vary depending on the type each of you have. But as a guide, I added a couple of extra minutes to what I would normally put for the same amount of white rice.
3. While the quinoa is getting done, assemble all the other ingredients.
4. Once the quinoa is done, let it stay in the cooker for about 5 minutes and then fluff them with a fork prior to mixing it with the rest of the ingredients.
5. Put in the taco seasoning and salt if needed and
6. Add in the avocado in the end, either chopped and mixed through or just as sliced.
7. Serve warm and the rest can be stored in the fridge for lunch the next day.

Enjoy!!!!