Red Quinoa Salad with Feta Cheese
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Jump to RecipeThis red quinoa salad with feta cheese recipe is a delicious and flavorful salad with fresh greens, whole grains, and a 5-minute vinaigrette dressing! A hearty and wholesome salad recipe, perfect for a lunch or a light dinner.
This hearty salad recipe is loaded with briny, flavorful ingredients! Serve this on a summer day for lunch, for brunch, or as a simple and delicious meal. Cook your quinoa, and toss it with these delicious veggies for the perfect salad.
Want more hearty salad ideas? Try our Thai wheat noodle salad, antipasto chopped salad, and our favorite Mexican tuna salad!
If you want a hearty, delicious, and plant-based salad loaded with fresh vegetables and yummy feta cheese, this recipe is for you! We love a good grain bowl recipe, especially one loaded with Mediterranean vegetables and a tangy lemon vinaigrette.
Start by cooking your red quinoa, adding it to a bowl with greens and vegetables, and pouring over a quick 5-minute lemon dressing. This is a fantastic meal prep salad, one that you can enjoy all year long.
Why This Recipe Works
- Light, refreshing, flavorful, and delicious vegetables in each bite.
- It’s a satisfying salad that is filling for a lunch or even dinner!
- A fun twist on classic Mediterranean salads.
- Great for making ahead and prepping for the week.
- Versatile – this recipe is perfect to add your favorite vegetables (we have great suggestions below).
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Arugula, Lemons, Tomatoes, Bell Pepper
- Red quinoa: I love red quinoa, so I always have plenty stocked in the pantry! You can cook quinoa on the stove top, in the Instant Pot (my preferred method), or quinoa in the rice cooker. This red quinoa is a fantastic addition to salads, soups, or wraps.
- Extra virgin olive oil
- Marinated artichoke hearts – for a delicious Mediterranean twist.
- Cherry tomatoes – or any tomato variety you prefer.
- Kalamata olives
- Fresh lemon juice for the dressing. A little fresh lemon adds delicious flavor that you can’t get with bottled.
- Sea salt and black pepper
Be sure to visit the recipe card below for full ingredient amounts and recipe instructions!
Additions and Substitutions
- Add in your favorite chopped or sliced vegetables: sliced cucumber, roasted zucchini or squash, or sun-dried tomatoes would be great additions.
- You can use either fresh bell pepper or roasted red peppers in a jar. Both would add delicious flavor to this quinoa salad.
- Instead of kalamata olives, you can use a different variety of olive like green Castelvetrano olives, green, or black olives.
How To Make This Recipe
Step 1: In a medium pot, add the quinoa and water. Bring to a boil, then cover and cook on low heat for 30 minutes, until water has absorbed. Fluff with a fork and allow the quinoa to cool.
Step 2: In a bowl, add the cooked and cooled quinoa and arugula.
Step 3: Top with cherry tomatoes, bell peppers, tomatoes, artichokes, and Kalamata olives.
Step 4: Sprinkle on the feta cheese on top of the salad and set aside.
Step 5: Mix the salad dressing ingredients in a small bowl: the olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, salt, and pepper.
Step 6: Pour the dressing over the salad, toss well, and enjoy.
Recipe FAQs
Yes, if you don’t have red quinoa you can use white quinoa or tri-colored quinoa. You could also used pre-cooked quinoa from a pouch.
Store any leftover quinoa feta salad in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 1 day. The salad is best fresh, as the greens may wilt after being tossed with the dressing. If possible, keep the arugula separate and toss with the rest of the salad ingredients right before serving.
You can prep many part of this recipe ahead – make and refrigerate the quinoa, and make the dressing ahead of time. Once you are ready to serve, you can toss the rest of the ingredients together.
More Tasty Lunch Recipes
- Tuna Salad with Greek Yogurt
- Chickpea Shawarma Wraps
- Trader Joe’s Cacio e Pepe Copycat Recipe
- Pizza Bagel Air Fryer Recipe
- Creamy Chicken Noodle Soup with Coconut Milk
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Red Quinoa Salad with Feta Cheese
Equipment
- Large Pot
- Mixing Bowls
Ingredients
For the Red Quinoa Salad
- 1 cup red quinoa
- 2 cups water
- 4 cups arugula
- 1 14-ounce can chickpeas
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes
- 1/4 cup kalamata olives
- 1/2 cup marinated artichoke hearts
For the Lemon Vinaigrette
- 2 lemons juiced
- 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1/2 teaspoon Sea Salt
- 1/2 teaspoon Black Pepper
Instructions
- In a medium pot, add the quinoa and water. Bring to a boil, then cover and cook on low heat for 30 minutes, until water has absorbed. Fluff with a fork and allow the quinoa to cool.
- In a bowl, add the cooked and cooled quinoa and arugula.
- Top with cherry tomatoes, bell peppers, tomatoes, artichokes, and Kalamata olives.
- Sprinkle on the feta cheese on top of the salad and set aside.
- Mix the salad dressing ingredients in a small bowl: the olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, salt, and pepper.
- Pour the dressing over the salad, toss well, and enjoy.
Notes
- Add in your favorite chopped or sliced vegetables: sliced cucumber, roasted zucchini or squash, or sun-dried tomatoes would be great additions.
- You can use either fresh bell pepper or roasted red peppers in a jar. Both would add delicious flavor to this quinoa salad.
- Instead of kalamata olives, you can use a different variety of olive like green Castelvetrano olives, green, or black olives.
Nutrition
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