This Southwestern Quinoa Salad with Lime Dressing and Cotija Cheese is healthy, fresh and delicious and studded with good for you veggies! It’s nice and light and perfect for summer!
Healthy and Delicious Southwestern Quinoa Salad with Lime Dressing and Cotija Cheese
I’m in the mood for a healthy quinoa salad loaded with fresh veggies, tossed in a light lime dressing and sprinkled with some flavorful, sharp cotija cheese. Care to join me?
I hope so, because that’s just what I’m serving up today at the BHK! And take it from me AND my two fabulous neighbors, Joan and Jill who I shared this one with, it’s totally dee-lish! It’s also a cinch to make AND it’s over the top good for you!
When Tom and I are out of town we can always count on Joan and Jill to watch the house. They take in our mail, bring up our trash cans and make sure no shenanigans are going on while we’re away…they’re the best!
So as a little thank you, every so often I pop over to share something I’ve baked up for the blog. Most of the time, it’s a dessert or some other type of sweet treat. But this past week when I made this quinoa salad, I thought they might enjoy it, so I dropped some off. The next morning, I got a text from Joan saying they absolutely loved it and that she must get the recipe. So here it is Joan!
Southwestern Quinoa Salad
- white quinoa
- vegetable broth
- black beans
- orange peppers
- grape tomatoes
- corn
- scallions
- Cotija cheese
Lime Dressing
- limes
- olive oil
- garlic
- cumin
- oregano
- kosher salt and pepper
The quinoa is the star of this salad. If you’re not familiar with quinoa, it has a mild flavor with a light crunch and it’s packed with nutrition. It’s a “complete protein” which means it provides all 9 essential amino acids necessary for good health. The one cup of quinoa in this recipe contains 8g of protein, 5g of fiber, iron, magnesium, folate and heart-healthy omega 3 fatty acids. It doesn’t get any healthier guys!
I’ve added some chopped orange pepper, grape tomatoes, fresh corn, black beans and scallions to this recipe and tossed it all in a light lime dressing with a bit of cumin to spice it up. I also topped it with a little sprinkle of one of my faves, cotija cheese. This salad takes less than 30 minutes to prepare and is perfect for summer barbecues and picnics.
Please let me know if you give the recipe a try. And if you have any questions about the recipe, just drop a comment below. Enjoy!
A Few Cook’s Notes for Southwestern Quinoa Salad with Lime Dressing and Cotija Cheese
I used black beans for this recipe, but you could substitute pinto beans if you’d prefer.
This salad if nice and light. I think the amount of dressing is spot on, but if you like more dressing you can always double the recipe for the dressing.
I would not omit the Cotija cheese in this recipe. If you’ve never tried it, it’s super delicious. It’s crumbly and salty and goes perfectly with this salad.
Southwestern Quinoa Salad with Lime Dressing and Cotija Cheese
Print Recipe Pin RecipeIngredients
Salad
- 1 cup white quinoa, rinsed (I use Bob's Red Mill)
- 2 cups vegetable broth
- 1 15 oz. can black beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 cup orange pepper, chopped
- 1 cup grape tomatoes, quartered
- 1 cup fresh corn, about 2 ears, cooked and cut from the cob
- 1/3 cup scallions, chopped
- 1 cup cotija cheese, crumbled
Dressing
- 3 Tbsp. fresh lime juice
- 2 Tbsp. olive oil
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tsp. ground cumin
- 1 tsp. fresh oregano, finely chopped (or 1/2 tsp. dried)
- 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
- 1/4 tsp. ground black pepper
Instructions
- In a 2 quart saucepan, bring 2 cups vegetable broth to a boil. Add quinoa and reduce the heat to low. Cover and simmer for 15 minutes until the broth is absorbed and the quinoa is tender. Remove from the heat and fluff with a fork. Set aside to cool.
- In a small bowl, whisk together all the dressing ingredients.
- In a large bowl, combine quinoa, black beans, orange pepper, tomatoes, corn and scallions. Toss with the dressing. Sprinkle with the cotija cheese.
Notes
Updated: This post was first published here in July 2016. I decided it was worthy of a re-share. I’ve updated the content and added some notes to the post above.
Gorgeous salad! I’m in love with quinoa because it is light and works with so many different flavor combinations. It also holds up well in the fridge so you can have leftovers if you are lucky enough to have anything left.
I totally agree Karen. It does hold up really well! This salad is my go-to healthy salad all summer long! Have a great weekend my friend!
This salad looks SO good Mary Ann. I would make a big batch at the beginning of the week and snack on it all week long. Yum!
Thanks so much Alida! It’s a favorite of mine all summer long!
These are the salads I could live on. :) So bright, colorful, and nourishing. Quinoa is one of the faves for adding into salads too. What a delightful lunch to make for your neighbors. I have really great neighbors as well and it’s something I am so thankful for!
Me too Emily! Joan and Jill are just fabulous neighbors! I love this salad because of the taste but also because of all the colors! Hope you enjoy!
I’m starting to think we share a similar brain, Mary Ann because I have a SW quinoa salad coming up in a few weeks, but it’s pretty different than this one. Yours is just beautiful with all the color and fresh produce!! Plus that lime dressing sounds deeelish indeed! This would be SO perfect for a picnic or as a stellar summer side at a BBQ! And I bet the Leftovers taste amazing… if they make it that far! ;) I know I’ll be eating bowl after bowl of this salad! Cheers, dear friend- to wonderful neighbors and a lovely weekend! <3
So funny! Me too Cheyanne! Leftovers are always delicious if there happens to be any left! And just perfect for picnics and bbq’s!You have a fabulous weekend too my friend! XO
love that bright lime dressing with the nutty quinoa. your neighbors are lucky to have you dropping by with sweet treats and yummy salads. wish i lived next door!!
I’m sure living next to you is awesome too!! This salad is so delicious Cathy! Nice and light for summer.
Looks amazing! My sister is in town and we are making it tonight. Can’t wait to try it!
I think you both will love this one Rose!! So light and good for you!
This looks like the perfect combination of healthy and delicious!!! Love this Mary Ann!! xoxo
Thanks so much Rebecca! It really is a favorite!
This looks wonderful Mary Ann. Isn’t it great to have good neighbors, I always share my food. Unfortunately, I haven’t done a lot of cooking.
My neighbors really loved this one Gerlinde! I hope you enjoy it if you give it a try!
This actually looks surprisingly a lot like the traditional quinoa with vegetables that they served in Peru when we were there! (Minus the cheese though). I love quinoa and the addition of all the colors makes this side just perfect!
Thanks so much Sarah! I had to add the cotija cheese because we all know cheese (like chocolate) makes everything better!
I just love this salad for summer eating. Gorgeous!
Thanks so much Laura! It definitely is a summer fave!
Lucky neighbors! It sounds like a great trade to me. This salad looks wonderful and full of great nutritious food.
I think we were thinking along the same lines this week Kathy! Nice and light and healthy for summer! Have a great weekend!
Absolutely perfect and so, so pretty, too. Always a bonus in my book :)
Thanks Jennifer! Summer foods are always the best!
This looks light and perfect for any summer day. It looks so light!!
It is Zainab! Packed with all deliciously healthy things!
This is my favorite kind of salad, Mary Ann. Lots of fresh, seasonal veggies tossed with quinoa and a lovely dressing. I don’t add lime to dressing very often but you’ve inspired me. And I have to look out for cotija cheese – I haven’t tried that before. Hope you have a great weekend.
The cotija cheese is the BEST Geraldine! It’s definitely worth searching for it! Nice and sharp like parmesan! Enjoy my friend! Hope your weekend’s fab!
Having great neighbors is such a gift, Mary Ann. Really. After living in our home for 15 years, we’ve seen a few new neighbors move in.. we miss our old friends very much. They were such good neighbors. Knowing you have someone to depend on while you’re away is a good feeling. Sharing delicious food is a sweet way to show your neighbors how much you appreciate them! I know I’d certainly appreciate a bowlful of goodness like this! Quinoa is such a fabulous and nourishing staple and is perfect for salads like this. And that it holds up in the fridge.. even better! I’m soooo ready for local corn with a bit of cotija! Thank you for this Mary Ann! Delicious!
This is my new favorite summer salad Traci! All the fresh veggies and that cotija cheese…yum! Hard to share! Ha!
I love all the flavors you’ve used in this southwestern quinoa salad…and everything is always better with cotija cheese! Making this for sure!
Thanks so much Cristina! It really is quite delicious and the cotija cheese puts it over the top! It’s a must!
Just made this today for lunch and it was amazing! Can’t wait to have it for leftovers this weekend!
So glad you enjoyed it Molly! I love that one too! It’s so easy and leftovers are even better! Thanks so much for commenting and have a great weekend!
This recipe is crazy good! I had leftover cotija cheese that I needed to finish and came across this recipe. I had to use frozen corn, but it was still great. I also added some chili powder.
So happy you enjoy it! Thanks so much for taking the time to leave a comment.
Highly recommend!! Delicious and super easy. Great as a meal by itself or with chips as a snack.
So happy you enjoy it Marissa! Thanks so much for following!