If you’re looking for a fresh, flavorful salad that works for meal prep, summer cookouts, easy lunches, or healthy dinners, this Mexican quinoa salad is one of my all-time favorites. It’s packed with black beans, crunchy vegetables, creamy avocado, hearty quinoa, and tossed in the most delicious homemade chili lime dressing.
This salad has been on my blog for years, and honestly, it’s one of those recipes I still make all the time because it’s easy, filling, healthy, and tastes even better after sitting in the fridge for a few hours. It’s one of the best examples of how healthy eating doesn’t need to be complicated to be delicious.
Quick Look at the Recipe
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: About 40 minutes
- Best For: Meal prep, summer parties, healthy lunches, easy dinners
- Flavor: Fresh, zesty, savory, slightly spicy
One of My Favorite Ways to Use Quinoa
At this point, it’s probably not a secret anymore that quinoa is one of my favorite ingredients. I make a big batch almost every week and toss it into just about everything.
Some of my favorite ways to use quinoa are in salads, breakfast bowls, grain bowls, and meal prep lunches because it adds protein, fiber, and texture without a ton of extra work. It’s one of those ingredients that makes healthy meals feel more filling and satisfying.
This Mexican quinoa salad had been floating around in my head for a while before I finally made it years ago. I actually bought the ingredients multiple times before finally pulling it together for a get-together at a friend’s house.
Normally, I don’t bring brand-new recipes to parties because you never really know how people will react, especially when quinoa is involved. But this salad ended up being one of those recipes everyone kept going back for. One friend called it “phenomenal” and had three helpings, which immediately told me this recipe was a keeper.
Since then, I’ve made it countless times for meal prep, cookouts, summer dinners, and easy lunches during the week.
And if you love quinoa recipes as much as I do, definitely check out my Greek Quinoa Salad, Greek Quinoa Breakfast Bowl, Quinoa Fried Rice, Quinoa Power Bowl, Power Mason Jar Salad, and Quinoa Stuffed Peppers recipes too.
Enjoy,
Ingredients
Here’s what you’ll need to make this Mexican quinoa salad recipe. Full measurements are in the recipe card below.
- Quinoa. Quinoa is the base of this salad and one of my favorite meal prep ingredients because it’s packed with protein and fiber. It also holds up really well in the refrigerator, which makes it perfect for make-ahead meals. If you’re new to cooking quinoa, make sure to check out my post on how to cook quinoa.
- Black Beans. Black beans add even more protein and fiber to this salad while also making it extra filling.
- Cherry Tomatoes. Cherry tomatoes add freshness, sweetness, and color. I like using cherry tomatoes because they hold up really well in meal prep salads.
- Cucumbers. Cucumbers add crunch and help keep the salad fresh and light.
- Red Onion. Red onion adds a little bite and balances out the sweetness in the dressing.
- Jalapeño. Jalapeño gives the salad a little heat and extra flavor. If you prefer a milder salad, you can remove all the seeds or use less jalapeño.
- Avocado. Avocado adds creaminess and healthy fats. If you’re making this ahead for meal prep or a party, I recommend adding the avocado right before serving.
- Cilantro. Fresh cilantro gives the salad a bright fresh flavor that works perfectly with the chili lime dressing.
- Chili Lime Dressing. This homemade chili lime dressing is what really brings the whole salad together. It’s tangy, savory, slightly sweet, and has just enough spice to make the flavors pop. Honestly, this dressing alone will make you want to start making homemade salad dressings more often because it’s incredibly easy and tastes so much better than bottled dressing.
How to Make Mexican Quinoa Salad
Step 1: Make the chili lime dressing. In a small mason jar or bowl, combine the olive oil, lime juice, lime zest, garlic powder, chili powder, cumin, salt, and honey. Place the lid on the jar and shake until everything is combined. If using a bowl, whisk until smooth. Set the dressing aside while you prepare the salad.
Step 2: Rinse the quinoa. Place the quinoa into a bowl and cover it with water. Give it a few stirs until the water looks slightly cloudy. Pour the quinoa into a fine mesh strainer and rinse well under cold water. This helps remove the natural coating on quinoa that can sometimes taste bitter.
Step 3: Cook the quinoa. Add the rinsed quinoa and vegetable broth to a medium saucepan. Bring the quinoa to a boil, then reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer for about 18–20 minutes or until the liquid is absorbed. Remove the pot from the heat and let it sit covered for another 5 minutes. Fluff the quinoa with a fork and let it cool slightly before adding it to the salad. You can easily do this step a day or two ahead.
Step 4: Prepare the salad. In a large bowl, combine the cooked quinoa, black beans, jalapeño, red onion, tomatoes, cucumbers, and cilantro. Pour half of the dressing over the salad and toss everything together. Then pour in the remaining dressing and toss again until everything is evenly coated. Give the salad a taste and add extra salt if needed.
Step 5: Add the avocado and serve. If serving right away, chop the avocado and gently stir it into the salad or place slices on top. If making ahead for a party or meal prep, wait to add the avocado until right before serving. Serve with extra lime wedges.
Expert Cooking Tips
- Rinse the quinoa first. Rinsing quinoa removes the natural coating called saponin, which can sometimes make quinoa taste bitter.
- Let the quinoa cool slightly. If the quinoa is too hot when added to the vegetables, the salad can become watery.
- Finish with extra lime juice and salt. One of my favorite cooking tips is finishing recipes with a squeeze of fresh citrus and a little salt right before serving. It really helps all the flavors pop.
- Use fresh lime juice. Fresh lime juice makes a huge difference in the flavor of the dressing compared to bottled lime juice.
- Wait to add the avocado. If making this ahead of time, add the avocado right before serving so it stays fresh and green.
- Make extra quinoa for the week. Whenever I make quinoa, I almost always make extra because it’s so easy to use in breakfast bowls, salads, quinoa bowls, and meal prep lunches throughout the week.
Variations
One of the best things about this Mexican quinoa salad recipe is how easy it is to customize.
- Add grilled chicken, steak, shrimp, or tofu for extra protein.
- Toss in roasted corn for extra sweetness and texture.
- Add chopped romaine lettuce to turn this into more of a quinoa taco salad.
- Crumbled cotija cheese or feta cheese are both delicious additions.
- Use pico de gallo instead of tomatoes for even more flavor.
- Swap black beans for pinto beans if that’s what you have on hand.
- Add extra jalapeño or cayenne pepper if you like more heat.
How to Serve Mexican Quinoa Salad
This salad works for so many different meals throughout the week.
It’s delicious as:
- a side dish for grilled chicken or burgers
- a meal prep lunch
- a light dinner
- a cookout or barbecue side dish
- a quinoa bowl topped with extra protein
One of my favorite ways to use this salad for meal prep is to portion it into containers with grilled chicken and avocado for easy grab-and-go lunches during the week.
Make-Ahead and Meal Prep Tips
This is one of my favorite meal prep quinoa salads because it holds up so well in the refrigerator.
You can make the quinoa up to 5 days ahead of time and store it separately until ready to use.
The full salad can be made 2–3 days ahead of time. In fact, I actually think it tastes even better after sitting for a few hours because the flavors have more time to blend together.
If you’re making this for meal prep, I recommend storing the avocado separately and adding it right before serving.
This salad also works great for meal prep bowls. Add grilled chicken, shrimp, steak, or tofu and portion everything into containers for easy lunches during the week.
Other Quinoa Recipes to Try
If you love quinoa recipes, here are a few more favorites:
Mexican Quinoa Salad
Equipment
- Mixing bowl
- Medium sauce pot
Ingredients
Chili Lime Dressing
- 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1/3 cup freshly squeezed lime juice 2 -3 limes
- 1/2 teaspoon lime zest
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
- 1/4 teaspoon cumin powder
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 2-3 teaspoons honey more or less depending on taste.
Mexican Quinoa Salad
- 2/3 cup dry white quinoa
- 1 1/3 cup vegetable broth you can also use chicken broth or water.
- 1 15-ounce canned black beans drained and rinsed
- 1 jalapeno pepper seeded and chopped
- 1/2 red onion peeled and chopped into small pieces
- 1 pint cherry tomatoes halved
- 4-5 baby cucumbers sliced and cut into quarters
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
- 1 avocado
Instructions
Prepare the dressing
- In a small jar combine the olive oil, lime juice, zest, garlic powder, chili powder, cumin, salt, and honey. Put lid on the jar and shake. Set aside.
Cook the Quinoa
- Place the quinoa into a bowl and cover it with water. Give it a couple of stirs until the water gets slightly cloudy. Pour the quinoa into a mesh strainer and run water over it.
- Then place the quinoa in a small sauce pot with the vegetable broth and cover it with a lid.
- Bring the broth and quinoa to a boil and then reduce to a low simmer and cook for about 20 minutes or until the liquid is absorbed.
- Remove the pot from the heat and let it sit for another 5 minutes.
- Fluff the quinoa with a fork and, let it cool for a few minutes, and then continue with the recipe.
Prepare the salad
- Place the quinoa, chopped jalapeno peppers, chopped red onion, sliced tomatoes, cut-up cucumber, and cilantro into a large salad bowl.
- Pour half of the dressing into the bowl with the other ingredients and toss. Then pour in the rest of the dressing and toss until everything is coated. Give it a taste and add more salt if necessary.
- If you're going to eat immediately then remove the skin and pit of the avocado, chop it up and mix in with the salad. or serve slices on top. If you're making for a party then cut up the avocado when you serve the salad.
- Serve with extra lime wedges.
Notes
If you are bringing this to a party I would make this the day off. The quinoa can be made up to 5 days ahead of time. Otherwise, you can make this 2-3 days ahead of time. Give it a couple stirs before eating to distribute the liquids. Other recipe notes:
- This salad tastes even better after sitting for a couple of hours.
- Add extra lime juice and a pinch of salt right before serving to brighten the flavors.
- The quinoa can be made up to 5 days ahead of time.
- Add grilled chicken, shrimp, steak, or tofu for extra protein.
- Store avocado separately if meal prepping.
- This salad is delicious cold or at room temperature.
Nutrition
Did You Make This Recipe?
If you made this Mexican quinoa salad recipe, I’d love to hear how you served it! Leave a comment and rating below and let me know what you think.
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