Quinoa Protein Salad
Big batch cooking is one of my favourite ways to meal prep. Because I’m cooking for only two people, I do not like to prepare too many dishes for the week as I find we will not get through all the food and it can be very wasteful. This past Sunday I only had time for a very quick prep-session so I decided to make one dish that is versatile and will last me all week long. I went for one of the easiest (and tastiest) recipes in my repertoire – my Quinoa Protein Salad.
Quinoa salad is often used as a side-dish but this recipe is also great on it’s own because it is filling and packs a major protein punch! Did you know that one cup of quinoa has 8 grams of protein per cup? It also has all 9 essential amino acids, meaning it is a complete protein. Add in the chickpeas and you’ve got one powerful salad!
Try taking it for lunch at work, or scramble a couple eggs into the salad for breakfast. You will find there are tons of different ways to incorporate this recipe into your weekly meals and each option is more delicious than the next!
- 2 cups uncooked quinoa
- 1 can chickpeas
- 1/2 red onion diced
- 1 red pepper diced
- 1 yellow pepper diced
- 1 small bunch parsley chopped
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 4 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 2 tablespoons dijon mustard
- salt and pepper to taste
- Cook the quinoa according to the package instructions.
- While the quinoa is cooking, dice the onion and chop the peppers and parsley. Place into large bowl.
- Drain and rinse the chickpeas and add to the bowl.
- Once quinoa is finished cooking, pour it out and spread it on a baking sheet to cool off.
- While quinoa is cooling, mix all salad dressing ingredients together.
- Combine all ingredients in large bowl and toss generously.
- Serve and enjoy!