Beef Free Quinoa Avocado Salad with Turmeric Lemon Dressing
This vibrant grain salad is everything you want in a fresh, satisfying meal — creamy avocado, crisp cucumber, juicy cherry tomatoes, and fluffy quinoa all tossed together with handfuls of bright parsley and mint. The real star is the turmeric lemon dressing, which brings a warm, golden hue and a punchy citrus kick that ties every element together beautifully. Ground ginger and a touch of garlic give the dressing real depth without overpowering the fresh vegetables, and the dry-roasted pumpkin seeds add a satisfying crunch in every bite. The technique of spreading the cooked quinoa out to cool before assembling is a small but smart step that keeps the salad light and fluffy rather than dense or clumped. Everything here is built from whole, plant-based ingredients, so there's no need to swap anything out or worry about hidden animal proteins sneaking into your bowl. It comes together with minimal cooking and is the kind of dish that looks impressive enough for a dinner party but is genuinely easy enough for a weeknight. Serve it right away to catch the avocado at its creamiest and the dressing at its brightest.
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Learn more →Ingredients
4 servings
For the salad
- 1 cup quinoa, rinsed
- 2 cups water
- ¼ tsp salt
- 2 ripe avocados, pitted, peeled, and diced
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
- 1 english cucumber, diced
- ¼ cup red onion, finely diced
- ¼ cup fresh parsley, roughly chopped
- ¼ cup fresh mint, roughly chopped
- ¼ cup dry-roasted pumpkin seeds
For the dressing
- 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 3 tbsp fresh lemon juice (from about 1½ lemons)
- 1 tsp lemon zest
- 1 tsp ground turmeric
- ½ tsp ground ginger
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- ¼ tsp black pepper
- ¼ tsp salt
Instructions
- 1
Combine the rinsed quinoa, water, and ¼ tsp salt in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low, cover, and cook for 15 minutes, until the water is fully absorbed and the quinoa tails have unfurled.
- 2
Remove the saucepan from the heat and let the quinoa steam, covered, for 5 minutes. Uncover, fluff with a fork, and spread onto a large plate or sheet pan to cool for at least 10 minutes, until no longer steaming.
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