Rice Free Quinoa Avocado Salad with Turmeric Lemon Dressing

Total time45 min

Prep time15 min

Cook time20 min

Rice Free Quinoa Avocado Salad with Turmeric Lemon Dressing

Quinoa steps in as the perfect grain-free-adjacent base here, delivering that satisfying, hearty texture without a single grain of rice in sight. Once the quinoa is fluffy and cooled, it gets tossed with crisp cucumber, juicy cherry tomatoes, red onion, and a generous handful of fresh parsley and mint — the kind of combination that tastes bright and alive in every bite. The real star, though, is the turmeric lemon dressing: olive oil, fresh lemon juice, zest, ginger, and garlic all whisked together into something deeply golden and boldly flavored. Creamy diced avocado and crunchy dry-roasted pumpkin seeds get folded in at the end, adding richness and a satisfying snap that rounds out every forkful. It's the kind of salad that works as a light lunch, a meal-prep staple, or a showstopping side at a dinner party — and it comes together with nothing more than a saucepan and a mixing bowl. Because every ingredient is whole and straightforward, you never have to second-guess what's in it.

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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
Superseedz Gourmet Pumpkin Seeds, Sea Salt, Gluten Free
Nice! Dry Roasted Pumpkin Seeds Salted
Alesto by LIDL Salted Dry Roasted Pumpkin Seeds, 5 oz
International Harvest Go Pumpkins! Dry Roasted Pumpkin Seeds
Go Raw Organic Sea Salt Dry Roasted Pumpkin Seeds
See all

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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