Wednesday, May 15, 2013
Thai Cashew Quinoa Salad
- ¾ cup uncooked quinoa
- 1-2 cups shredded red cabbage, depending on how much crunch you like
- 1 red bell pepper, diced
- ½ red onion, diced
- 1 cup shredded carrots
- ½ cup chopped cilantro
- ¼ cup diced green onions
- ½ cup cashew halves or peanuts (honey-roasted is good)
- Optional: 1 cup edamame or chickpeas
- Fresh lime, for a bit of tang
- For the dressing:
- ¼ cup all natural peanut butter
- 2 teaspoons freshly grated ginger
- 3 tablespoon soy sauce, gluten-free if desired
- 1 tablespoon honey (use agave if vegan)
- 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- Water to thin, if necessary
Instructions
- To cook quinoa: Rinse quinoa with cold water in mesh strainer. In a medium saucepan, bring 1 ½ cups of water to a boil. Add in quinoa and bring mixture to a boil. Cover, reduce heat to low and let simmer for 15 minutes or until quinoa has absorbed all of the water. Remove from heat and fluff quinoa with fork; place in large bowl and set aside to cool for about 10 minutes. You should have a little over 2 cups of quinoa.
- To make dressing: Add peanut butter and honey or agave to a medium microwave safe bowl; heat in microwave for 20 seconds. Add in ginger, soy sauce, vinegar, and both sesame and olive oil and stir until mixture is smooth and creamy. If you want a thinner dressing, simply stir in a teaspoon or two of water or olive oil.
- Add as much or as little dressing as you’d like to the quinoa. I always start out with a little bit of dressing and usually add more to suit my taste preferences. Alternatively you can save the dressing for later and add when you are ready to eat; however the flavors of the dressing usually soak into the salad so I love adding it to the quinoa first.
- Next fold in red pepper, onion, cabbage, carrots, and cilantro into the quinoa. Garnish with cashews and green onions. Serve chilled or at room temperature with lime wedges if desired.
# posted by Chelsea @ 2:09 PM 
