This Quinoa Black Bean Salad recipe is refreshing, flexible, and most of all, delicious! It’s a favorite for summer potlucks but works well for meal prep year round. Serve as a side dish or make it a meal, I share all my best tips in this post!
Does this Quinoa Black Bean Salad look familiar? Maybe it should, it’s been around for years!
I first made it when I was still working in corporate wellness. My first “big girl” dietitian job, hosting cooking demos and classes for our hospital employees and the surrounding community. The first time I presented this recipe, it was a hit! No leftovers whatsoever, and multiple people asked for the recipe. Eventually, it became one of my first blog posts. But back then, I had no idea what I was doing!
Flash forward to now…what used to be called “Confetti Quinoa Salad” has evolved into this Quinoa Black Bean Salad with Cumin Lime Vinaigrette. Doesn’t that tell you so much more about what you’re getting? But besides some refreshed photos and a few new tips to improve the recipe, it’s basically unchanged!
Street Smart Nutrition Tip: Quinoa, although treated like a grain, is actually a seed. A pseudo-grain, if you will. And because it’s one of the few plant foods that’s considered a complete protein, it’s a great option for anyone following a vegan or plant-based diet.
Quinoa Black Bean Salad Ingredients
- Quinoa. You can use white quinoa, red quinoa, or (pictured in this post) a tricolor blend. Nutrition and flavor will be quite similar.
- Water, plus a pinch of salt for cooking the quinoa
- Bell peppers. I love the colorful rainbow effect of using a red bell pepper, orange bell pepper, and green bell pepper. But base your bowl on what’s on sale or whichever color/flavor of bell pepper you like best.
- Red onion
- Sweet corn. Use fresh, canned, or frozen depending on what’s in season or what you already have.
- Canned black beans. Using canned beans helps keep this recipe easy and more affordable. Canned beans are cheap, can be found just about anywhere, and are already fully cooked! Just drain and rinse to remove excess sodium.
- Cilantro
- Lime wedges. Totally optional, but they add a nice garnish and you can squeeze them over the top before serving for even more bright citrus flavor!
The Cumin Lime Vinaigrette recipe lives on its own page, but to keep it simple, the ingredients are also listed here. Make sure you have:
- Olive oil
- Lime juice
- Honey
- Dijon mustard
- Garlic
- Ground cumin
- Ground chili powder or cayenne pepper
A Note About Quinoa: Quinoa is native to the South American region that includes Peru, Ecuador, Bolivia, Columbia and Chile. The indigenous Incan people, as well as many other tribes, were cultivating quinoa 5,000 years ago. Although you may have been introduced to quinoa through a trendy video or wellness influencer, it’s worth learning the history and story behind this popular ingredient.
Swaps and Substitutions
As with nearly all of my recipes, this Quinoa Black Bean Salad is meant to be as customizable as you need or want. Honestly, I rarely follow my own recipe as I treat it as a way to use up little odds and ends that linger at the end of the week.
Here’s a few ideas to try!
- Add any other veggies you like. Cherry tomatoes or grape tomatoes would work well, as well as cucumbers, hot peppers (jalapeño, serrano, poblano, or similar) or a handful of baby spinach.
- Swap the red onion for sliced green onions, or use a yellow onion or sweet onion for a more mild flavor.
- Try a different type of bean, such as pinto beans, red kidney beans, or garbanzo beans.
- Make it extra citrusy by adding lime zest or a few grapefruit or orange segments.
- If you like more savory flavors, try cooking the quinoa in a low sodium vegetable or chicken broth or stock.
How to Make Quinoa Black Bean Salad
Cooking quinoa is very similar to cooking rice on the stovetop. You’ll need a measured amount of water, a little salt, and the quinoa will absorb all the liquid. It should be fluffy once fully cooked, with little “tails” emerging from the individual seeds.
Once you get the water boiling, you’ll have time to finish all the prep work. Yes, I know it’s a lot of washing and drying and slicing and chopping. But I think it’s worth it! Even if you don’t have a lot of time, this multi-taking keeps this quinoa salad recipe on the simpler side.
- Wash and dry the combination of bell peppers plus the cilantro.
- Dice the bell peppers and red onion into roughly even pieces. No need to be perfectly uniform, just small so they’re easy to mix and eat. Give the cilantro a rough chop and remove any thick, woody stems.
- Drain and rinse the black beans, as well as the corn if using a canned version. If using frozen, let it fully thaw.
- Mix up the dressing ingredients or add them to a small jar with a tight-fitting lid and give it a good shake.
- Once the quinoa is fully cooked, fluff it with a fork and let it cool slightly (5-10 minutes) before adding it to a large bowl. Toss in all the remaining ingredients, including the dressing and cilantro. Toss and fold together until everything is mixed and coated in the dressing.
That’s it! Give it a taste and make any adjustments before serving. Doesn’t it look beautiful?
Serving Suggestions
Grab a spoon and dig in! It could be as simple as that, but here are a few ideas to take your Quinoa Black Bean Salad to the next level:
- Make it a main course by adding some additional protein. Chicken, shrimp, or tofu would all work well, but we’ve also paired this with grilled steaks and pork chops. Yum!
- Use tortilla chips to scoop it, more like a bean dip. That’s one of our current favorite things to do with it!
- Top with your favorite cheese, such as queso fresco, cotija or feta cheese crumbles.
Meal Prep and Storage Tips
Store leftovers in an airtight container and stash in the fridge. You can eat it chilled the next day, no reheating necessary. But if you’re not a fan of cold quinoa salads, you can also eat at room temperature.
Try to eat it within the next 2-3 days for maximum freshness. It will store up to 4-5 days, but the cilantro will wilt and the fresh ingredients will lose their crisp.
For meal prep, I recommend leaving your Quinoa Black Bean Salad undressed. If you add the Cumin Lime Vinaigrette right away, you might end up with an overly soggy or less flavorful recipe. Instead, prep the salad according to the directions, as well as the cumin lime dressing. But wait to add it and mix together until you’re ready to serve.
Street Smart Nutrition Tip: One of the biggest challenges with meal prep is variety. If you’re planning ahead for the week, try cooking a double batch of quinoa. Use half for this recipe, but then you still have plenty of leftover quinoa to add to salads, soups, or another quinoa recipe.
Quinoa Black Bean Salad with Cumin Lime Vinaigrette
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups uncooked quinoa
- 2 3/4 cups water
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt, to salt the water
- 1 red bell pepper, chopped, about 1 cup
- 1 orange bell pepper, chopped, about 1 cup
- 1 green bell pepper, chopped, about 1 cup
- 1 cup sweet corn kernels
- 1 small red onion, diced, about 1 1/4 cups
- 1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
- 1/2 cup chopped cilantro
- 2 limes, cut into wedges
Cumin Lime Vinaigrette
- 5 tbsp olive oil
- 3 tbsp fresh lime juice
- 1/2 tbsp honey
- 2 garlic cloves, finely minced or grated
- 1/2 to 1 tsp dijon mustard
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1/2 tsp chili powder
- Fine sea salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Heat the water in a medium saucepan. Add the salt and bring to a boil. Add the quinoa, reduce to a simmer, and cook for 15-20 minutes or until all liquid is absorbed. Remove from heat and allow to cool, the gently fluff. While the quinoa is cooking and cooling, chop the veggies and cilantro.
- In a large bowl, add the chopped veggies and cilantro. Toss to combine. When the quinoa has cooled at least 5 minutes, add to the bowl and mix well to combine.
- Mix the ingredients for the dressing in a small measuring cup. Stir with a fork to combine and adjusting flavor as needed. Pour half over the quinoa mixture and fold together until the dressing is evenly distributed. Taste, then add additional dressing (although you may not use all of it).
- Serve immediately, or store in the refrigerator for 3 to 5 days. May be served warm or chilled.
Notes
Nutrition
Save this recipe for the next time you’re craving a healthy quinoa salad recipe! This is such a great salad, especially for the summertime, so I hope you take full advantage.
As always, thanks for stopping by the Street Smart Nutrition blog. Cheers to more fearlessly nourishing meals!
Disclosure: This post was originally published in October 2017. It has since been updated to improve the overall quality of the information and/or images.
Questions & Reviews
This looks like a tasty salad. I haven’t tried anything like this before but judging from the ingredients, I’d love the flavors.
Thanks Amber! There’s tons of options to fit it to your tastes, so much flavor!
This is one of my favorite things to make. I love quinoa, the colors, the flavor, and its so easy. Great recipe!
Thank you! It’s a really versatile recipe, and very easy to make!
This looks delicious. I love how bright and light it is. Perfect vegan lunch or dinner.
Thank you so much for sharing recipes and tips for quinoa. I love that it offers so many health benefits, but I had no idea what to do with it! Lol. Great post! Keep up your great work. 🙂
Thank you, Joy, I’m happy to help!
This quinoa salad looks delicious and super simple to use. I honestly stopped eating quinoa because didn’t know how else to eat it. Thank you for sharing this.
Yummy!! I love your title “confetti quinoa!” 🙂 I’m a huge quinoa fan, and have gotten my family into it too. Have been making all sorts of quinoa yummness the past few years. Your salad is perfect!
That’s awesome that your family is on board! It’s a great option for busy weeks, it’s simple but delicious and filling!
Since you didn’t mention covering the quinoa while it cooks, I assume no lid, am I right?
Yes Barb, I typically cook mine uncovered so I can keep an eye on what it’s doing. But if you have an Instant Pot or pressure cooker, quinoa can also be cooked in that very quickly and easily!