Refreshing quinoa black bean salad is a big batch salad you can prep ahead. Perfect for a picnic, pot luck, or meal prep lunch! Gluten-free, vegetarian (vegan-friendly!), and clean eating.
Another black bean recipe! I shared the recipe for this 5 Minute Black Bean Hummus the other day and now here we are with a quinoa black bean salad!
Ben and I are trying to incorporate more vegetarian meals into our life, ever since I wrote out a meal plan that literally had seven chicken recipes in one week. Gah.
Incorporating more vegetarian meals into our lives not only gives us some more variety, but vegetarian proteins are so much more affordable! Also? I love that they are better for the environment as well.
This salad has been on rotation this month...it is a great main dish (load up your plate!), but can work as a healthy side salad or a meal prep lunch as well.
Don't forget to pin this recipe to save it for later!
How to make quinoa black bean salad
This salad recipe has four main components:
- black beans- you can either use a 15 or 19 oz can, or you can cook your own! Stay tuned for a tutorial on how to cook your own black beans from scratch (hint- they are so much tastier this way!)
- quinoa- I love cooking my quinoa in the rice cooker so I can focus my attention on the rest of the salad.
- veggies- I used corn, celery, shredded carrots, and a couple of bell peppers. Switch it up for whatever you have in the fridge, but make sure it will hold up for a few days if you want your salad to keep (ie: stay away from watery ingredients like cucumber)
- citrus lime vinaigrette- this simple vinaigrette adds so much life to the salad! You could use the bottled stuff, but I highly recommend making this lime vinaigrette.
How long does this salad last? The best part about this salad is that it actually tastes better after it sits overnight in the fridge. I would leave it for no longer than 4 days, because I've found beans to get a little funky after four days. Your bell peppers may start to lose their crunch by then as well.
What can I serve with this salad? We enjoyed it as a main course, but it would also make a great side salad for a summer barbecue! I would serve it will some grilled chicken or portobello mushrooms. As a meal prep lunch, I served it with some crackers and cheese as well as my favorite No Bake Healthy Snack Bars.
Watch the video below to see exactly how I prepped this black bean quinoa salad. It’s so easy! You can find more of my recipe videos on my YouTube channel, or on Facebook.
Looking for more quinoa salad recipes?
- Pomegranate Fennel Quinoa Salad
- Strawberry Quinoa Caprese Salad
- Charred Corn Salad with Feta, Mint & Quinoa
- Caprese Chicken Salad Meal Prep Bowls
Recipe tips
- you can use canned or freshly cooked black beans, but I prefer the flavor of home cooked black beans in this salad recipe!
- check out my 3 compartment meal prep containers
, they are perfect for serving this black bean quinoa salad as a meal prep lunch. - swap the honey for maple syrup to make this vegan
- if you have the time, I highly recommend letting this black bean quinoa salad sit overnight for the flavors to meld
, they are perfect for serving this black bean quinoa salad as a meal prep lunch.
Refreshing Quinoa Black Bean Salad
Ingredients
- 1 cup quinoa (uncooked)
- 2 bell peppers chopped
- 2 carrots shredded
- 2 stalks celery chopped
- 11 oz can of corn kernels drained & rinsed
- 19 oz canned black beans drained & rinsed
Citrus Lime Vinaigrette
- ⅓ cup olive oil
- ⅓ cup white wine vinegar
- 2 tablespoons honey
- zest from 1 lime
- juice from 1 lime
- ½ teaspoon dijon
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Cook quinoa according to package directions and set aside to cool.
- Combine all salad ingredients in a large bowl.
- Shake together all vinaigrette ingredients and toss the salad in the vinaigrette.
- Store in a sealed container in the fridge for up to 4 days.
Reta
I made this tonight. I used lemon instead of lime and no zest. It turned out perfect. Excellent recipe.
AC
easy and delicious salad!
Denise
I'm so happy to hear you enjoyed it! Thank you for taking the time to leave a review!
Mark
Makes a big batch. I've served it to omnivores as a side dish and take it for lunch a few days. Maybe could use a little zip. Perhaps green onions.
Denise
Thanks so much for reporting back, Mark!
Thembi
I saw this recipe on Facebook & looked @ the ingredients & found that I had all the ingredients except the white wine 🍷 vinegar. So I used the red wine vinegar instead. Is there any difference. I had some cucumbers 🥒 so I scup the inside so that my salad 🥗 won’t have water. My question to u is the dressing. Should I mix & keep it in the fridge with the dressing or keep the dressing separate when I eat it just add. U said it’s good 4 4 days. Thank u for sharing. 👍🏿👍🏿
Denise
Hi Thembi! This salad holds up well in the dressing. You can leave it in the dressing for up to 4 days! Hope you enjoyed 🙂
Cindy
Lovely dish! Any idea how many Points for weight watchers?
Denise
Hi Cindy! Unfortunately I don't know how many points. Hopefully someone can share if they have calculated.
Diane Pederson
Short of measuring the whole batch I just made which is quite a bit is a serving size 1 cup? It tasted wonderful but I am back on my portion control diet as I was bad for several months and put too many pounds on (I quit smoking)
Diane Pederson
Never mind. It is actually 8 1 cup portions. could have been 3/4 a cup too.
Denise
Thanks for following up, as I don't actually know the serving size in cups. Thanks Diane!
Fawn Stevenson
The dressing was delicious!! I did add a little granulated garlic because I like that taste in a vinaigrette but it was good with out too! I will be saving this to my recipe book!!
Denise
Glad you enjoyed, Fawn! Thank you so much for taking the time to leave a review 🙂
Adrienne Steppe
This looks amazing...but i am not a fan of lime. Have you made it without the lime or would it still taste good with the remaining ingredients?
Denise
Hi Adrienne! It should be totally fine to just leave it out 🙂 Hope you enjoy!
Karen
This is delicious and nutritious, with.a great bright flavoured dressing. Definitely a keeper!
Morgan Miller
Just made this beautiful salad tonight for my family and they LOVED IT! My boyfriend couldn't keep his hands off the bowl haha! Such a burst of different flavors, I will definitely make this again. Thanks so much for sharing. This is the second recipe I have made from you and can't wait for the next one!!!
Denise
Yay! I'm so happy to hear this. Thanks for taking the time to leave a review, Morgan!
Kori Hinojosa
Can I get the recipe for the oatmeal power bar that is in the picture... thanks
Denise
Hi Kori! Those are my No Bake Snack Bars 🙂 Hope you enjoy if you give them a try!
Kelly Mahan
Looks really good! Thanks for sharing, I'm going to try it next week 😉
Denise
I hope you enjoy it, Kelly!
Karly
This would be perfect for a potluck! I'm sure its a crowd pleaser! Thanks for sharing!
Brittany Audra @ Audra's Appetite
yum this looks perfect for meal prep! Love incorporating more beans and plant protein for lunches!