Quick and Easy Curried Chickpea & Quinoa Salad, Because Sometimes You Just Need a Really Good Salad!
The days are longer now, the markets are greener, and lunch starts looking a lot more appealing when it comes in a bowl instead of between two slices of bread. Which is to say: it’s time to step up the salad game.
This Curried Chickpea and Quinoa Salad is the kind of meal that earns a permanent place in the warm-weather rotation. Earthy quinoa and hearty chickpeas make it satisfying enough for lunch or a light supper, while a fragrant curry-spiced dressing brings plenty of flavor to every bite. Crisp vegetables add texture, and the whole thing improves as it sits, making it an excellent make-ahead option for busy days.
It’s the sort of salad that checks all the right boxes: healthy, filling and genuinely delicious. Better still, it’s naturally vegan, dairy-free and gluten-free, so it works for just about everyone gathered around the table.
Serve it cold from the fridge on a hot afternoon, or pack it up for a picnic in the park. Summer cooking doesn’t always need a grill. Sometimes it just needs a really good salad.
Equipment
- small pot
- grater
- cutting board
- serving bowl
Ingredients
- 175 ml quinoa
- 400 ml water
- 540 ml canned chickpeas, rinsed and drained
- 200 ml frozen green peas thawed
- 15 ml sesame oil (substitute olive oil)
- 30 ml freshly grated ginger
- 5 ml teaspoon curry powder plus more to taste
- 1.25 ml ground turmeric
- 2.5 ml salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 1 red bell pepper diced
- 125 ml shredded carrots from 1 large carrot
- 125 ml currants pre-soaked in warm water
- 75 ml chopped cilantro
- 75 ml chopped flat leaf parsley
- 15 ml fresh lemon juice
- 175 ml roasted cashews
Instructions
- Place the currants in a small bowl, cover with hot water and let soak for 5 to 10 minutes, then drain and set aside.
- Drain and rinse the canned chickpeas and set aside.
- Place the quinoa and water in a medium pot and bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to low, cover, and allow to simmer for 15 minutes. While the quinoa is simmering prep your vegetables and herbs. After the quinoa has cooked for 15 minutes, remove from the heat and let sit for an additional 5 minutes. Gently add the thawed peas, cover and let stand for 5 more minutes. Remove the lid and fluff the quinoa with a fork.
- Mix together the sesame oil, lemon juice, grated ginger, curry powder, turmeric, salt and pepper. Taste and adjust, adding more curry powder or salt as needed.
- Place the cooked quinoa in a serving bowl, and add the chickpeas, currants, red bell pepper, shredded carrots and the cilantro and parsley. Add the sesame oil mixture and toss to combine.
- Top with the roasted cashews just before serving.Serves 4 for a main meal or 6 as a side