This Arugula and Crispy Quinoa Salad is tossed with a wildly flavorful preserved lemon vinaigrette, olives, crumbled feta cheese and toasted almonds for a satisfying and healthy weeknight dinner.
I am always hungry for a salad. That may sound like a lie, but it's true. I love the crisp, fresh texture of fresh salad, plus I like the combination of flavors. That is exactly what this arugula and quinoa salad has going for it! If you are looking for a satisfying, healthy yet filling salad, you have to give this one a try.
This arugula salad starts with crispy quinoa. I have a full recipe for how to make homemade crispy quinoa, plus a separate in-depth recipe for preserved lemon vinaigrette, which is the perfect dressing for this salad.
Ingredients that Matter
This recipe uses a handful of fresh ingredients, along with some easy make-ahead components, meaning you can assemble it in about 5 minutes once it's prepped. Here are the ingredients you'll need to make this recipe:
- Arugula. It wouldn't be an arugula salad without the, ahem, arugula! While any salad green could work for this recipe, including baby spinach, baby kale or even chopped green leaf lettuce, it's the peppery bite of arugula that truly elevates this recipe. Use a full 5 ounce package.
- Quinoa. For this recipe, I chose to make crispy quinoa. It has a nice nutty flavor, big crunchy texture and is my preferred way of enjoying quinoa in a salad. However, you can make this recipe just using regular cooked (room temperature or cold) quinoa if you want to skip the crisping step.
- Preserved Lemon Vinaigrette. The salad gets much of its flavor from this big, bold preserved lemon vinaigrette. Preserved lemons have an incredibly intense lemon flavor, especially in the tender rind. Find them in the international aisle of your big box grocery store, or at a specialty or international market.
- Feta. A big handful of crumbled feta cheese adds a nice briny flavor (which goes well with the vinaigrette), along with a nice creaminess. You can substitute in crumbled goat cheese, shaved parmesan or just leave the cheese out to keep this recipe vegan.
- Olives. Like the feta cheese, a bit of chopped olives adds a nice bite of of briny goodness to this salad. Any will do just fine, but I recommend Castelvetrano for their meaty bite and buttery flavor.
- Slivered Almonds. Adding a handful of toasted slivered almonds gives these salad even more texture and a nice nuttiness that compliments the crispy quinoa quite well.
See recipe card for quantities.
Instructions
This recipe relies on a couple make-ahead components, mainly the dressing and the crispy quinoa. Both components may be stored in the refrigerator for about 4 days, meaning this makes for a wonderful meal prep meal. Here is how this recipe comes together:
Start by making the crispy quinoa. You will need 1 cup of dry quinoa (or about 4 cups of cooked), then either bake in a hot oven or pan-fry the cooked quinoa until golden brown and crispy. Cool slightly before adding to the salad. Store crispy quinoa in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. It should stay fairly crispy in that time, but you can enhance the texture out of the fridge by toasting briefly in a dry skillet.
Next, make the preserved lemon vinaigrette. Simply blend together a half of a preserved lemon (be sure to rinse and dry the preserved lemon before using) with fresh lemon juice, a bit of mustard and maple syrup until it forms a paste. Drizzle in olive oil while continuing to blend until a smooth emulsion forms.
To assemble the salad, add the arugula to a large mixing bowl along with half the crispy quinoa and toss with about ¼ cup of the dressing. Toss well to coat.
Now add the slivered almonds and olives and toss again. Add more dressing to taste and toss again. When ready to serve, add the crumbled feta cheese to the salad and gently toss. Serve with more crispy quinoa and feta and dressing on the side.
Hint: All components of this salad may be made ahead, just be sure to store the dressing, crispy quinoa and salad in separate containers to avoid wilting the arugula.
Substitutions
There are plenty of options for making alterations to this recipe depending on your dietary needs and preferences. Here are some suggestions:
- Arugula - Not of fan of peppery arugula (rocket)? You can instead use baby spinach, baby kale, mixed greens or any baby green you prefer. You want 5 ounces of greens, which is about 10 cups of loosely packed greens
- Dressing - If you don't want to be bothered with a preserved lemon vinaigrette, try instead using our basil balsamic vinaigrette, white balsamic vinaigrette or maple Dijon dressing.
- Cheese - You can swap in crumbled goat cheese, shaved parmesan or even nutritional yeast, if desried.
- Quinoa - This recipe also works well using cooked (room temperature or cold) quinoa if you don't want to make crispy quinoa. Simply use about 4 cups of cooked and cooled quinoa (start with 1 cup of dry to yield about 4 cups of cooked).
Storage
This salad is perfect for meal prep, just be sure to keep the dressing on the side (bonus if you can keep the cheese on the side, as well) to ensure the greens don't get wilted. You can toss the arugula, quinoa, olives and almonds together then divide among 4 containers and add a small container for the cheese and the dressing on the side. Stored like this and the salad portions will stay crisp and delicious for up to 4 days.
You can also make the crispy quinoa and preserved lemon vinaigrette up to 4 days ahead.
As written, this recipe is vegetarian (and vegan if you leave out the cheese). But if you want to add some meat, you can top with chilled Pulled Chicken in a Dutch Oven. Or top with crispy chopped bacon or pancetta.
FAQ
Arugula has a bright and peppery flavor while quinoa, especially when pan-fried until crispy, has a nutty flavor that goes incredibly well together.
This depends on the ingredients in the salad. If the salad is undressed with just greens and whole vegetables, it is safe to leave out for several. But, once you add a dressing or ingredients like cut vegetables or fruit, and especially cheese, the salad should be refrigerated after hours.
More Salads
Do you love a good salad as much as I do? Try these:
Dressings
If you are looking to experiment with different dressings and sauces, try these out:
Print
Recipe
Arugula and Crispy Quinoa Salad
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 8 cups 1x
Description
This Arugula and Crispy Quinoa Salad is tossed with a wildly flavorful preserved lemon vinaigrette, olives, crumbled feta cheese and toasted almonds for a satisfying and healthy weeknight dinner.
Ingredients
Crispy Quinoa
- 4 cups cooked quinoa
- 2 Tbsp. olive oil
- 1 pinch table salt
Preserved Lemon Vinaigrette
- ½ preserved lemon, rinsed well and chopped (about 3 Tbsp. chopped)
- 2 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice (from 1 lemon)
- 2 tsp. maple syrup or honey
- ½ tsp. Dijon mustard
- ½ cup olive oil, or another neutral oil
- 1 pinch black pepper
- fresh chopped parsley, for garnish
Arugula Salad
- 5 oz. arugula (about 10 loosely packed cups)
- 2 cups crispy quinoa, divided
- ¾ cup preserved lemon vinaigrette, divided
- ½ cup slivered almonds, toasted
- ½ cup (2 oz.) chopped olives (such as Castelvetrano)
- ½ cup (2 ½ oz.) crumbled feta cheese, plus more for serving
- chopped parsley, for garnish
Instructions
Crispy Quinoa
- If baking the quinoa, preheat the oven to 400F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Transfer the quinoa to the prepared baking sheet and spread to a single layer. Drizzle with at least 1 tablespoon olive oil (more if desired) then bake in the oven until crispy, about 20 minutes. Be sure to stir the quinoa halfway through and check after 15 minutes for doneness. The edges of the baking sheet may burn if you don't stir well. Remove from the oven when the quinoa is golden brown, dry and slightly crispy (it will get crispy as it cools) then sprinkle with salt
- If making crispy quinoa in a skillet, heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat then add the quinoa. Cook, stirring occasionally, until golden brown and crispy, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat then sprinkle with salt and toss to combine. (Makes 2 cups crispy quinoa)
Preserved Lemon Vinaigrette
- Be sure the preserved lemon is rinsed well before starting this recipe (preserved lemons are very salty). Add the chopped preserved lemon, fresh lemon juice, maple or honey and mustard to a mason jar (or the base of a blender or food processor, depending on what equipment you have). Use an immersion blender to blend the ingredients to a paste (or pulse the ingredients in the food processor or blender to a chunky paste). With the immersion blender still running (or the food processor or blender running), slowly drizzle in the oil until the mixture forms an emulsion. Stir in the black pepper and garnish with fresh chopped parsley just before serving. (Makes ¾ cups vinaigrette)
Arugula Salad
- Add arugula and half the crispy quinoa to a large mixing bowl. Drizzle with ¼ cup of the dressing and toss well. Add almonds and olives and more dressing to taste. Toss well to combine. Just before serving, add crumbled feta cheese and gently toss. Serve salad with more dressing on the side and top with more crispy quinoa, feta and parsley.
Notes
- All components of the salad may be made ahead. Store the dressing and crispy quinoa in separate containers for up to 4 weeks in the refrigerator.
- Crispy quinoa will stay mostly crispy in the refrigerator but you can enhance the texture by lightly toasting in a dry skillet.
- Preserved lemons are quite salt, so it's important to rinse the lemon before using.
- Preserved lemon vinaigrette may be stored in a mason jar or airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
- You can skip the crispy quinoa step and simply use cooked (and cooled) quinoa. Use 4 cups of cooked quinoa for this recipe.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Category: Salads
- Method: No Cook/Pan-Fry
- Cuisine: American
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