February 8, 2021

If you've ever had the pre-made quinoa salad from Costco, you've known the joy of tangy dressing, crunchy vegetables, and succulent lentils and quinoa coming together in the ultimate salad. This dish is inspired by Costco's masterpiece but omits the lentils and incorporates caramelized onions and a warm vinaigrette to make for an even more comforting dish.

Ingredients #

• Dry quinoa
• Red onion
• Bell pepper
• Cucumber
• Kale
• Apple cider vinegar
• Olive oil
• Lemon juice
• Honey
• Garlic powder
• Nutritional yeast
• Red pepper flakes
• Black pepper
• Salt

Start with your initial prep work (or "mise en place") of dicing your onions, cucumbers, and bell peppers and roughly chopping your kale.

Next, cook your quinoa in a small pot. Using 1 part quinoa to 2 parts water, combine water, quinoa, and a dash of salt and pepper. Bring to a boil on medium-high heat and then reduce to a gentle simmer. Stir and continue cooking until all water is absorbed. Once cooked through, set aside.

In a separate pan, saute the diced onion in olive oil. Cook to desired level of caramelization. Once the onions are done cooking, remove them from the pan.

We'll now use the same pan to create our warm vinaigrette. Without cleaning the pan first (we want all that oniony goodness!), add olive oil, apple cider vinegar, honey, and lemon juice (ratios to taste) on low heat. Add all the dry spices and combine with a whisk.

Now it's assembly time! Combine your raw chopped vegetables and cooked quinoa. Drizzle the warm vinaigrette over the top.

And there you have it! This dish is a great all-in-one side dish or can be served as a healthy main course. To make this salad a more complete meal on its own, try adding crumbled goat cheese or feta and chopped pecans.