Description
This protein-packed Chicken Quinoa Salad is loaded with fresh herbs, cherry tomatoes, and mozzarella, all tossed in a zesty lemon vinaigrette. Make it with leftover rotisserie chicken for a fast and easy meal, perfect for meal prep, summer lunches, or light dinners.
Ingredients
- 1 cup quinoa, uncooked
- 2- 2 1/2 cups rotisserie chicken, shredded, or use 1 lb chicken breast.
- 1 1/2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
- 1 cup Italian parsley, chopped
- 1/4 cup basil, mint or cilantro, chopped
- 1/3 cup red onion, finely diced
- zest from one lemon
- optional: 1-2 cups small mozzarella balls (mozzarella pearls) and a handful of arugula
Lemony Dressing:
- 1/3 cup olive oil
- 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, more to taste
- 3/4 teaspoon salt, more to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, more to taste
- 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes, more to taste
- 2 fat garlic cloves, finely minced (use a garlic press)
Instructions
- Cook the quinoa. Rinse and drain the quinoa and place it in a medium pot with 1 ¾ cups of water and 1/2 tsp of salt over high heat. Bring to a boil, cover, and turn the heat to medium-low. Simmer covered for 15 minutes, then turn off the heat, let stand for 10 minutes before removing the lid. Next, fluff with a fork and cool.
- Chicken. If cooking the chicken breast, dice it into ¾-inch pieces and sauté in a large skillet with olive oil over medium-high heat. Season with salt, pepper, and chili flakes. Cook until golden and cooked through. Let cool. (Alternatively, shred rotisserie chicken and set aside- easiest!)
- Assemble. When quinoa has cooled, place in large bowl, with tomatoes, red onion, chicken, fresh herbs, lemon zest, and mini mozzarella balls (optional).
- Add the dressing ingredients to the bowl and toss well: olive oil, red wine vinegar, lemon juice, salt, pepper, and garlic.
- Taste and adjust salt and lemon to taste (keep in mind that the quinoa will soak up salt and lemon juice, after it sits for a bit- it may seem salty at first, but this will mellow out.)
- Chill until ready to serve. Re-taste for salt and lemon before serving.
Notes
Feel free to toss in a couple of handfuls of arugula before serving, or serve over a bed of dressed greens (lightly coat with olive oil, squeeze with lemon, season with salt and pepper).
Leftovers (without the arugula) will keep 4 days in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
Rotisserie chicken makes this recipe fast and easy.
If you can’t find mozzarella “pearls”, dice fresh mozzarella into small half-inch cubes.
Variations: Add chickpeas, avocado, cucumbers, or radishes, adjusting salt and lemon to taste.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cup
- Calories: 334
- Sugar: 2.3 g
- Sodium: 691.4 mg
- Fat: 13.4 g
- Saturated Fat: 2 g
- Carbohydrates: 26.2 g
- Fiber: 5.7 g
- Protein: 28.4 g
- Cholesterol: 46.5 mg