Favorite Quinoa Salad

Food and Prop styling Goldie Stern
Photography Felicia Perretti

This salad was favored by family members who wouldn’t touch quinoa any other time I made it. After lots of trial and error, I figured out the best way to cook quinoa — with the proper liquid/quinoa proportions — to make it nice and fluffy. The dates add a much-appreciated dimension of sweetness, and the red quinoa camouflages them, so you don’t know they’re there until you take a spoonful.

SERVES 6

• 1 cup red quinoa (raw)
• 2 cups water
• 1 Persian cucumber
• ½ avocado, cubed
• 5–6 Medjool dates, chopped
• 1 small-medium red onion, diced
• handful finely chopped roasted walnuts or other nuts, for garnish (optional; omit on Rosh Hashanah!)

Dressing

• 3–4 Tbsp olive oil
• 1–2 cubes frozen garlic
• 1½–2 Tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
• salt and pepper, to taste (be generous)

Rinse the quinoa in a fine-mesh colander to remove the bitter taste and drain well.

In a small pot, place quinoa and water — do not cover pot. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to a low simmer and continue cooking until the quinoa absorbs all the water, approximately 13–15 minutes. Remove from heat, cover pot, and let quinoa steam for 5 minutes. Remove cover and fluff with a fork. (One cup of raw quinoa will yield three cups cooked.) Season with salt if you’re eating as is (not in a salad with a dressing).