Colorful Quinoa Salad

I have really been enjoying the quinoa salad from Costco lately.  So I decided that I'd like to try experimenting with different quinoa salad recipes.  An internet search returned a lot of results.  I did a variation of the first recipe that popped up.

Here's the link to the first recipe that showed up in my search.   It's called Favorite Quinoa Salad by Cookie and Kate https://cookieandkate.com/best-quinoa-salad-recipe/

If you have been following me, you know that I love to experiment and sometimes, it doesn't turn out that great.  But I don't care.  It's fun for me.  So here are the things I did differently.

• Used pinto beans instead of garbonzo beans because the can said no salt was added.  I compared it to the can that didn't say anything about salt and it was 12% daily value of salt versus 1% in the no salt can.  I don't even know why there's 1% if no salt was added.  I wasn't about to boil beans from the dry state, so no salt added canned beans it is.
• Added a can of corn for color - eat a rainbow everyday.
• Used preserved lemon juice instead of fresh - it was more convenient and that's what I had on hand.  That being said,  I wrote it down wrong and put four times the amount that it called for. No wonder it was super citrusy! I don't know if citrusy is even a real word. Lol!
• I omitted the sea salt.

Okay, so if you want to try the version I made, you need to like lemony flavor.  If I made this again,  I'd stick to the recommended amount (1/4 cup) of lemon juice from the original recipe.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup quinoa
• 2 cups water for cooking quinoa
• 1 can pinto beans, rinsed
• 1 can corn, rinsed
• 1 medium cucumber, chopped
• 1 medium bell pepper, chopped
• 1 cup parsley, chopped
• 3/4 cup red onion, chopped
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 cup lemon juice
• 1 Tablespoon balsamic vinegar
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• sprinkle of black pepper

Instructions:

1. Cook quinoa.  Combine quinoa and water, bring to a boil, then lower to a simmer and cover till most liquid is gone. Turn off.
2. Open beans and corn.  Rinse and strain.
3. Chop cucumber, bell pepper, parsley, onion, and garlic. 
4. Combine all ingredients and mix well.
5. Enjoy!

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