---
title: Quinoa Salad
description: " Quinoa Salad - Ingredients - DirectionsQuinoa is a grain-like
  crop grown primarily for its edible seeds. It is a pseudocereal rather than a
  true cereal, or grain, as it is not a member of the grass family. As a
  chenopod, quinoa is closely related to species such as beets, spinach, and
  tumbleweeds. Its leaves are also eaten as a leaf vegetable, much like
  amaranth, but the commercial availability of quinoa greens is currently
  limited."
author:
  name: Eduardo Montes-Bradley
  url: http://eduardo-montes-bradley.idoneos.com
canonical: https://gourmet.idoneos.com/salads/quinoa_salad/
source: salads/quinoa_salad/index.md
---

-   Quinoa Salad

<h2 id="summary">Summary</h2>

Quinoa was of great nutritional importance in pre-Columbian Andean civilizations, being secondary only to the potato, and was followed in importance by maize. In contemporary times, this crop has become highly appreciated for its nutritional value, as its protein content is very high (12%–18%). Unlike wheat or rice (which are low in lysine), and like oats, quinoa contains a balanced set of essential amino acids for humans, making it an unusually complete protein source among plant foods. 

<h2 id="ingredients">Ingredients</h2>

1/2 cup of Quinoa

1 cup water

1 tbsp dries cranberries

1 tbsp pine nuts

1 tbsp olive oil

1 tbsp lemon juice

Salt & pepper

<h2 id="directions">Directions</h2>

<img decoding="async" loading="lazy" alt="Quinoa" src="/cache/go/gourmet/Salads/Quinoa_Salad/_files/Quinoa.jpg.webp" title="Quinoa">

Rinse the quinoa four to five times, drain and add the water. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, covered, about 15 minutes: until the quinoa is tender and white spiral-like threads appear around each grain. Remove from heat. Add the cranberries and the pine nuts. With a whisk blend the oil, lemon juice salt & pepper and pour into the quinoa.

<h2 id="nutritional-value">Nutritional value</h2>

Quinoa is a good source of dietary fiber and phosphorus and is high in magnesium and iron. Quinoa is gluten-free and considered easy to digest. Because of all these characteristics, quinoa is being considered a possible crop in NASA&#39;s Controlled Ecological Life Support System for long-duration manned spaceflights.

Percentages are relative to US recommendations for adults.

Source: USDA Nutrient database

Nutritional value per 100 g (3.5 oz)

Energy 1,539 kJ (368 kcal)

Carbohydrates 64 g

Starch  52 g

Dietary fibre  7 g

Fat 6 g

polyunsaturated 3.3 g

Protein 14 g

Water 13 g

Thiamine (Vit. B1) 0.36 mg (28%)

Riboflavin (Vit. B2)  0.32 mg (21%)

Vitamin B6 0.5 mg (38%)

Folate (Vit. B9) 184 μg (46%)

Vitamin E  2.4 mg (16%)

Iron  4.6 mg (37%)

Magnesium 197 mg (53%)

Phosphorus  457 mg (65%)

Zinc  3.1 mg (31%)