Quinoa Avocado Salad
Updated May 11, 2026
Easy quinoa salad with avocado, tomatoes, cucumbers, and a Dijon dressing. Simple to prep ahead and great for lunches all week.
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
Jump to Section
Make Salad with QUinoa!
This Quinoa Avocado Salad is one I like to meal prep in advance (and usually add the avocado before serving). Toasting the quinoa before cooking it is the step most people skip, and I think it’s the whole reason this quinoa salad works as well as it does. The grains take on a slightly nutty flavor that makes it feel more interesting than a basic grain salad. The rest is simple: tomatoes, Persian cucumbers, red onion, avocado, cilantro, and a Dijon dressing that has just enough bite to pull everything together. And because it’s lettuce-less, it actually stays fresh for a few days so it’s a good one to bulk prepare.
Happy Cooking!
– Yumna
Quinoa Avocado Ingredients
- Quinoa: Unless your package of quinoa says it’s pre-rinsed, give it a good rinse in a fine mesh colander before cooking with it. Quinoa has a natural bitter coating, but it easily rinses away. Once your quinoa is clean, you’ll want to toast it lightly in a heated pan for about five minutes, until the grains make popping sounds. Then, you’ll add water and salt and boil until it’s tender and the water has evaporated. I recommend fluffing it with a fork!
- Avocado: Use avocados that give slightly when you press them. Chop right before adding so they don’t brown. If you’re making this ahead, leave the avocado out entirely and add it fresh when you’re ready to serve.
- Vegetables and herbs: Grape tomatoes, Persian cucumbers, red onion, and fresh cilantro. Halve the tomatoes so they’re easier to eat. Persian cucumbers don’t need to be peeled or seeded. Chop the red onion small so it spreads evenly through the salad without leaving big sharp bites. If cilantro isn’t your thing, flat-leaf parsley works just as well.
- Dressing: Olive oil, red wine vinegar, fresh lime juice, Dijon mustard, dried oregano, salt, and black pepper. The Dijon acts as an emulsifier, so the dressing holds together instead of separating. Whisk until it looks uniform before pouring it over the salad. I recommend using fresh lime if you can! If you’re not an oregano fan, feel free to sub in dried basil or thyme instead.
How to Make Quinoa Avocado Salad
These photos walk through the process from start to finish. For the full ingredient list and detailed instructions, head to the recipe card below or jump straight to the → Quinoa Avocado Salad Recipe
1. Make the Dressing
Add the olive oil, red wine vinegar, lime juice, Dijon mustard, dried oregano, salt, and pepper to a bowl. Measuring everything out before you start makes this part quick.
2. Whisk the Dressing
The dressing should look uniform and slightly thickened. The Dijon helps it come together, so keep going until you don’t see any separation. Set it aside while you work on the quinoa.
3. Toast and Cook the Quinoa
Add the quinoa to a dry saucepan over medium-high heat and toast until the seeds start popping and smell slightly nutty. Then add the salt and water, bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, cover, and cook until the water is absorbed.
4. Fluff the Quinoa
Keep the lid on for another 5 minutes off the heat, then run a fork through it to fluff. Spread it out in the salad bowl or on a sheet pan so it cools faster. It needs to be fully cooled before you add the avocado.
5. Assemble the Salad
Once the quinoa is cool, add the halved tomatoes, chopped cucumbers, red onion, avocado, and cilantro.
6. Add the Dressing
Pour the dressing over everything and fold gently to coat. A few passes is enough. The less you stir at this point, the better the avocado holds its shape.
Full quinoa avocado salad recipe
Quinoa Avocado Salad Recipe
Video
Ingredients
- 1 cup uncooked quinoa
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 ½ cups water
- 1 cup grape tomatoes halved
- 2 Persian cucumbers chopped
- ¼ red onion chopped
- 2 large ripe avocados chopped
- ¼ cup chopped cilantro
Dressing
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- ½ lime juiced
- 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
- ½ teaspoon oregano
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- Place the quinoa in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Toast for 5 minutes, or until the seeds start to make popping sounds. Add the salt and water, bring to a boil, then turn down the heat to a simmer, cover and cook for 15 minutes. Remove from the heat and keep covered for an additional 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork and transfer to a large salad bowl to cool.
- To make the dressing, whisk together the olive oil, red wine vinegar, lime juice, Dijon mustard, oregano, salt and pepper.
- When the quinoa is cool, add the tomatoes, cucumbers, red onions, avocados and cilantro. Pour the dressing on top and stir gently to combine. Serve at room temperature or chilled.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information provided is an estimate. It will vary based on cooking method and specific ingredients used.
Recipe Variations
- Mediterranean Spin: Swap the lime juice for an extra tablespoon of red wine vinegar, and add ¼ cup pitted kalamata olives, ½ cup chopped roasted red pepper, and one 15-ounce can of rinsed and drained chickpeas.
- Tex-Mex: Add one 15-ounce can of rinsed and drained black beans and 1 cup of thawed frozen corn, and swap the cucumber for the corn. Leave the Dijon out of the dressing and add 1½ teaspoons of taco seasoning instead.
- Add More Protein: Stir in one 15-ounce can of rinsed and drained white beans or chickpeas for extra protein while keeping the salad vegan.
Recipe Tips
- Add the avocado last. Like all salads, it’s best to toss the dressing right before you serve. In this case, the salad will hold up well if tossed in advance, but it’s best to add the avocado fresh right before serving to prevent it from browning.
- Chill before serving. Because the quinoa has been cooked, it’s best to let it get to room temperature before mixing with the vegetables. Then, I recommend chilling it in the fridge for at least half an hour before tossing and serving.
Serving Ideas
- Add meat: This avocado quinoa salad has plenty of protein, but if you’d like to make it a bit heartier, try adding my almond crusted chicken, my air fryer salmon, or my grilled shrimp.
- Add vegan protein: For a vegan meat-y alternative, you can top ths salad with lentil cakes, air fryer falafel, or crispy air fryer tofu.
- Make Quinoa Avocado Bowls: Take inspiration from my mediterranean hummus bowl or chicken & quinoa bowl and use the quinoa avocado salad as a base for a meal bowl. A scoop of hummus, pita chips, and falafel can turn this simple salad into a restaurant-style meal!
FAQs
If you have bad luck with quinoa, it’s probably because you added too much water. I like a 1:1.5 ratio of quinoa to water.
Comments
The recipe looks good and I can’t wait to try it
Yay! I hope you love it!
Wow very good
Thanks, Tezeta! So glad you liked it!!
Love it! I did try with dijon and was a bit to strong for me, so now I used “normal” mustard. I will make it again every month.
So happy you liked it, Sanja! A more mild mustard sounds great!
I’m OBSESSED with this salad and make it weekly. I recently swapped red onion for half a shallot (basically minced) and let it breakdown in the dressing while I prepped the other stuff. Also added feta cheese this time. The dressing makes it, truly!
So happy this is a go-to salad recipe for you now! Love your tweaks too, they sound so good!!
Could you please suggest an alternative for fresh cilantro? Looking forward to trying this recipe!
This recipe is so good, when I made it it tasted really good, I can’t even explain it.
So happy you liked it!
I’m not a super fan of quinoa but since I had some left, I decided to try it. It came out so great! I really enjoyed it! The flavor of the quinoa is super improved with the avocado. Thanks!
So happy you enjoyed it!
This salad is refreshing, packed with vegetables that are good for your health. This is one salad I can eat on a weekly basis and not get tired of. It’s got veggies that are probably are in your fridge. Definitely an amazing salad for dinner or lunch.
Thanks so much, Sonia!
See All Comments