This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
Jump to Section
Not a Boring Quinoa Salad!
Quinoa is not just a boring side dish to replace grains; it can be the base of salads without lettuce that are hearty and healthy like this vegan Black Bean Quinoa Salad. I say this because I’ve tried to add quinoa to more meals lately by substituting it for rice, but it just wasn’t as satisfying. So I started thinking of it differently, and now my favorite use for it is with salads like Quinoa Tabbouleh, Quinoa Edamame Salad, Quinoa Avocado Salad and this Black Bean and Quinoa Salad that is loaded with so much flavor!
Happy Cooking!
– Yumna
Black Bean Quinoa Salad Ingredients
- Quinoa: Use uncooked white or tri-color quinoa.
- Black Beans: Drain and rinse the beans well before using. You can add other types of canned beans too.
- Sweet potatoes: Peel and cube the sweet potatoes really small so it blends well with the black beans and quinoa in the salad.
- Corn: You can use frozen, canned or fresh corn off the kernels.
- Other vegetables: Bell pepper, red onions and avocado.
- Dressing and seasoning: Olive oil (also used to roast the sweet potatoes), lime juice (and lime zest!), salt, cumin, chili powder, black pepper and fresh cilantro.
How to Make Black Bean Quinoa Salad
Black Bean Quinoa Salad
Video
Ingredients
- 3 ½ tablespoons olive oil divided
- 1 cup uncooked quinoa rinsed and drained
- 1 teaspoon salt plus more to taste
- 2 medium sweet potatoes cut into ½ inch cubes
- 1 ½ teaspoons cumin
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- black pepper to taste
- 1 (15 ounce) can black beans drained and rinsed
- 1 (10 ounce) bag frozen corn thawed
- 1 bell pepper stemmed, seeded, and diced
- ¼ red onion finely chopped
- 1 avocado pitted and chopped
- 1 lime zested and juiced
- ¼ cup chopped cilantro
Instructions
Roast sweet potatoes
- Preheat oven to 425°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Toss sweet potatoes, 2 tablespoons oil, ½ teaspoon salt, cumin, chili powder, and black pepper. Arrange on prepared sheet and roast until golden brown, 25-30 minutes, mixing potatoes halfway through.
Cook quinoa
- Heat ½ tablespoon oil in a medium save pot over medium high heat. Add quinoa and toast until fragrant, 2 minutes.
- Add 1 ¾ cup water and ½ teaspoon salt. Bring to a boil, then turn heat to low and reduce to a gentle simmer and cover.
- Cook for 15 minutes, remove from heat (while keeping the pot covered) and let stand for an additional 5 minutes. Fluff and keep warm.
Assemble Salad
- To pot of cooked quinoa, add roasted sweet potatoes, remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil, beans, corn, pepper, red onion, avocado, lime juice, zest, and fresh cilantro.
- Season to taste with kosher salt and black pepper. Mix and serve immediately or let cool and serve chilled.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information provided is an estimate. It will vary based on cooking method and specific ingredients used.
If you try this Black Bean Quinoa Salad recipe or any other recipe on Feel Good Foodie, please rate the recipe and leave a comment below! It helps others who are thinking of making the recipe.
Recipe Tips
- Rinse the quinoa before cooking. Quinoa has a natural casing that can taste bitter and soapy. Rinse it in a fine mesh sieve until the water runs clear and it will taste so much better.
- Toast the quinoa before adding the liquid. This helps to bring out the natural nutty flavors.
- Cut all the vegetables into small cubes. This will cut down on cooking time for the sweet potatoes and it makes the salad much easier to eat.
- Add meat or chicken for a fuller meal. This Southwest style black bean quinoa salad has 28g of protein, but adding shredded chicken or ground beef taco meat will definitely bump that up.
So yummy! A new family favorite! Love that this is great for meal prep for lunches throughout the week. I made it for dinner and added chicken for a heartier, more protein-packed meal. Also topped with a cilantro lime sauce.
Yay, so happy you and your family love it!! Love the addition of chicken and a cilantro lime sauce—yum! Thanks, Addie!
Great flavor and good way to get a lot of veggies. We ate this warm the day of and as a cold leftover. Both were very tasty. (I served the avocado on the side.)
Yay, so happy you liked it both warm and cold! And avocado on the side is perfect. Thanks, Christy!
Looks good, I’ll have to try it soon. In the description you state 28gm of protein per serving but the nutrition facts state 18gm. Is the 28gm for a different serving size?
Hi Sajida, thank you so much for pointing out this mistake! The nutrition facts are correct, it is 18 grams per serving. I updated the description to show the correct amount.
Delicious, colorful, and so healthy! I will be doubling this recipe next time. Thank you for a great vegetarian & GF dish!
Yay! So happy you liked it, Susan!!
This is delicious!
Thank you so much!
Hands down, this is one of the tastiest salads I’ve had in a very long time and my husband is in total agreement as well! Thank you Yumna!
This quinoa salad looks wonderful. Is the 829 calories per serving? Or is that the entire recipe?
Thanks!
Hi there, thanks for flagging this I noticed the nutrition facts were a bit off so I adjusted them to properly reflect the recipe. That said, the listing is for one serving. Hope this helps!
Sooooo good!
So happy you enjoyed it!
This was so good! And so easy to make, will be a new go to for me, might add salmon next time 🙂
Yum, sounds like a great idea!
I have been so excited to try this and it did not disappoint! I did not stray from the recipe at all, except that I forgot to get cilantro at the farmers market, so didn’t add that. But what a delicious, healthy and FILLING salad! Perfect for vegetarians like me. 😁
Some grilled lime chicken or shrimp might be a nice add for meat eaters, but not necessary, as this was perfect as written!
Super excited to have some leftovers for lunch tomorrow, and I’m also freezing a few portions (minus the avocado) …hopefully it thaws out well?
Omg tried this for today’s lunch and it was sooo good! I didn’t have quinoa so I skipped that but it still turned out great! I also used red beans and purple sweet potatoes because that’s what I had. This won’t be the last time I’m making it. Thanks, Yumna!
I am so glad you enjoyed it, Mae! Great idea to use red beans and purple potatoes I bet that ways so good!
Your recipe says to use sweet potatoes but the pictures and videos look like you used yams.
These are sweet potatoes, but I’m sure yams could work in this recipe too!
So refreshing and flavorful! My husband and I loved the combinations of flavors and the crunch of the bell pepper with the sweet creaminess of the roasted sweet potatoes. We can’t wait to eat the leftovers. I’ll definitely be making this one again!
Thank you so much! That makes me so happy to hear. Hope you continue to enjoy!
Absolutely amazing. I made it as a breakfast bowl instead and kept all the ingredients hot. I topped it with some scrambled eggs and a bit of salsa. Super super good.
Sooooo good and very filling!! Thank you .
Best dinner ever! I’ve had this saved for a long time and finally made! Definitely adding my my weekly dinners!!!
So glad you finally made it and loved it! Yay!!
Normally it’s hard to ask my son to eat sweet potatoes, but this time, he ate the roast sweet potatoes and the rest of the Southwest quinoa salad happily. Thank you, Yumna!
That’s incredible! Love that he enjoyed it all!
Omg I broke my fast with this salad and it was perfect ! I followed the recipe and squeezed some more lime. My whole family enjoyed it. Very refreshing and filling ! Thank you Yumna!
I’m so happy to hear that! Lime really is a must in this recipe! Yay!!