I had some free time weekend and decided I would finally try the recipe that I've been eying for months! This delicious quinoa salad is packed full of flavor, color and nutrients, and can be served as a main course or side course. You can easily make it ahead of time and refridgerate, making it a perfect dish for a picnic or BBQ.
I originally intended to make it a main course, though my meat-loving boyfriend had the wonderful idea to marinate chicken in the flavor-infused oil and leftover tomatoes and serve the salad on the side. Even without the meat, this dish is high in protein from the quinoa (pronounced ki-nwa).
Before I get into the details, here's the final, delicious dish (without the meat):
The first step is to make your very own flavor-infused oil. I have my best friend, Colleen, to thank for a wonderful book on Flavored Oils & Vinegars, and all the recipes are wonderful! I never would have thought to venture into that culinary area without this book, so thank you for the inspiration (and the bottles in which to store my finished products!).
The second step is to use the roasted tomato oil in the salad dressing, and toss a flavorful mix of Mediterranean inspired ingredients together for a super easy, healthy salad. If you've never made quinoa before, it is incredibly easy to make (like couscous), and can be found in the bulk food aisle in most grocery stores.
*If you don't have time to make the roasted tomato oil for the dressing, you can always purchase pre-made flavor infused oil; alternatively the salad is almost just as good with some olive oil, lemon juice and crushed garlic mixed together and drizzled over the salad.
Step 1: Roasted Tomato Oil
The recipe below ends up as the base for the salad dressing, and makes enough to double as a marinade.
Makes about 3/4 cup
Ingredients:
4 - 6 plum tomatoes
1 cup canola oil
Preheat oven to 400 degrees
Thinly slice the tomatoes and place on a lightly greased baking sheet. Place in oven and roast until they start to char. Remove from oven and let cool.
Heat oil in a saucepan. Bring to a near-boil (it will never come to a typical boil, so don't make the mistake I did by waiting too long for it to boil!) and let it simmer for one to two minutes.
Combine the tomatoes with the warm oil (be sure to let it cool some) and process in blender or food processor. Process until the tomatoes are well incorporated into the oil. Strain through cheesecloth and pour into a clean jar.
Refridgerate any unused oil (you'll use about half in the quinoa salad dressing).
Save the tomatoes for later use, or to use as a marinade for chicken or fish (tips below).
Step 2: Quinoa Salad with Sun-Dried Tomatoes, Kalamata Olives & Feta
Makes four servings
Salad Ingredients:
1 cup quinoa
2 cups water
10 sun-dried tomatoes (in oil, drained)
1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
2 scallions or green onions (white part only), chopped
1/3 cup mixed fresh herbs (basil, parsley, cilantro), chopped
1/4 cup pitted Kalamata olives, chopped
Dressing Ingredients:
1/3 cup Roasted Tomato Oil (recipe above makes about 3/4 cup, so more than enough for the dressing)
3 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 clove garlic, crushed
salt and ground black pepper
Spread the quinoa on a dish and pick out any pieces of grit. Rinse the grains thoroughly in a fine mesh-sieve and drain.
In a medium saucepan, bring the water to a boil over high heat, stir in the quinoa and return to a boil. Lower the heat, cover, and simmer for about 15 minutes or until all the liquid has been absorbed. Remove from heat, fluff with a fork, and let cool.
Add remaining salad ingredients to a bowl and mix with the quinoa.
Whisk the dressing ingredients together, pour over the quinoa, toss, and serve.
Step 3 (Optional):
The third step, if interested, is to use the leftover tomatoes from the oil to marinate fish, chicken, tofu or any other meat. Otherwise, the tomatoes can be used for salsa, pasta sauce, or any other tomato-based sauce. We put chicken breasts in a cooking pan and sauteed with the oil-drenched tomatoes on medium heat until cooked. The chicken came out moist and delicious with a subtle tomato flavor. Whatever you do, I highly recommend saving the tomatoes for future use!
This was a fantastic dish, bursting with flavor from every ingredient!
I originally intended to make it a main course, though my meat-loving boyfriend had the wonderful idea to marinate chicken in the flavor-infused oil and leftover tomatoes and serve the salad on the side. Even without the meat, this dish is high in protein from the quinoa (pronounced ki-nwa).
Before I get into the details, here's the final, delicious dish (without the meat):
 |
| Quinoa Salad with Sun-Dried Tomatoes, Kalamata Olives & Feta |
The second step is to use the roasted tomato oil in the salad dressing, and toss a flavorful mix of Mediterranean inspired ingredients together for a super easy, healthy salad. If you've never made quinoa before, it is incredibly easy to make (like couscous), and can be found in the bulk food aisle in most grocery stores.
*If you don't have time to make the roasted tomato oil for the dressing, you can always purchase pre-made flavor infused oil; alternatively the salad is almost just as good with some olive oil, lemon juice and crushed garlic mixed together and drizzled over the salad.
Step 1: Roasted Tomato Oil
The recipe below ends up as the base for the salad dressing, and makes enough to double as a marinade.
Makes about 3/4 cup
Ingredients:
4 - 6 plum tomatoes
1 cup canola oil
Preheat oven to 400 degrees
Thinly slice the tomatoes and place on a lightly greased baking sheet. Place in oven and roast until they start to char. Remove from oven and let cool.
Heat oil in a saucepan. Bring to a near-boil (it will never come to a typical boil, so don't make the mistake I did by waiting too long for it to boil!) and let it simmer for one to two minutes.
Combine the tomatoes with the warm oil (be sure to let it cool some) and process in blender or food processor. Process until the tomatoes are well incorporated into the oil. Strain through cheesecloth and pour into a clean jar.
Refridgerate any unused oil (you'll use about half in the quinoa salad dressing).
Save the tomatoes for later use, or to use as a marinade for chicken or fish (tips below).
Step 2: Quinoa Salad with Sun-Dried Tomatoes, Kalamata Olives & Feta
Makes four servings
Salad Ingredients:
1 cup quinoa
2 cups water
10 sun-dried tomatoes (in oil, drained)
1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
2 scallions or green onions (white part only), chopped
1/3 cup mixed fresh herbs (basil, parsley, cilantro), chopped
1/4 cup pitted Kalamata olives, chopped
Dressing Ingredients:
1/3 cup Roasted Tomato Oil (recipe above makes about 3/4 cup, so more than enough for the dressing)
3 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 clove garlic, crushed
salt and ground black pepper
Spread the quinoa on a dish and pick out any pieces of grit. Rinse the grains thoroughly in a fine mesh-sieve and drain.
In a medium saucepan, bring the water to a boil over high heat, stir in the quinoa and return to a boil. Lower the heat, cover, and simmer for about 15 minutes or until all the liquid has been absorbed. Remove from heat, fluff with a fork, and let cool.
Add remaining salad ingredients to a bowl and mix with the quinoa.
Whisk the dressing ingredients together, pour over the quinoa, toss, and serve.
Step 3 (Optional):
The third step, if interested, is to use the leftover tomatoes from the oil to marinate fish, chicken, tofu or any other meat. Otherwise, the tomatoes can be used for salsa, pasta sauce, or any other tomato-based sauce. We put chicken breasts in a cooking pan and sauteed with the oil-drenched tomatoes on medium heat until cooked. The chicken came out moist and delicious with a subtle tomato flavor. Whatever you do, I highly recommend saving the tomatoes for future use!
This was a fantastic dish, bursting with flavor from every ingredient!
