Quinoa and Bulgar Wheat Salad
Want a vibrantly coloured, deliciously nutritious and easy salad to make in summer or winter. This salad converted many non-quinoa lovers, including me.
I ate this salad at my cousin Maria’s, between Christmas and New Year, it was a little unusual as she added Asian ingredients to the nutritious quinoa and bulgar wheat. I stood back and watched all the children go for seconds (my children do not enjoy quinoa and had a second helping). The trick they loved the dressing and they loved the edamame beans. So that is the winning formula – a few additions that they love, a delicious dressing and everyone will try and enjoy something they may not have previously enjoyed. My cousin used a thinned version of a satay sauce to dress the salad with a little more boiling water which gave a background hint of familiarity. For an easy recipe try this satay sauce.
I used a packet of Waitrose Bulgar wheat with white and red quinoa, it cooked in less than 12 minutes. If you can’t get the ready-mixed version add cooked bulgar wheat and as much quinoa as you enjoy. I would work on a 2/3 bulgar wheat to 1/3 quinoa ratio.
Cooling the mixture down by running it under cold water in a fine-mesh sieve, made for an easy make-ahead salad. You can prepare the salad a few hours beforehand and keep it in the fridge. If you use tomatoes or any other thing that tends to release water, when it is in the fridge, mix those ingredients in just before serving.
The salad served warm in winter with the dressing, added to the just-boiled and strained ingredients, is a healthy quick meal. The dressing will soak into the grains and make for a wonderful filling side or main course. Always make a little extra to use as a packed lunch the next day.
A reminder of how many vitamins and minerals bulgar wheat has, click through to my post called Cracked Wheat Pilaf Bulgar Wheat.
Ideas:
Add Mediterranean flavours: olives, feta, grilled halloumi, tomato, cucumbers, parsley, mint, capers etc.
Or add an Asian flavours ginger and garlic, edamame beans, grated carrot, shredded Chinese pointed cabbage, bean shoots, a thinned satay sauce as a dressing or a Chinese salad dressing adds an interesting and tasty twist.
Spanish flavours: whole blanched toasted almonds, green olives, chunks of manchego cheese and chopped fried chorizo and chopped tomatoes.
In case you don’t know where to find edamame beans they are either in pots fresh in the deli to go section at the supermarket or in the freezers of the supermarket usually next to the frozen herbs and vegetables.
- 500g Waitrose LOVE Life bulgar wheat with red and white quinoa
- 1 vegetable stock cube
- Yutaka Edamame Shelled Soybeans
- 3 grated carrots, grated
- 1 red pepper, finely chopped
- ½ cucumber diced (seeds removed)
- a handful of chopped coriander and mint
- Optional
- 1 spring onion finely chopped
- Cook the bulgar wheat and quinoa according to the instruction on the packet.
- Five minutes before the end of the cooking time add the edamame beans or according to the instructions on the packet.
- Drain and run under the bulgar, quinoa and edamame beans under cold water.
- Add the chopped vegetables, dressing of choice and mix in the herbs.
Leftovers work well for a packed lunch.
Add what ever vegetables you enjoy, chopped red cabbage, fried aubergine, courgettes, mushrooms cherry tomatoes or any other additions like nuts and seeds.
