These Mexican Quinoa Salad Bowls are so easy to make. They’re a great whole-food, plant-based meal-prep lunch option but can also be enjoyed as a side salad or taco filling.
A healthy lunch is important whether you work from home or visit the office daily. Meal prep is the main thing that keeps me on track with healthy eating during a busy day. I like to prepare these Mexican Quinoa Salad Bowls on Sunday to enjoy them all week long without doing any work!
I’ve been trying to eat more whole-food, plant-based dishes lately, and I’m excited that this recipe is made with all whole-food ingredients, and the dressing doesn’t have any oil in it. This Mexican Quinoa Salad is full of protein, veggies, and flavor!
Why Your Body Will Love This Whole-Food Dish
- Protein – Quinoa is an excellent protein source vital for muscle health and satiety that contains all 9 essential amino acids, making it a complete protein.
- Digestive Health – Quinoa is a great source of fiber, helping us feel full longer, smoothing the digestive process, and carrying toxins out of our systems. Beans are high in insoluble fiber, which helps bulk up the digestive system and prevent constipation. The fiber in beans also acts as a prebiotic that feeds the good bacteria in the large intestine and carries out toxins in the system.
- Heart Health – Beans contain a significant amount of soluble fiber, which helps decrease cholesterol absorption in the bloodstream. Lowering the “bad” cholesterol in the body can greatly reduce the chances of a stroke or heart attack.
Mexican Quinoa Salad Ingredients
I always try to keep my recipes easy, simple, and flavorful. This recipe requires just a few ingredients, and it’s so delicious!
- Quinoa – I like to use quinoa because it’s a healthy whole grain with lots of protein. You could use any grain you like, including brown rice, white rice, farro, bulgar, or millet.
- Black Beans – I love black beans and use them often in my recipes. Any other bean would be a great replacement, though.
- Tomato Salad – I made a simple tomato salad with ingredients I had on hand: cherry tomatoes, onion, jalapeño, green pepper, cilantro, and a little bit of salt and lime juice. It’s easy to make and really highlights the fresh vegetable flavors. Feel free to add any other vegetables you like!
- Tahini Dressing – Tahini is a great substitute for olive oil in salad dressings. It’s creamy, mild in flavor, and works for many different cuisines. For these Mexican Quinoa Salad Bowls, I mixed tahini with some lemon juice, cumin, water, and salt.
Whole Foods Plant-Based Meal Prep
Time after time, spending about 20-30 minutes prepping my lunch on the weekends really saves me from eating junk during the week. Here are a few tips for coming up with easy and delicious meal prep lunches that are also super healthy:
- Pick a grain – Whole grains are good for you and help keep you feeling full longer. Eating a well-balanced, healthy diet means you don’t have to be afraid of carbs! Just make sure to pick a grain that has lots of health benefits. A few I often use are quinoa, brown rice, millet, farro, and bulgar.
- Pick a plant-based protein – Whole grains help us feel full, but an extra protein source is also important. I love using canned beans because they’re really easy and require no extra prep time. You could also use tofu or tempeh, which usually require some preparation.
- Use lots of vegetables – Vegetables are an important thing to include in all of your meals. I chose to make a fresh vegetable salad for these quinoa bowls, but you could also use cooked vegetables depending on what kind of meal you are making.
- Oil and sugar-free dressing – I’m very guilty of making oil-based salad dressings, but I’m trying to move away from that, and tahini is a great alternative. Tahini is smooth and creamy and creates a delicious salad dressing when mixed with a few other ingredients. You could also use other nut butters like peanut, almond, cashew, or sun butter.
How to Make This Quinoa Dish
- Add the quinoa to a medium-sized pot and cover with two cups of water. Place a lid on and bring to a simmer, turn down and cook until all the water has cooked out and quinoa is cooked through. Set aside and let cool for a few minutes.
- To a medium-sized bowl, add the tomatoes, onion, green pepper, jalapeño, cilantro, lime juice, and salt to taste. Mix until combined.
- Add all dressing ingredients to a bowl and mix until a creamy sauce is formed. You may have to add more or less water depending on the consistency of your tahini.
- Assemble your meal-prep bowls. Set up four equal-sized containers and put an equal amount of each ingredient in each one. It will be about 3/4 cup quinoa, 1/2 cup black beans, and 1/4 of the tomato salad. Portion out the dressing into small containers and store everything in the refrigerator until ready to eat.
Frequently Asked Questions
- How long will these keep in the refrigerator? I keep them for about four days max. You might be able to stretch it to five if the ingredients still look and smell good to you.
- Can I mix everything together instead of using it as meal prep? Yes! You can, for sure, just mix everything together in a big bowl and serve it as a side salad.
- Can I use a different dressing? Of course, feel free to substitute any of the ingredients you don’t have on hand or don’t like with those you like.
- Why aren’t the beans or quinoa seasoned at all? I like to keep my meal prep as simple as possible and find the dressing does a good enough job of seasoning all the ingredients.
- What can I serve these with? I like to enjoy mine with a fresh corn tortilla or a handful of corn chips.
Have another question? Ask me in the comments, and I’ll get back to you ASAP!
Looking For More Vegan Meal-Prep Recipes?
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Mexican Quinoa Salad Bowls
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 4 1x
- Diet: Vegan
Description
These Mexican Quinoa Salad Bowls are simple, easy and full of flavor. They’re perfect for a healthy plant based meal prep lunch.
Ingredients
- 1 cup dried quinoa
- 2 cups cooked black beans, rinsed and drained
- 1 pint cherry tomatoes, sliced in half
- 1 large green pepper, diced
- 1/2 onion, diced
- Diced jalapeno, to taste
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
- Juice of 1/2 lime
- Salt
Cumin Lime Tahini Dressing
- 1/3 cup tahini
- 1/4 cup fresh lime juice
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon granulated garlic
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3 tablespoons water, or more or less depending on the consistency of your tahini
Instructions
- Add the quinoa to a medium sized pot and cover with two cups of water. Place a lid on and bring to a simmer, turn down and cook until all the water has cooked out and quinoa is cooked through. Set aside and let cool for a few minutes.
- To a medium sized bowl, add the tomatoes, onion, green pepper, jalapeño, cilantro, lime juice and salt, to taste. Mix until combined.
- Add all dressing ingredients to a bowl and mix until a creamy sauce is formed. You may have to add more or less water depending on the consistency of your tahini.
- Assemble your meal prep bowls. Set up four equal sized containers and in each one put an equal amount of each of the ingredients. It will be about 3/4 cup quinoa, 1/2 cup black beans and 1/4 of the tomato salad. Portion out the dressing into small containers and store everything in the refrigerator until ready to eat.
Notes
If you don’t have containers for the dressing you can just add it straight into your bowls right before eating or in the morning when packing your lunch.
- Prep Time: 15 mins
- Cook Time: 20 mins
- Category: Lunch, Meal Prep, Vegan
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Mexican/American
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