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This easy lime and mango quinoa salad is a refreshing cold summer quinoa salad full of fruits and vegetables. With mango, quinoa, avocado, cucumbers and lime, it’s perfect for any cookout or barbecue!

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I just got back from a ladies’ getaway weekend with my mom and sisters.

We went to Montauk (check out what to do in Montauk) to celebrate my mom’s 60th birthday and my mind is bursting with delicious summer recipes.

Now, I truly feel like summer is here in full force so it’s time to start thinking about quick and easy summer healthy recipes, like this flavorful quinoa salad.

Today’s summer vegetable quinoa salad is the perfect cold summer salad recipe and makes for a great entree or side dish, along with this cantaloupe salad recipe. 

Or, this sweet potato quinoa salad or 10 minute brown rice quinoa salad. Can you tell I love combining fruits and grains?

Why Sarah Loves this Recipe

“I love that this healthy quinoa salad is ready in 15 minutes, since I’m usually using my time down to the minute preparing for a gathering. The combo of sweet mango, juicy tomatoes, and tangy lime is perfection for spring and summer.”

Summer foods are my favorite and quinoa summer salad recipes are great at blending things together.

We’ve been loving juicy mango here and recently I found myself thinking about a quinoa and mango salad with an abundance of fresh flavor, so here we are. 

Since this mango quinoa bowl is so light, I love serving it with this heavier goats cheese pasta bake or even coating it with this basil spinach pesto without nuts.

The flavors are so good…you can’t really go wrong with this delicious salad.

Why You’ll Love A Mango Avocado Quinoa Salad

• Ready in 15 minutes – I truly rely on this quinoa salad with mango for most last minute summer picnics and gatherings because it’s the perfect meal prep recipe! You can have it ready in 15 minutes or make it the night before.
• Great for meal prep or leftovers – While this quinoa and mango salad is ready quickly, it’s great the next day too! Make it the night before or serve it as tasty leftovers.
• Kid friendly – When I serve to kids, I usually deconstruct everything (serve it separately vs. together on a plate), but quinoa for toddlers is usually fun when served with colors!
• Can serve warm or cold – This healthy quinoa salad can go either way, kind of like this orzo broccoli salad. It truly is delicious served warm, or complements the cold fruit and veggies well too as a cold quinoa salad or served room temperature.
• Gluten free – While I am not gluten-free, I appreciate that many people are. Which is why I love quinoa – it makes for a great gluten-free option! Mango quinoa salad is a perfect refreshing dish to bring to your next cookout or get-together.
• Vegetarian option – While you can keep this vegan by swapping nutritional yeast for the feta cheese, it is a delicious plant-based meal option. Quinoa is a complete protein, and is also a great source of magnesium, B6, iron, and copper, among other key minerals.
• High in protein– A little bit of quinoa goes a long way, nutritionally! Did you know that just a 1/2 cup (dry) serving of quinoa has 12 grams of protein? If I’m serving it as a main dish, I’ll usually add black beans for a filling black bean quinoa salad.

Ingredients For Mango Quinoa Salad

So, let’s talk about how to make this quinoa avocado mango salad. You’ll need:

• uncooked quinoa – Make sure to rinse your dry quinoa ahead of time. White quinoa or tri-colored quinoa both work.
• mango – You don’t want it overly ripe that it’s too soft, but ripe enough that it has some sweetness.
• cucumber – I love the crisp, neutral taste of cucumber, but you could substitute with a crisp yellow, orange or red bell pepper.
• lime – While there’s nothing like a tart lime, you could also use lime juice in a pinch.
• avocado – Make sure it’s ripe, because creamy avocado blends in so perfectly with these ingredients! Avocado provides texture, flavor and those heart-healthy fats!
• tomato – I love fresh tomatoes, specifically diced roma’s or cherry tomatoes
• olive oil – I use this cold-pressed olive oil to really bring out the flavor
• cheese – I prefer feta cheese but you can omit this if you’re vegan.
• fresh cilantro – This is optional but really rounds out the flavor profile.

I happen to really love quinoa salad recipes with feta cheese – The salty cheese just sits so nicely with the cooked quinoa.

Plus, the fresh, crisp mango and vegetables provide another layer of taste and pleasure.

Other Mix In Ideas:

If you happen to be out of some of the above ingredients, or just want to switch it up, here are some other ideas and options:

• red onion – I prefer red onion (or pickled red onions) to white onion because there’s a stronger flavor profile
• kalamata olives – add more depth and saltiness!
• red bell pepper – More crispness
• black beans – Another great way to add protein! A black bean quinoa mango salad is a tasty alternative.
• green onions
• nuts or seeds – I think pistachios, pumpkin seeds or sunflower seeds would also add a lovely crunch!
• pineapple – A great tropical replacement for the mango.
• protein topping – diced or shredded chicken, eggs, tempeh, tofu, fish, etc.

How to Make the Best Summer Quinoa Salad

You can choose to use fresh quinoa that you cook just for this recipe, or use leftover quinoa. It’s a great use for leftover quinoa!

Then, chop your vegetables and mango. I chose to chop the mango to get more flavor in small bites.

But, you can also leave them in longer slices if you’d prefer.

To me, the use of fresh, whole foods, makes this dish appealing to the taste buds and the body.

The lime quinoa adds a nice juicy flavor that pairs beautifully with the sweet mangoes.

The fresh cilantro adds a little bit more “statement” of flavor, but if it’s not your thing, you can leave it out.

Add your diced mango, veggies and cooked quinoa to a large bowl. If you want to add feta cheese, you can do that here.

I just don’t like dry textures, so I opted for some olive oil lime seasoning. You’ll simply add a splash of this olive oil (a high-quality tasting one) and lime juice to the bowl.

The juice from the lime, the fresh fruits and veggies, and the cilantro give it a kick of flavor on its own where you don’t even need a dressing.

If you’re okay with seafood, another summer salad option is this broccoli kale salad with lemon garlic dressing

This healthy mango and quinoa salad is the perfect accompaniment alongside sweet potato turkey burgers, for the ultimate al fresco summer meal.

We also love it as a side to this salmon sheetpan dinner or corn and bacon fritters.

How to Makeahead and Store Quinoa Salad

If you plan on serving this quinoa and mango salad to a large group, making it ahead of time frees your hands up for some other dishes to make day of.

Just put this together the night before (but don’t add dressing until the day-of) and then it’s a great option as a quinoa salad for lunch or dinner.  

Store this mango quinoa salad recipe in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.

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Servings 6

Easy Mango Quinoa Salad

Sarah Schlichter, MPH, RDN

Mango Quinoa Salad is gluten free and a fun spin on pasta salad. Full of light and refreshing veggies, it's an easy and delicious summer quinoa salad.

4.77 from 13 ratings

Print Pin

Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 20 minutes mins

Total Time 30 minutes mins

Ingredients  

1x2x3x

• 2 cups quinoa
• 1 cucumber, peeled and diced
• 3/4 cup grape tomatoes, halved
• 1 avocado, sliced
• 1 mango, peeled and diced
• 2 tbsp chopped cilantro
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1/3 cup feta cheese, substitute with nutritional yeast if vegan
• 1/8 tsp garlic salt, optional
• Juice of 2 limes
• Salt and pepper, to taste

Get Recipe Ingredients

Instructions 

1. Cook quinoa according to package directions and let cool.
2. Cut your grape tomatoes, cucumber, avocado, mango and cilantro.
3. Once the quinoa is cooled, mix in olive oil and juice from the lime and mix around.
4. Top with feta cheese and/or nutritional yeast, and salt and pepper to taste

Notes

Remember to add time to let the quinoa cool.

Equipment

Atlas 1 LT Cold Press Extra Virgin Olive Oil with Polyphenol Rich from Morocco | Newly Harvested Unprocessed from One Single Family Farm | Moroccan Organic EVOO Trusted by Michelin Star Chefs

Pure Natural Non-Fortified Nutritional Yeast Flakes (8 oz.) Whole Food Based Protein Powder, Vitamin B Complex, Beta-glucans and All 18 Amino Acids

BetterBody Foods Organic Quinoa, Vegan, Complete plant protein, gluten free low, glycemic rice replacement, 24 ounce

Bragg USDA Gluten Free Organic Raw Apple Cider Vinegar, with The Mother

Nutrition

Serving: 1Calories: 243kcalCarbohydrates: 36gProtein: 6gFat: 10gSaturated Fat: 1gPolyunsaturated Fat: 8gSodium: 159mgFiber: 7gSugar: 16g

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