4.91 30 Published Jul 14, 2014, Updated May 02, 2024 This changed after a picnic lunch where I tried a carrot, chickpea and quinoa salad with Moroccan spices. It wasn’t anything too crazy or different but the flavor was on point and I immediately knew I wanted to recreate the salad at home.
Cooking Quinoa for Salad
When it comes to cooking quinoa to use for salad, it’s basically the same process as normal, but I like to make my quinoa a day in advance, let it cool and chill it in the fridge overnight and then use it for the salad the next day. Prepping it in advance is just so the quinoa doesn’t heat up the other salad ingredients. Of course it’s fine to cook it the same day and just let it cool a bit before using. I do this all the time when I’m in a rush!
Ingredients Needed
chickpeas – the perfect ingredient to add bulk protein. I used canned chickpeas (aka garbanzo beans), but you can cook your own if you have the time. carrots – the star of the show here. quinoa – this is the base of the recipe and you can use any type of quinoa you prefer from white, black, red to tri-color. raisins – adds a little sweetness and pairs perfectly with the cilantro. cilantro almond dressing – a super simple dressing made with lemon juice, garlic, olive oil, toasted almonds, fresh cilantro, smoky paprika, cumin, cayenne pepper, salt and pepper.
Substitutions & Notes
Chickpeas – Like I mentioned, I used canned chickpeas because they’re super easy to use! If you don’t like chickpeas you can substitute for another white bean like cannellini beans or Northern beans. Protein – The chickpeas and quinoa do add a good amount of plant-based protein to this salad but you could absolutely add a grilled protein to this salad to make it even more filling! This apple cider vinegar chicken would be delish. Raisins – The raisins are what takes this salad to the next level, in my opinion. If you’re not a raisin fan you could swap in dates, dried cherries, prunes or another dried fruit. Avocado – Want to add a little creaminess and healthy fats to your salad? Add in some chopped avocado! Dressing – I love the cilantro almond dressing I created for this salad but any dressing would work if you’re in a pinch. Some options: poppyseed dressing, cilantro lime dressing, white balsamic vinaigrette or lemon vinaigrette.
How to Serve Carrot Raisin Quinoa Salad
I love eating this carrot raisin salad as a mid-afternoon snack or as a side with lunch or dinner but it would also be a great dish to bring to a potluck or summer cookouts. If you want to meal prep this carrot salad, it can be refrigerated overnight in an air tight container. Just garnish with the toasted almonds just before serving.
More Quinoa Salads to Try:
Easy Quinoa Salad Roasted Broccoli Quinoa Salad Quinoa Tabbouleh Greek Quinoa Salad Chickpea Quinoa Salad Spinach Quinoa Salad Southwest Quinoa Salad Corn Quinoa Salad Sweet Potato Kale Quinoa Salad
More Carrot Recipes to Try:
Carrot Cake Smoothie Healthy Carrot Cake Bars Carrot Cake Breakfast Cookies Healthy Carrot Raisin Muffins Carrot Cake Overnight Oats Carrot Cake Baked Oatmeal
If you try this carrot raisin salad be sure to come back and leave a comment and star rating letting us know how it turned out. Your feedback is super helpful for the EBF team and other EBF readers. Cilantro-Almond Dressing – inspired by Food & Wine’s Carrot and Chickpea Salad.
