Asian Quinoa Salad

I have a love for all things quinoa, all things Asian, and all things edamame.  Therefore, what is not to love in an Asian quinoa salad with edamame!?  The answer to that is nothing.

Honestly besides the fact that this tastes great, the way it looks is one of my favorite things about it.  It is so colorful and bright, with the green edamame, red pepper, purple cabbage... it's like a rainbow in a bed of brown quinoa.  Dorky comparison, but seriously have you ever seen a prettier salad?

And then there is the flavor.  The dressing is a mixture of soy sauce, sesame oil, red wine vinegar, scallion, cilantro, sesame seeds, and ginger.  Doesn't it just sound delicious?  It's literally bursting with flavor without even considering the vegetables in there.  This salad was a huge hit with some unexpected people.  Mark, for example, ate almost the whole thing in two day's time.  And my most surprise customer was Amelia, who is, after all, a two-year old.  I can only hope someday my toddler asks for "more queenwah."  If you can get a little kid to eat quinoa, you know the salad must be delicious!

Recipe:

Asian quinoa salad
from Two Peas and Their Pod
serves 4

Ingredients:
1 cup quinoa
2 cups water
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup chopped red cabbage
1 cup shelled and cooked edamame (I used frozen)
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1/2 cup shredded carrots
1 cup diced cucumber

for the dressing:
1/4 cup light soy sauce or tamari sauce
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
2 tablespoons chopped green onion
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
1 tablespoon sesame seeds
1/4 teaspoon grated ginger
1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes
salt and black pepper, to taste

Directions:

1) Add water, quinoa and salt to a medium saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat.  Boil for 5 minutes.  Turn the heat to low and simmer for about 15 minutes, or until water is absorbed.  Remove from heat and fluff with a fork.

2) Place the quinoa in a large bowl and add the cabbage, edamame, red pepper, carrots and cucumber.  Set aside.

3) In a small bowl, whisk together the soy sauce, sesame oil, rice wine vinegar, green onions, cilantro, sesame seeds, ginger, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper.

4) Pour the dressing over the quinoa salad and stir to combine.