Recipe: Vietnamese Style Quinoa Salad

July 07, 2012

Heat waaaave. It's so hot here in Edmonton for the next five days.. I want to hide in my air conditioned house, but I also want to be outside to enjoy the sun. Decisions, decisions...


Let me just put this out there: I am OBSESSED with quinoa. Seriously. I can search hours on end for ideas as to what I can do with this stuff! I love that it's so healthy, and that a small amount will cook and double in size! Basically I've been eating it nonstop lately.. So I made this cold salad last week, and it's perfect to eat on hot summer days. It's healthy, and so easy to whip up. Enjoy!

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Vietnamese Style Quinoa Salad with Shrimp

Ingredients for the Salad
1/2 pound of shrimp, deveined & cooked
1 cup quinoa
1 carrot, shredded
1/2 long english cucumber, finely diced
2 green onions, finely chopped

Ingredients for the Dressing
5 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1 tablespoon Vietnamese fish sauce
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon Sriracha sauce (more if you desire!)
2-3 large leaves of basil, chopped



Directions
1. Cook quinoa according to directions on packaging. Typically 1 cup quinoa to 2 cups water, simmer 15 minutes until water is fully absorbed. Set aside and allow to cool.

2. For the dressing, combine lime juice, fish sauce, oil, sugar, basil & Sriracha in a bowl.

3. Set aside 2 or 3 shrimp for garnish. Take the remaining shrimp and chop into bite sized pieces, then place in the dressing and allow to marinate for 5-10 minutes.

4. Once the quinoa is cool, add the cucumber, green onion and carrots, then mix everything with the shrimp and dressing. Adjust the taste if necessary. Garnish with reserved shrimp and the salad is ready to serve, but I prefer to pop it into the fridge for about an hour to cool it down. Enjoy!


Recipe inspired by Serious Eats

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25 comments

  1. Ah, omg! So good. I love Vietnamese style anything :D

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  2. it looks good, maybe I'll try this one soon,, and make it more spicy
    lol
    I love your blog dear.. maybe we can follow each other?

    come and see my blog if you have time
    xoxo,
    gitasyalala.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete
  3. wow this is amazing! photos are pretty good :)

    visit/follow? :)

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  4. Mmm that looks so taste *___*

    http://shuikaybb.blogspot.co.uk/

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  5. Question: is the fish sauce prepared, or straight out of the jar?

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  6. looks delicious! you are a great chef, i didn't know!
    i am not very into quinoa but love shrimps and the salad looks fantastic!

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    Replies
    1. Haha, I wouldn't exactly go as far as to call myself a chef since I hardly cook at all... :P Thx Lena!

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  7. Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh...I was OBSESSED with quinoa last year and got bored of all the same recipes I was using. I MUST give this a try since I have a HUGE bag of quinoa I need to use up. Thanks for sharing it :)

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    Replies
    1. I love that bags of quinoa last FOREVER. It feels like you get such a good deal hahah. Let me know when you try this out, Kay!

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  8. looks great! I love quinoa too- I love doing it with sweet things actually! like pineapple and coconut? so good.

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    Replies
    1. I've actually never tried it sweet.. will have to do it this weekend! :)

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  9. This looks so fresh, tasty and healthy! The prawns look amazing especially :)

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  10. I need to try quinoa soon. Is quinoa like oatmeal? Is quinoa filling? It's getting popular now. Will definitely try your recipe. It looks simple and fast to prepare and I love Vietnamese salad dressing :) Thanks for the wonderful recipe and your blog is great. Keep up the good work!

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    Replies
    1. Quinoa is somewhat like oatmeal.. minus the stickiness and starchiness. It's not exactly very filling for me by itself, as it is a source of protein rather than carbohydrates, which is why I tend to mix it up with other things to make the dish itself filling in the end.

      Thanks for the kind words! Let me know how your quinoa adventure turns out!

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  11. Mmm this looks really delicious and healthy! Thanks for posting up the recipe!

    ariarhapsody.blogspot.com

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  12. i bought this snack that has quinoa in it and i'm in love hahah! i couldn't agree more~ quinoa is delicious! and so super healthy. i really like the recipe you shared~ i'll definitely have to try it..my 2 favorites; quinoa + shrimp ahhah


    Joyce @ carouselstreet.com

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  13. Love your blog so so so much really! I follow u inmediately :) i hope you visit my blog too, it would be an honor for me! http://deserteaglefeathers.blogspot.com

    Kisses from Spain! Thanks

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  14. looks soooooo yummy!!! i wanna try it

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  15. I love quinoa too! I usually make it a Greek style quinoa salad. This is a nice variation. I'm gonna try it.

    xo Jo

    http://whiterosesandcoffee.blogspot.ca/

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  16. hello sweety! I love everything in your blog... please visit mine and if you like it let´s follow each other ok! let me know... www.petitgraphie.blogspot.com
    kisses

    ReplyDelete
  17. You are making me hungry. That looks delicious.

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  18. oh wow! it looks pretty and i bet it's delicious :D
    http://www.averysweetblog.com/

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  19. This looks so divinely yummy! I am not familiar with quinoa at all but it sure looks delicious. And the way you put together this recipe post is so neat and tidy and filled with effort! Well done!

    MRS JACK OF ALL TRADES DAILY where Fashion and Food collide!
    Latest post : A LITTLE BLING!
    http://mrsjackofalltradesdaily.blogspot.com/2012/07/little-bling.html

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  20. omg Andrea, this seriously looks yum and ohhh so healthy! I think i gotta try this!

    Hope the heat is not too overbearing over there! Load up on H20!!! hehe

    Cinz
    http://cinzee.wordpress.com

    ReplyDelete

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