Sometimes light, clean tastes are best. Mediterranean quinoa salad is a fresh and summery dish that’s loaded with flavour.

It’s Peru meets Greece in a bowl. And it’s super easy to make. It’s great with grilled chicken or lamb. If you’re into making board sauces when you grill the mix of flavours is fantastic. Tastes like summer to me.

It’s actually so easy it doesn’t really need a recipe. Make some quinoa. Chop up some stuff. Toss with a vinaigrette. Eat. You can use whatever you feel like.

I do a bunch of different versions of this salad. Cajun spice, jalapeños and cilantro. Honey vinaigrette with red peppers and mango. I’ve even gone Indian with this. A bit of curry powder when you cook the quinoa works. Try it.

Mediterranean quinoa salad explodes with big flavours of feta, olives, lemon and tomatoes. - 1

Mediterranean quinoa salad is just one way. But it’s a pretty good way if you don’t already have this in your repertoire.

Mediterranean quinoa salad explodes with big flavours of feta, olives, lemon and tomatoes. - 2 Mediterranean quinoa salad explodes with big flavours of feta, olives, lemon and tomatoes. - 3 Mediterranean quinoa salad explodes with big flavours of feta, olives, lemon and tomatoes. - 4

mediterranean quinoa salad

Ingredients

Mediterranean Quinoa Salad

  • 1 cup uncooked quinoa cooked per directions, with 1/3 tsp salt. If you are not vegetarian, using chicken stock instead of water adds a nice extra flavour boost.
  • 1/3 cup kalamata olives chopped
  • 1/2 red onion chopped and rinsed under cold water
  • 1/2 cup cherry tomatoes
  • 3 oz crumbled feta
  • 1-2 Lebanese cucumbers chopped
  • 1 red finger hot chili minced
  • 1/4 cup minced fresh parsley

Dressing

  • 1/4 cup olive oil - use your best here
  • Juice of 1/2 lemon
  • 2 Tbsp sherry vinegar
  • 1/3 tsp kosher salt

Instructions

  • Cook the quinoa and let cool.
  • Mix the olive oil, lemon juice, sherry vinegar and salt together.
  • Combine the rest of the ingredients and toss with the vinaigrette. Taste for salt and adjust.
  • It’s just that easy!

Nutrition

Steak with chimichurri sauce is a great way to add some zing to your every-day pan-fried or grilled steaks.

It’s an Argentinian steak sauce brimming with olive oil, chili, garlic, lemon, parsley and onion flavour. It’s a totally different take on steak sauce.

Juicy steak depends on internal temperature

This post is more of a rant on the myths that seem to surround cooking steaks than a recipe. Don’t turn your steak more than once or the juices will run out. Don’t poke your steak or the juices will run out.

And please don’t wear a yellow hat and face north on a Tuesday when cooking steaks or the juices will run out.

Try steak with chimichurri sauce when you need to break out of your grilling rut. - 5

Low and slow BBQ aside, the only thing that affects moisture in a piece of meat is internal temperature. Nothing else. This is science.

Meat is made of protein. The more you heat a protein, the tighter the molecules get. The tighter the molecules get, the less room there is for water. The less water there is, the drier the meat becomes.

It’s not a lot more complicated than that. Get an instant read thermometer and use it religiously. You will become a star of the grill, the roast, the chop, everything you cook.

Cook your steaks to a target internal temperature of 123F for rare or 127F for medium rare. Let them rest – they continue to cook while they rest. Do that and your steak with chimichurri sauce will be the talk of the next backyard BBQ.

Try steak with chimichurri sauce when you need to break out of your grilling rut. - 6 Try steak with chimichurri sauce when you need to break out of your grilling rut. - 7