Rainbow chicken and quinoa salad with honey-lime dressing
45 min · 45 g protein · 445 cals / serving
A big, crunchy meal-prep salad in every colour: red cabbage, carrot, two peppers, cucumber, sweet tomatoes and edamame with fluffy quinoa and cumin-spiced chicken. A zingy honey-lime, ginger and tamari dressing soaks into the quinoa, and the vegetables stay crisp for days.
Ingredients
Quinoa
- 1/2 cup quinoa, rinsed
Chicken
- 1 1/3 lb chicken breast
- 1 tsp olive oil
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1/2 tsp salt
Dressing
- 3 tbsp lime juice, about 2 limes
- 2 tbsp rice vinegar, unseasoned
- 1 tbsp tamari, or soy sauce
- 1 1/2 tsp olive oil
- 1 tsp honey
- 2 tsp ginger, finely grated
- 1 clove garlic, finely grated
- 1/3 tsp salt
Salad
- 4 cups shredded red cabbage
- 2 medium carrots, grated or in matchsticks
- 1 large red bell pepper, diced
- 1 large yellow bell pepper, diced
- 1/2 English cucumber cucumber, diced
- 1 cup grape tomatoes, halved
- 1 cup edamame, shelled, thawed
- 3 green onions, sliced
- 1 cup fresh cilantro, loosely packed leaves, chopped
Steps
- Simmer the quinoa in 1 cup of salted water, covered, for 15 minutes until the water is absorbed. Rest 5 minutes off the heat, fluff with a fork and spread on a plate to cool.
- Rub the chicken with the oil, cumin, paprika and salt and cook in a hot pan for 5–6 minutes per side, until browned and 165°F in the thickest part. Rest, then dice.
- Shake the dressing ingredients in a jar until combined.
- Toss the cooled quinoa with half the dressing, then add all the vegetables, the chicken, the herbs and the rest of the dressing. Toss well and taste for salt and lime.
Good to know
How long does it keep?
Four days in the fridge in sealed boxes. The cabbage, peppers and carrot stay crunchy; if you want the cucumber at its crispest, add it on the day.
Can I make it vegetarian?
Skip the chicken and double the edamame, or add a can of drained black beans. It is just as colourful, still a full meal, and about the same score.
Why cool the quinoa first?
Warm quinoa wilts the vegetables and goes gummy in the dressing. Spread thin, it cools in 10 minutes.
Per
- Calories
- 80
- Protein
- (42%)
- 8 g
- Fat
- (24%)
- 2 g
- Carbohydrates
- (34%)
- 7 g
- of which sugar
- 3 g
- Fiber
- 2 g
- Sodium
- 148 mg
More meals
Computed from the ingredients with our published formula, not yet kitchen-tested. General guidance, not medical advice. Talk to your prescriber. How
As written, 1781 kcal goes into the pot and 2215 g of ingredients comes out as about 2240 g of food: 80 kcal per 100 g. Cooking moves water and energy density is the score's biggest lever, so the dish is scored as cooked, not as an average of its parts. Every ingredient links to its food page, with the same data and score. The label's percentages are each macronutrient's share of the calories. The full formula.