Preparation: 15 minutes. Cooking: 15 minutes.
Quinoa is noted as a superfood which generally means it offers multiple benefits for the body without a high amount of fat and calories attached! See our blog about the benefits of Quinoa in our recent blog here.
There are so many vegetarian dishes full of protein that can be healthier than meat dishes as they tend to be less fatty and packed full of extra vitamins minerals! Try this super quick and super yummy Quinoa, Lentil and Feta Cheese Salad for lunch or dinner. This recipe serves 4 people so either invite friends over, quarter the ingredients on the list or save the leftovers for your lunch the next day as you can eat it hot or cold!
Ingredients
200g quinoa
1 tsp olive oil
1 shallot or ½ onion, finely chopped
2 tbsp tarragon, roughly chopped (or a sprinkle of thyme, oregano or any other green herb you have in your cupboard)
400g can Puy or green lentils rinsed and drained
¼ cucumber, lightly peeled and diced
100g feta cheese, crumbled
6 spring onions, thinly sliced (or add extra red/white onions if you don't have spring onions)
zest and juice 1 orange (or a few spoons of fresh orange juice)
1 tbsp red or white wine vinegar
Method
1. Cook the quinoa in a large pan of boiling water for 10-15 mins until tender, drain well, then set aside to cool.
2. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a small pan, then cook the shallot or onion for a few mins until softened. Add the tarragon, stir well, then remove from the heat.
3. Stir the softened shallot and tarragon into the cooled quinoa along with the lentils, cucumber, feta, spring onions, orange zest and juice and vinegar. Toss well together and chill until ready to serve.
This recipe was taken from BBC Good Food, they have lots of amazing, quick and healthy recipes!
Let us know how this recipe goes, send in your pictures to @booteauk we'd love to see them - happy munching!
Love
The Bootea Team xx