I could stare at this one all day; isn’t this Quinoa & Pomegranate Salad just gorgeous! I really do get very excited for pomegranate season, seeing those bins filled with these red beauties puts a smile on my face! I’ve loved pomegranates since I was way younger but always just ate them straight out of a bowl with a spoon {still do sometimes}. In the past couple years I’ve started using these bright red jewels of a fruit in recipes like my Arugula, Pear & Pomegranate Salad. This salad is incredibly healthy, flavorful and just so darn pretty!
So whats in this Quinoa & Pomegranate Salad? Brown rice, wild rice, quinoa, toasted walnuts and a really simple lemon, olive oil & parsley dressing. Its got such great texture from the crunch of the walnuts to the pop of those pomegranate berries {did you know that the edible part of the pomegranate is a berry? Me neither until I looked it up}. Between the pomegranate and quinoa, the health benefits of this one are AMAZING! There is a ton of vitamins in the fruit and the itty bitty edible seed inside is a great source of fiber! So while it may be a little strange to chew, just do it! Quinoa is packed with protein, fiber, minerals, vitamins… well basically its a super food!
This salad is great with some grilled chicken, roasted pork or even a GREAT and HEALTHY side dish for the holidays!!! How pretty would this one look on your table?!? I love the light dressing and the brightness that the lemon adds to the dish.
***How to get the berries out of the pomegranate: I know I used to make a mess all over trying to pop out the fruit from the thick pulp but now I’ve got a great trick to make it easy for ya! Get a big bowl of cold water. Carefully cut the pomegranate in half and the half each piece again. While keeping the pomegranate under the water, simply push off the fruit from the pulp. The fruitful sink and the skin that surrounds the fruit will float to the top. You avoid your fingers and kitchen turning all red!***
- 1/4 brown rice {NOT quick cooking!}
- 1/4 cup wild rice
- 1 cup quinoa
- 3/4 cup chopped walnuts
- 1- 1 1/4 cups pomegranate berries {see note above}
- 1/8 cup olive oil
- juice of 1 lemon
- a handful of fresh chopped parsley
- salt & pepper to taste
- Get a big pot of water boiling. Add the brown rice and wild rice. Cook for about 18 minutes.
- Add in the quinoa and cook for another 15-16 minutes until everything is tender.
- Drain and rinse under cold water to cool completely. Allow all the water the drain off.
- In a small dry pan, lightly toast the walnuts.
- In a large bowl whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice, parsley, salt and pepper. Stir in the quinoa and rice mixture, walnuts and pomegranate.
- Taste and season with salt and pepper as needed.
- This salad tastes better if you let all the flavors marry in the fridge for a couple of hours before serving.
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Carlee
How pretty! I love quinoa salads and the pomegranate is perfect for this time of year!
Angela LeMoine
Thank you!!! I’m really loving this one!! Making it again very soon!
KC the Kitchen Chopper
What a gorgeous dish. I love quinoa and your dish looks so festive for the holidays. I love the addition of wild rice too!
Angela LeMoine
Thank you!!! The flavors are fantastic!!! The colors are gorgeous too! Enjoy!
Nicole Neverman
This salad sounds really delicious! I bet all those flavors work so well together 🙂
Angela LeMoine
Thanks!’n everything does work great, even the different textures are lovely.
pattyanderson54p
It’s pretty, it’s easy and it is a great way to lighten up all the eating we do this time of year!
Angela LeMoine
Isn’t it pretty… Those colors, textures… It’s a great salad!