Quinoa Salad

This hearty salad has a nice flavor and is naturally gluten free. You can add or delete ingredients to suit your own taste buds, too.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup dry quinoa
• 1 cup chicken stock
• 1 cup chopped cucumber
• 1 cup chopped fresh mango
• 1/2 to 1 cup garbanzo beans drained and rinsed (Chickpeas)
• 1/4 to 1/2 cup chopped green onions
• Juice of half a lemon
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

Method:

1. In a small saucepan combine quinoa with the chicken stock and bring to a boil. 
2. Once it boils reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes. 
3. Turn off the heat and let it sit for 5 minutes. 
4. Fluff with a fork and set aside to cool completely. 
5. You can set it in the refrigerator to speed the cooling.

While the quinoa is cooling prepare the rest of the ingredients. I left the amounts of beans and green onion to your discretion. We enjoy green onion so I added the full 1/2 cup. Mix together all these ingredients with the cooled quinoa and enjoy as a side dish or a meal. You can easily make this a vegetarian dish by cooking the quinoa with water or vegetable stock instead of the chicken stock.