Peanut Crunch Asian Edamame Quinoa Salad, Packed with Plant Protein

Peanut Crunch Asian Edamame Quinoa Salad is a meal that is as vibrant and colorful as it is nutritious -the perfect balance of flavor, texture, and good, clean fuel for your body. At just 193 calories per serving, it’s a smart choice for healthy eating without sacrificing taste. Plus, it’s packed with plant protein and more that 20% of your daily fiber needs to keep you satisfied throughout the day.

PLANT PROTEIN TRIO

I love it when a plant-based salad, like this Peanut Edamame Quinoa, boasts an impressive protein content—11 grams per serving—thanks to the dynamic trio of quinoa, edamame, and peanuts. Quinoa is a complete protein, meaning it contains all nine essential amino acids your body needs, making it a fantastic plant-based option. Edamame, or young soybeans, is another excellent protein source, rich in antioxidants and phytonutrients. And let’s not forget the peanuts! While they add a satisfying crunch, they also contribute a dose of protein and healthy fats, balancing flavor and nutrition. Together, these three ingredients make this salad a powerhouse for muscle repair, energy, and overall health.

FRESH VEGGIE INGREDIENTS

In addition to quinoa and edamame, this peanut crunch salad recipe is loaded with fresh, colorful vegetables that bring both crunch and a wealth of vitamins and minerals.

  • Carrots: A vibrant source of beta-carotene, which supports healthy vision and skin.
  • Cucumber: Hydrating and refreshing, cucumbers add a light crunch and are rich in vitamin K.
  • Celery: Crisp and fibrous, celery is a low-calorie addition packed with antioxidants.
  • Red Onion: Adds a zesty kick while providing vitamin C and beneficial compounds that support heart health.

These ingredients don’t just make the Asian Edamame Quinoa Salad look stunning and taste so crispy fresh, they also provide essential nutrients to keep you feeling your best. If you don’t like one of these ingredients, omit or swap – this recipe is forgiving. For example, you could do green onion instead of red onion, zucchini instead of carrot, or red bell peppers instead of or in addition to the carrots!

LOW-FAT PEANUT DRESSING

I’m all about moderation, that’s why the tangy peanut dressing uses peanut butter powder to capture the nutty flavor and creaminess without the extra fat and calories that using regular peanut butter would. This smart swap keeps the Asian peanut dressing with peanut butter powder recipe irresistibly tasty while lowering the total fat content to just 5 grams per serving  — and you still get to use chopped Spanish peanut in the salad toss.

MEAL PREPPING QUINOA SALAD

This salad isn’t just delicious—it’s practical too as are basically all high-protein quinoa salads. It stays fresh and crisp in an air-tight container (these are great, reusable meal prep containers) for up to 4-5 days in the fridge, making it a perfect option for meal prep. Whip up a batch at the start of the week and enjoy it as a grab-and-go lunch or an easy dinner side. Since it’s best served cold, it’s ideal for a brown-bag lunch, an on-the-go meal, or even a quick eat-at-your-desk solution. No reheating required—just open your container and dig in! If you’d like to make it heartier, add pre-cooked protein options like grilled shrimp, chopped chicken breast or salmon bites.

Peanut Crunch Asian Edamame Quinoa Salad
Prep Time
15 mins
Total Time
15 mins
 

Vibrant, colorful, and fun to eat! This Peanut Crunch Asian Edamame Quinoa Salad is a nutrient-packed powerhouse with only 193 calories, 11g protein, and over 20% of your daily fiber needs per serving. It's great for meal prep!

Course: entree salad, Salad, Side Dish
Cuisine: Asian, meal prep, pot luck
Keyword: edamame, peanut butter powder, peanuts, quinoa
Servings: 6 servings
Calories: 193 kcal
Ingredients
  • 2 cups COOKED Quinoa
  • 1 cup chopped cucumber
  • 1 cup shelled edamame soybeans
  • 1/3 cup chopped red onion
  • 1/3 cup chopped celery
  • 1 cup julienned carrots
  • 1/3 cup chopped cilantro
  • 1/3 cup chopped roasted Spanish peanuts
  • For Dressing:
  • 2 Tbsp rice vinegar
  • 2 Tbsp maple syrup
  • 1 Tbsp ginger paste or fresh grated
  • 2 tsp ginger paste or fresh minced
  • 2 Tbsp water
  • 2 Tbsp coconut aminos or soy sauce
  • 2 Tbsp fresh lime juice
  • ¼ cup peanut butter powder like Pbfit
Instructions
  1. Cook quinoa according to package instructions to yield 2 cups cooked.
  2. Let quinoa cool to at least room temperature.
  3. In large bowl, toss together all salad ingredients.
  4. In small bowl, whisk together dressing ingredients (alternately, you can shake up salad ingredients in a mason jar).
  5. Drizzle dressing over salad; stir well to distribute evenly.
  6. Best serve cold, in my opinion. Leftovers stay fresh covered in fridge for 4-5 days.
Recipe Notes

Thai Cucumber Grapefruit Salad

My Thai Cucumber Grapefruit Salad is a crunchy and crazy-tasty way to bring color to your winter dinner – and add a welcomed punch of vitamin C. I love citrus season and coming up with new ways to use all the different varieties –like lemons, limes, oranges, tangerines and, today, grapefruit in a citrus salad!

Thai Grapefruit Cucumber Salad

Read on to get all the juicy details on this 15-minute recipe inspired by the tastes of Thailand. Continue reading

Blue Cheese Strawberry Salad with Spring Veggies

Strawberry Blue Cheese Cucumber Salad small bowlNot only is it Monday, but it’s raining! I’m going to brighten up my mid-day meal with this Strawberry Blue Cuke Salad (aka Strawberry Blue Cheese Salad with Cucumber and Snap Peas), it’s bursting with fresh flavors and a palette of eye-popping colors.  It’s definitely the super-delicious, super-healthy silver-lining to being stuck-inside over the lunch hour!Blue Cheese Strawberry Salad with Cucumber and Snap Peas makes a fresh, fit and flavorful addition to your spring and summer table.

I originally developed this recipe for the Living Litehouse Blog as a way to feature their insanely delicious Chunky Blue Cheese Dressing.  Head over there to check out my Four Tips for a Sensational Salad. I know all the salad-eating secrets and how to keep the love for lettuce alive – I should, since I gobble up about 365 big salads a year!!

Shrimp sauteed with Cajun spicesMeanwhile, make a bowlful of this beautiful goodness and share family-style with those you love. I’m showing this salad as a side today, but I’ll often turn it into apan sauteed shrimp, grilled chicken breast, or chickpeas to add some sustaining protein for the day.

Strawberry Blue Cuke Salad

Or, bottle up this easy salad in a mason jar to take for lunch on-the-go at the office, school or gym.  Just remember the number one tip with jar salads, put the dressing on the bottom and layer upward according to the durability of the ingredients – heartiest go low, fragile an prone to wilt go higher. Check out more jar salad tips hereStrawberries, Snap Peas and StrawberriesDue to my Kitchenaid Spiralizer Attachment addiction, I processed the cucumbers up into twisty-twirly ribbons. But, feel free to use slices or julienned strips. Enjoy!

Check out these blogs I’m linking up with today: The Fit Foodie MamaHello to FitFairy BurgerChocolate Runner GirlConfessions of a Mother Runner, , Running on Happy

Win a $25 Visa Gift Card at TheFitFork.comAlso, don’t forget to check out 4 Ways to Eat a Bean Burger and enter my giveaway for $25 Visa Gift Card

 

What is your favorite fruit topping for a salad? Please share in the comments below – XOXO, Jennifer

Blue Cheese Strawberry Salad with Cucumbers and Snap Peas
Prep Time
10 mins
Total Time
10 mins
 
Blue cheese and strawberries make a bold and delicious combination -- add to crunch cucumber spirals and sugar snap peas for a crunch and colorful addition to your spring and summer table.
Course: Fruit, Salad, Side Dish
Cuisine: American
Servings: 4 Servings
Ingredients
  • 1 large seedless cucumbers
  • 1 pint strawberries
  • 4 oz. sugar snap peas
  • 1/2 cup blue cheese dressing
  • 2 oz. blue cheese crumbles I used Litehouse Brand
Instructions
  1. Prepare cucumbers with spiralizer or use vegetable peeler to make long ribbons by swiping end to end. Place prepped cucumber in colander and rinse away any seeds (even “seedless” have some) and let drain for 5 minutes.
  2. Hull and quarter strawberries.
  3. Cut sugar snap peas in half crosswise or larger ones in thirds. Slice a few open lengthwise at the seam to show off peas inside.
  4. Layer in jar in this order: dressing, cucumbers, strawberries, snap peas, and blue cheese. Or, toss with dressing and serve in bowl or on platter.

Spiralized Cucumber, Grapefruit and Avocado Salad

(Edited 1/19/2021)

Spring has really sprung here in Austin, so naaaaaaturally I’m talking spiralized salads . . . . and trail running shoes.  

You'll love this Spiralized Cucumber, Grapefruit and Avocado Salad with Creamy Avocado Ranch Dressing.  It's vibrant and very convenient, relying on the delicious, juicy grapefruits and other veggies found in the produce department this time of year.

You’ll love this Spiralized Cucumber, Grapefruit and Avocado Salad with Creamy Avocado Ranch Dressing. It’s vibrant and very convenient, relying on the delicious, juicy grapefruits still hanging around the product department. Read on to get the spiralized cucumber salad recipe and Altra Superior shoe review.

Buh-Bye Bloat! Dandelion Greens Detox Smoothie

Dandelion Greens Detox Smoothie is a low-cal way to cleanse your system and tame tummy troubles.Oh, we all have those days when the dreaded bloat is out of control. Personally, sometimes my tummy can stick out more than my butt.  I’ve reduced my family to tears of hysteria (and fear) on more than one occasion by sticking out my distended middle as far as humanly possible – I look like a skinny 6-month pregnant woman or have an awful basketball sized tumor!  Maybe it’s too much salt, not enough water, low fiber intake, that time of the month . . . or all of the above. I think we can all agree that being bloated and retaining water is not only an uncomfortable feeling, but also a self-confidence shaker – even though we all know that by eating healthfully, this gut grief not a lasting situation. Can’t believe I’m doing this, but I’ll share pictures of me taken within a short period of time — before dinner and already bloated (left) and feeling fabulous early one morning (right)! .

Rather than staying swollen up like a balloon, you can stop the suffering and get on the path to that slim and trim you with my Dandelion Greens Detox Smoothie.  Packed with all sorts of healthy ingredients that promote healthy digestion and hydration, this green smoothie recipe is also very light, so you don’t have to fret about overdoing the liquid calories.

Dandelion Greens Detox Smoothie is a low-cal way to cleanse your system and tame tummy troubles

detox smoothie nutrition

For under 120 calories, you get a 20-ounce glass of goodness that has no added sugar, progresses you towards your daily fiber needs, and even has a touch of protein from the dandelion (surprise!) It’s also rich in many vitamins and minerals, especially potassium, magnesium, calcium and vitamin K.

Here’s a rundown on the ingredients and how they can tame your tummy troubles.

Cucumber: Not only is this veggie is loaded with water (95% to be exact) which helps improve hydration, it also is a good source of a flavonoid antioxidant called quercetin that help reduce inflammation and puffiness – that’s why  we have all long-loved to put slices over our eyes.

Coconut Water: High in potassium and other electrolytes, this watery juice from inside the coconut helps to flush sodium out of the body and restore healthy hydration levels. For convenience, I love to have this Coconut Water Powder on hand.

Banana: Bananas are rich in potassium, a mineral that helps manage fluid levels in our bodies and can assist in shedding salt-related water retention. Also, this dietary fiber in this popular fruit keeps things moving along in your digestive system.

Ginger:  This root is a wonder when it comes to health benefits, anti-inflammatory, anti-nausea, migraine relief and more. It also contains an enzyme that optimized the absorption of proteins and Lessing protein-related bloating and gas in the process.

Dandelion Greens: Dandelion greens (as well as the root) are a fantastic detox food that cleanses the liver, flushing toxins and excess water out – perfect if you have lots of water retention. Dandelions have a surprising amount of protein for a “green” and even more calcium than spinach.  You can also use the greens (mainly found in the early spring) in salads or sautés or reap benefits from drinking a dandelion tea or taking a dandelion root extract or supplement.

Dandelion Greens Detox Smoothie is a low-cal way to cleanse your system and tame tummy troubles

Linking Up With: Happy Fit Mama, The Fit Foodie Mama, Hello to Fit, Fairy Burger, Chocolate Runner Girl, Jill Conyers,

Have you ever tried dandelion greens before? What do you do to beat bloating? Please share in the comments below – XOXO, Jennifer 

Dandelion Greens Detox Smoothi
Prep Time
5 mins
Total Time
5 mins
 
Tame your tummy troubles with this low-cal smoothie filled with bloat-busting ingredients like cucumber, dandelion greens, coconut water, ginger and more.
Course: Beverage, Breakfast, Smoothies, Snack
Cuisine: American
Servings: 1 20-ounce smoothie
Ingredients
  • 1 cup unsweetened coconut water
  • 1/2 cup chopped fresh dandelion greens can swap spinach, if unavailable
  • 1/2 cup banana slices
  • 1/2 cup peeled and seeded cucumber, cut in chunks
  • 1 teaspoon fresh squeezed lemon juce
  • 1 teaspoon fresh grated ginger root
  • optional couple drops of stevia
  • 1/2 cup ice, more if needed
Instructions
  1. Add all ingredients to blender and process until smooth, adding more ice if necessary. Pour into tall glass and enjoy immediately.