Everyone always loves this Thai Quinoa Salad recipe that perfectly balances fresh, crunchy vegetables and quinoa, drizzled with a delicious peanut sauce.

Do you love Thai food as much as I do? Try this Spring Roll Bowl, Fresh Spring Rolls, or Drunken Noodles (Pad Kee Mao)!

A picture of the best Thai Quinoa Salad recipe in a large bowl, ready to serve.

Why I love this recipe:

Healthy – This Thai Quinoa Salad is just as delicious as it is healthy! I like to make a big batch for meal prep lunches during the week.
Fresh – All of the vegetables make the salad not only beautiful but so fresh and delicious. The combination of red bell pepper, purple cabbage, onion, carrots, edamame, cilantro, and green onion bring so many delicious flavors together.
Flavorful – The homemade peanut sauce blends all the flavors together and really makes this the best quinoa salad!

How to make Thai Quinoa Salad:

Cook Quinoa: Prepare quinoa according to package directions. You should have a little over 2 cups of cooked quinoa.

Make Sauce: Add peanut butter and honey to a microwave safe bowl and heat in microwave for 10-20. Stir until smooth.

Peanut butter and honey in a bowl for a peanut sauce.

Add in ginger, soy sauce, vinegar, sesame oil, olive oil and sriracha and stir until smooth and creamy. If necessary, thin the dressing by adding a little more olive oil or some water. Taste and add more hot sauce, if desired.

Peanut butter, honey, ginger, soy sauce, vinegar, sesame oil, olive oil, and sriracha in a bowl with a rubber spatula.

Pour Sauce on Quinoa: Drizzle half of the Quinoa salad dressing over the cooked and cooled quinoa. Toss to combine.

A homemade peanut sauce being poured on quinoa to make a quinoa salad.

Chop Vegetables: In a large bowl combine the red pepper, onion, cabbage, carrots, edamame, and cilantro.

Chopped red pepper, onion, cabbage, carrots, edamame, and cilantro in a white serving bowl.

Combine: Fold the quinoa into the vegetables. Add as much of the remaining dressing as you’d like (to taste).

Quinoa poured on top of chopped vegetables to make an easy Thai Quinoa Salad.

Serve: Add cashews and garnish with green onions right before serving this healthy quinoa salad. Enjoy!

A close up image of a Thai Quinoa Salad in a large bowl, ready to enjoy!

Tips for Success:

A great tip to make this Asian quinoa salad recipe even easier is to chop all of the veggies the day before. Also, cook the quinoa the night before so it can cool in the fridge. You can also make the peanut dressing several days in advance, if you want. Store it in an airtight container, in the fridge.

Add the dressing to the salad gradually, to taste. You may not want to use it all. Also, I wouldn’t add the dressing until right before you’re going to serve the salad. And my last tip: save the cashews until the end, right when you’re ready to serve, so that they stay crunchy.

Make Ahead Instructions:

To Make Ahead: The veggies, quinoa, and peanut sauce can all be made in advance to make this quinoa salad even more effortless! Store everything separately in airtight containers in the fridge.

Recipe Variations:

Chicken Quinoa Salad: To make it even more filling, feel free to throw in some chopped grilled chicken or air fryer tofu.

More Favorite Salads:

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I originally shared this recipe January 2017. Updated January 2023.

About The Author

Lauren Allen

Welcome! I’m Lauren, a mom of four and lover of good food. Here you’ll find easy recipes and weeknight meal ideas made with real ingredients, with step-by-step photos and videos.

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