My sister regularly gets this blueberry mango quinoa salad with lemon basil dressing at the Marks and Spencer grocery store in UK. She also regularly raves about it to me. She says it’s the perfect healthy salad for summer – fruity, tangy, fresh and filling.
Marks and Spencer’s version of this salad has quinoa, barley, red rice, sprouts, mango, blueberry, and cucumbers. I simplified it a bit, and used only quinoa plus the fruits and cucumber.
Cut the cucumber and mango about the same size as the blueberries, so everything looks uniform. Add the fruits to the salad just before serving to ensure they are fresh and juicy. This salad recipe has as much fruits and vegetable as there is quinoa. If you want it less fruity just use less fruits or more quinoa.
The dressing recipe here will make a little more than you need. Toss half the dressing with the quinoa. Serve the other half on the side – this always pleases the people who like their salads extra tangy!
You can customize this blueberry mango quinoa salad recipe any way you like. Here are some suggestions to add to this recipe if you want some variations:
- Cooked chickpeas
- Any kind of sprouts
- Walnuts
- Cubed jicama
- Cubed carrot
- Fresh mint
Here is another recipe for blueberry mango quinoa salad with lemon basil dressing ala Marks and Spencer from foodwired
Blueberry Mango Quinoa Salad with Lemon Basil Dressing Recipe
Serves about 2
For the quinoa
1/2 cup quinoa
1 cup water
For the fruits and veggies
½ cup fresh blueberries
½ cup cubed ripe mangoes
½ cup cubed cucumbers
1/2 tablespoon dried cranberries
For the lemon basil dressing
1½ tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon lemon zest
10 Basil leaves, chopped finely
Salt and pepper
Place the quinoa and water in a medium skillet and bring to a boil. Then reduce heat, and simmer covered for about 15 minutes or till the quinoa is cooked. Remove the lid, and fluff the quinoa with a fork. Let it cool to room temperature.
While the quinoa is cooking, combine the fruits in a bowl and refrigerate till you are ready to serve the salad.
Whisk together all the dressing ingredients, except the chopped basil. Refrigerate till you are ready to serve. Chop and add the basil to the dressing just before serving. If you add it earlier, it will go black.
Add half the dressing to the quinoa and mix gently.
Assemble the salad just before serving – toss the quinoa, fruits and cucumbers together. Serve other half of the dressing on the side. Serve immediately.
{ 40 comments… read them below or add one }
This is a gorgeous salad with wonderful flavours. I have half a mango looking to be used but no blueberries. I think I need to head to the store pronto!
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That looks beautiful! Love the colors and I bet the flavors are amazing!
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Yumm and I love that strainer
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Sala,
Mango and blueberries make such a fantastic combination. Since the time I’ve realized this season, I just can’t stop thinking of incorporating them in any recipe possible.
This salad looks so refreshingly colorful and yes, so full of health..
The first shot and the one with fruits on the strainer are my favorite shots.
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Gorgeous colors, Sala! Sounds yummy and I can now imagine you taking the photo in your nice space. Maybe you’ll convert me to be a quinoa-lover one day. I keep trying and failing!
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bettyalice199 Reply:
March 16th, 2012 at 1:23 pm
Not hard to become a quinoa lover. Have you tried it in place of the wheat in Tabbouleh?
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Salty and sweet is such a winning combination. I can’t wait to try this one out.
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Beautiful! Loved the colours..
Rinku’s Kitchen Treats – Kinnathappam Malabar Style
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I have never had salade like this, looks so so good, I am in love with your blue plate too.
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Yum yum yum!! That’s all I can say. I’m a huge fan of quinoa, and I’m constantly on a lookout for new quinoa recipe. This is perfect. This salad looks so good, I can almost lick my screen;)
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It was not until a couple weeks back that I tried/tasted quinoa and now I am a HUGE fan of it!
That looks like a nice and refreshing recipe. Will give it a try since I love mangoes and the li’l one in the family can eat anything with blueberries in it so this recipe should be a hit in the family!
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Wonderful flavors and rich textures too. Loved the lemon basil dressing.
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Beautiful! I think I’d like your simple version. I just made a strawberry grain salad with basil in it. The herb makes for a great flavor combo with sweet fruit!
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This looks delicious. I love the lemon-basil dressing. Thanks for the tip about adding the basil at the last minute – I would have botched that for sure.
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Made this tonight it was delicious!!! Will be making it again soon thanks for the great recipe!
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Can you estimate calories per serving?
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I love fruit and grain salads, and the colors in this one are beautiful. Looks delicious!
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I’m not sure if I should thank you or curse you for sharing this recipe. I can’t stop eating it — soooooooooooooo good!
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Am curious as to whether you put this together for the colour or for the taste.. This is gorgeously vibrant
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This looks fabulous! Is it possible to use frozen mango for this? Wondering how it would hold up.
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Sala @ Veggie Belly Reply:
June 15th, 2011 at 12:31 pm
Yes you could use frozen defrosted mango
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Ooh I love the taste of tangy, cucumbery quinoa. Never thought of adding mangoes and blueberries. Stunning photography. Glad I discovered this site
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Made this last weekend and it was a HIT!!!! Followed the recipe to a T and it was super easy. LOOOOOOVE it and can’t wait to make it again!
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Great colors here! I love the sweeter salad type…I always end up making a savory one. This would definitely change things up a bit for me!
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Oh wow this looks incredible! And can’t say I have ever seen it at Marks… maybe our store in Cambridge is a bit too simple! Will have a go tomorrow… which mangoes did you use? We have some Alphonso… just discovered your blog, so I have many exciting recipes to look forward to
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Sala @ Veggie Belly Reply:
June 17th, 2011 at 1:12 am
I used to live in Cambridge! Yes, the M&S there is pretty small! I used mexican mangoes.
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What a colourful, healthy and gorgeous-looking salad! Quinoa salads have something very addictive, I find!
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I’m totally making this sometime this summer. It looks so fresh and delicious!
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Gasp! I want this tomorrow…I love foods like this…I try to be a health nut and this looks like it fits the bill for health, beauty, and deliciousness. Thanks for sharing!
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This looks absolutely delicious! Love the combo of quinoa and blueberries – I wil definitely try this when summer comes around to South Africa again!
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This was a delicious salad. The dressing was a bit subtle but I liked it. I wrote about it here: http://tastespace.wordpress.com/2011/06/24/blueberry-mango-quinoa-salad-with-a-lemon-basil-dressing/
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I just stumbled onto your blog via a Google search for “blogs and vegetarian” and am I EVER happy I did? Your photos are amazing and the recipes SO tempting! Thanks for sharing!
/Zarah in Sweden
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I would like to try all teh recipes on your blog! everything is beautiful. Sucha pleasure to come here to see the food and your photographs. I am so making htis salad with some pearl couccous that a friend had sent to me. I hope it will look as beautiful as yours! The colours are brilliant. I must look for a blue plate like in your picture. So beautiful.
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This salad looks and sounds AMAZING! Simply gorgeous. Can’t wait to try it!
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Nice combination of flavors! I subsituted peaches from a farmer’s market for mangoes, added pecans and added little cayenne pepper to the dressing. Yum!
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Sala @ Veggie Belly Reply:
September 18th, 2011 at 6:42 pm
love the peaches and cayenne! glad you liked the salad
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This sounds fantastic! I love your ‘Basil’ fork as well, where did you find it?
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Sala @ Veggie Belly Reply:
December 14th, 2011 at 8:30 am
the fork is from etsy
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Thanks so much for this awesome recipe! Just used it on my lifestyle blog (www.athenafey.com) under a “non-leafy salad” post. I’ve never been able to like leafy salads and the quinoa is a great substitute. Thanks! Hope you liked the shout on on http://www.athenafey.com as well!
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I made a 1/2 batch of this salad and now I wish I would have made a double! This really was so good
Next time I think I will add more mango just for personal preference. Thanks for posting!
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How well do you think this recipe would work for making ahead of time? I could wait to combine the quinoa with the fruit until just before serving, and hold off ’til the last on the basil too of course. That brings up another question. If the above WOULD be okay, should I wait until just before mealtime to toss the quinoa with the dressing or is okay to let it sit overnight already “dressed”?
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Sala @ Veggie Belly Reply:
March 29th, 2012 at 6:12 pm
you could do it 2 ways –
1. keep the fruits, quinoa, dressing, and basil all seperate. and combine in the last minute.
or
2. toss the quinoa and dressing ahead of time, and add the fruits and basil in the last minute.
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I quadrupled the recipe. I had no fresh blueberries so I substituted strawberries. I added mint, garbanzo beans and cherry tomatoes. Also, I a bunch of bulgur, so I used that instead. In turned out awesome. I will add some shredded chicken to it to make it a full meal salad. I may try this again. Thanks
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I made this salad last night for a cookout with friends and it was amazing. I think it’s all I want to eat for the rest of spring/summer!
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Just featured this recipe paired with a Fume Blanc as the Daily Nosh on VirtualWineBar.com.
Cheers!
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We had fun this weekend picking blueberries with our families and were looking for recipes. Thanks for sharing, I can’t wait to try this with my daughter. I’ve shared your link on our site with Little Hands that Cook with Books and Blueberries. http://theeducatorsspinonit.blogspot.com/2012/05/30-ways-to-eat-blueberries.html
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