This 20-Minute Chicken Bruschetta Quinoa Salad is the perfect Summer meal!
Chicken Bruschetta Quinoa Salad
If you’ve been following me for a while now, you probably already know how I feel about 20-minute meals. I LOVE THEM!
In fact, during the blissful Summer months, I think it’s almost criminal to spend too much time in the kitchen. And that’s coming from a girl who loves her kitchen. Time spent cooking = time not spent: swimming, hiking, drinking rose on the patio… I think you get my point!
Since I clearly feel strongly about this subject, I wanted to set us up with a solid rotation of 20-minute meals to get us through Summer. Starting with this 20-Minute Chicken Bruschetta Quinoa Salad! It’s light but hearty, healthy but flavorful, and perfect for picnics, parties, or packed lunch. It’s an all-star meal!
Chicken Bruschetta Quinoa Salad Recipe
Tips and Tricks for Recipe Success:
- If you’re vegan or vegetarian, you can still make this recipe! Simply omit the chicken and enjoy.
- To keep this meal quick and easy, I used a store-bought rotisserie chicken. If you’d prefer to bake or grill chicken instead, it’ll work just fine! Just be aware it’ll no longer be a 20-minute meal.
- Choose the freshest tomatoes and basil you can find! These two ingredients add 99.9% of the flavor to this meal, so you want the best. I also suggest using quality olive oil.
- Because chicken stock adds flavor, I like to boil my quinoa in it – but you can definitely just use water for that step.
- You can use white quinoa, red quinoa, or a combination of colors. Up to you!
- If you have time, I recommend letting this salad chill for a few hours before serving. This allows the flavors to mix and mingle.
- This salad will keep for up to 3 days in the fridge! After that I find the tomatoes and basil start to turn.
I hope this 20-Minute Chicken Bruschetta Quinoa Salad makes its way into your Summer dinner rotation!
Ingredients
For the Quinoa:
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 cup pre-washed quinoa
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 cups chicken broth (or water)
For the Bruschetta:
- 6 ripe vine tomatoes, diced
- 3 cloves of garlic, minced
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
- 3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
- (1) 4 ounce package fresh basil, thinly sliced
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 rotisserie chicken, shredded into bite-sized pieces
Instructions
For the Quinoa:
Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a medium sauce pan over medium heat. Add the dry quinoa and cook, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes. Add broth and salt. Turn the heat up to high and bring to a boil. Cover pan tightly with lid, turn heat down to low and simmer for about 10 minutes, or until all of the liquid has been absorbed and the quinoa is cooked. Spoon the cooked quinoa to a heat safe mixing bowl and set in the fridge to cool for a few minutes while you prepare the Bruschetta.
For the Bruschetta:
In a large bowl combine the diced tomatoes, garlic, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, basil, salt, and pepper.
Assembly:
In a large bowl combine the quinoa, Bruschetta, and chicken. Serve at once, or chill until needed.