Red Quinoa with Cilantro and Lime

This Gluten-Free Vegan Red Quinoa with Cilantro and Lime dish is an easy and healthy recipe to make with only 4 clean, real food ingredients. It's perfect to pair with your favorite Mexican dishes, can be made on the stove-top or with an Instant Pot and is Medical Medium compliant!

This Red Quinoa with Cilantro and Lime recipe is perfect to make using freshly made or leftover quinoa!

Gluten-Free Vegan Red Quinoa with Cilantro and Lime

Here's why this recipe works - my top 3 reasons:

1. Can be made on the stove-top or with an Instant Pot
2. Ready in under 20 minutes
3. Made with only 4 clean, real food ingredients

Can Be Made On The Stove-Top or With An Instant Pot

You can make the quinoa needed for this recipe using either the stove-top method or with an Instant Pot.

They will both take approximately 15 minutes to cook the quinoa, but the Instant Pot will have less "hand-on" time involved.

For example, with the Instant Pot, you'll just add the quinoa and water, set it and walk away until it's ready.

Ready In Under 20 Minutes

You'll love how this recipe is ready to enjoy in under 20 minutes.

As previously mentioned, both methods of preparing the quinoa will take about 15 minutes and then you'll need about 5 minutes prep time.

Once the quinoa is ready, you will add everything to a mixing bowl and stir it together.

And, if you already have leftover quinoa, you could have this recipe ready in about 5 minutes. 

You could enjoy it as a stand-alone side dish or use it as a filling for a tortilla wrap, lettuce wrap or even in a salad.

Made With Only 4 Clean, Real Food Ingredients

This simple and easy recipe is made with only 4 real food ingredients like quinoa, cilantro, lime, and Himalayan pink salt.

It has the tangy flavor of lime with a hint of cilantro and has a plant-based protein that quinoa is known for.

My healthy recipe is plant-based, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, soy-free, nut-free, oil-free, and Medical Medium compliant.

How To Make Red Quinoa with Cilantro and Lime: Step-by-Step Instructions

Here is how to make this recipe and I'll show you with step-by-step instructions below.

Step 1: Gather All Ingredients

Firstly, gather, measure and prep all the ingredients needed to make the recipe.

Step 2: Cook the Quinoa

Secondly, there are two different methods of preparing quinoa. Both will take approximately 20 minutes from start to finish:

1. Stove-Top Method: Cook the quinoa in a saucepan on a stove-top according to the package directions.
2. Instant Pot Method: Add the quinoa, water and 1-2 pinches of Himalayan pink salt to the Instant Pot container. Use these settings:

• PRESSURE COOK
• HIGH PRESSURE
• 5 MINUTES
• VENT CLOSED

Once the quinoa has cooked for 5 minutes, allow the pressure to release naturally (approximately 10-15 minutes). 

Step 3: Add All Ingredients Together

Thirdly, add the cooked quinoa along with the remaining ingredients to a medium-sized mixing bowl and stir until well combined.

Taste and adjust the seasonings to your preference.

Step 4: How To Store The Quinoa

Lastly, store the quinoa in an air-tight BPA-free container in the refrigerator.

It can be enjoyed cold or warm and can be added to wraps, in a salad or used as a side dish.

Expert Tips and Ingredient Substitutions for Red Quinoa with Cilantro and Lime

Here are some expert tips to make this recipe perfectly:

Quinoa. I used red quinoa to give the dish color, but you could use any variety of quinoa as a substitute. In addition, this is a great dish to make if you already have leftover quinoa. Just add the chopped cilantro, lime juice, and salt and your dish is ready in less than 5 minutes!

Water. I highly recommend using filtered/purified water to cook your quinoa instead of tap water - especially if you are following the Medical Medium protocol. For example, I use a Berkey water filter system when cooking in all my recipes.

Cilantro. Fresh, fresh, fresh! Use fresh cilantro and chop it into pieces as small as possible.

Lime Juice. Freshly squeezed lime juice is going to give you the best flavor and nutritional benefits since it hasn't been pasteurized, but you can substitute with store-bought organic lime juice.

Himalayan Pink Salt. This is my salt of preference, however, you can always substitute with sea salt. 

Optional Add-Ins: If you want to make this dish spicy, add 1/2 teaspoon organic chipotle powder or (1) diced jalapeno! And, if you want to make a meal out of it with extra protein and fiber, try my Red Quinoa and Mango Salad with Lime Dressing (just omit the organic corn to be 100% Medical Medium compliant).

Want More Healthy Plant-Based Side Dish Recipes?

Check out these: 

• Spicy Turmeric Twice Baked Potatoes 
• Zucchini Boats with Creamy Garlic Sauce  
• Acorn Squash Rings with Walnuts and Dried Apricots
• or my CLEAN EATING Cookbook with 75+ plant-based vegan + gluten-free recipes just like this one that you will love!

Gluten-Free Vegan Red Quinoa with Cilantro and Lime

This Gluten-Free Vegan Red Quinoa with Cilantro and Lime dish is an easy and healthy recipe to make with only 4 clean, real food ingredients. It's perfect to pair with your favorite Mexican dishes, can be made on the stove-top or with an Instant Pot!

{ Plant-Based | Vegan | Gluten-Free | Dairy-Free | Soy-Free | Nut-Free | Oil-Free | Instant-Pot | Medical Medium }

5 from 3 votes

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Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 25 minutes

Yields: 10 servings

Calories : 127

Equipment

• Instant Pot

Ingredients

For the quinoa:

• ▢ 2 cups organic red quinoa (uncooked)
• ▢ 2 1/2 cups water (filtered/purified) (filtered/purified)

For the seasonings:

• ▢ 2 handfuls organic fresh cilantro (chopped)
• ▢ 1/4 cup organic lime juice (freshly squeezed)
• ▢ 1/2 teaspoon Himalayan pink salt

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Prepare the quinoa:

• Stove-Top Method: Prepare quinoa according to package directions.
• Instant Pot Method: Add (2) cups of quinoa + 2 1/2 cups water to an Instant Pot. Use these settings: HIGH PRESSURE--> PRESSURE COOK --> 5 MINUTES --> with the VENT CLOSED. After the quinoa has cooked for 5 minutes, allow the pressure to release naturally (approximately 10-15 minutes).

Assembly:

• Add the cooked quinoa and all seasoning ingredients to a medium-sized bowl and stir until well combined.
• Taste and adjust the seasonings to your preference.
• Serve warm or cold, as a side dish, as a filling in a wrap or sprinkle over a salad.
• Store in an air-tight BPA-free container in the refrigerator.

Recipe Notes

Quinoa. I used red quinoa to give the dish color, but you could use any variety of quinoa as a substitute. In addition, this is a great dish to make if you already have leftover quinoa. Just add the chopped cilantro, lime juice, and salt and your dish is ready in less than 5 minutes!

Water. I highly recommend using filtered/purified water to cook your quinoa instead of tap water – especially if you are following the Medical Medium protocol. For example, I use a Berkey water filter system when cooking in all my recipes.

Cilantro. Fresh! Fresh! Fresh! Use fresh cilantro and chop it into pieces as small as possible.

Lime Juice. Freshly squeezed lime juice is going to give you the best flavor and nutritional benefits since it hasn’t been pasteurized, but you can substitute with store-bought organic lime juice.

Himalayan Pink Salt. This is my salt of preference, however, you can always substitute with sea salt. 

Optional Add-Ins: If you want to make this dish spicy, add 1/2 teaspoon organic chipotle powder or (1) diced jalapeno! 

Serving Size: This recipe will make approximately (5) cups. Nutritional information is calculated for 1/2 cup which is (1) serving.

Nutrition Information

Serving: 1svgs | Calories: 127kcal | Carbohydrates: 22g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 2g | Sodium: 121mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 1g | Calcium: 18mg

Course:Side Dish

Cuisine:American

Recipe Author: Karielyn Tillman

Did You Make This Recipe?Leave a Rating + Comment Below!

Karielyn Tillman

Hi, I'm Karielyn! I'm the published cookbook author of CLEAN DESSERTS and content creator of The Healthy Family and Home™ website since 2012. I specialize in creating easy, healthy plant-based and Medical Medium® compliant recipes that are gluten-free + vegan and made with clean, real food ingredients that you can feel good about eating.