Last week my husband came home from a trip to Whole Foods, clutching a bag of dark grains in his hand. He had gone in hopes of replenishing our supply of red quinoa, but ventured into a bin in the bulk food sections labeled “Black Quinoa”. Aside from the darker color, this new version of one of our favorite grains didn’t look significantly different from its red sibling and, therefore, I assumed that the taste and texture would be the same.
According to Ernie New and John McCamant, two farmers who live in the high San Luis valley of Colorado, black quinoa was born by chance. When New and McCamant attempted to duplicate the growing conditions of the Andean Mountains, the seed of the white quinoa crossed with lamb’s quarter, a native North American plant. The result was a new species that is now called black quinoa. While the shape of the grain is similar to the traditional white and red versions, the texture is slightly crunchier and has a significantly nuttier flavor.
If you are unable to find black quinoa, don’t fret; this salad works just as well with white or red quinoa. The orange and cumin dressing, mixed with tender golden raisins, lends a Moroccan flavor to this easy side dish. It is a satisfying accompaniment to grilled meat. Alternatively, pair with beans for a protein-packed vegetarian meal. The leftovers, if there are any, can be stored in the refrigerator for a couple of days.
The recipe:
Pour quinoa into a fine mesh strainer and rinse until the water runs clear.
In a medium saucepan, combine quinoa, water and golden raisins. Bring to a boil, cover and reduce heat to low. Cook until all of the water is absorbed, about 20 minutes. Fluff quinoa with a fork and transfer to a medium bowl. Allow the quinoa to cool to room temperature.
The dressing:
In a small bowl, whisk together fresh orange juice, ground cumin and salt. While whisking, slowly pour in olive oil.
Toss the quinoa with the dressing and sliced green onions. Serve.
Other quinoa recipes:
Cookin’ Canuck’s (from The Church Cook) Red Quinoa, Black Bean & Bell Pepper Salad
Cookin’ Canuck’s Quinoa with Caramelized Crimini Mushrooms, Soy Sauce & Ginger
Gluten-Free Girl’s Quinoa with Spring Vegetables & Walnut-Kale Pesto
Food 52′s One Pot Kale & Quinoa Pilaf
Eclectic Recipes’ Black Bean Mango Quinoa Salad
Black Quinoa with Orange & Cumin Dressing
1 cup black quinoa (red or white can be substituted)
2 cups water
1/4 cup golden raisins
Dressing:
3 tbsp fresh orange juice
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp kosher salt
2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
2 green onions, thinly sliced
Pour quinoa into a fine mesh strainer and rinse until the water runs clear.
n a medium saucepan, combine quinoa, water and golden raisins. Bring to a boil, cover and reduce heat to low. Cook until all of the water is absorbed, about 20 minutes. Fluff quinoa with a fork and transfer to a medium bowl. Allow the quinoa to cool to room temperature.
The dressing:
In a small bowl, whisk together fresh orange juice, ground cumin and salt. While whisking, slowly pour in olive oil.
Toss the quinoa with the dressing and sliced green onions. Serve.
Serves 4 to 6 as side dish.






















{ 39 comments… read them below or add one }
The recipe look so simple and easy to make, have not seen black quinoa..the salad look so refreshing & healthy. Lovely presentation, D!
What an awesome picture and just love the black quinoa with orange delish!
The dressing sounds delicious. What an absolutely perfect picture of a healthy and tasty salad!
Hi Dara,

First of all thank you for recipe, looks delisious ( great images).
your recipe has been added to my check list
i hope it will looks the same as your images, amen!!!
thanks again!
The salad dressing in this sounds especially good. I love making new recipes with quinoa. I must try this!
i like quinoa, but you definitely have to dress it up a bit to make it super enjoyable…and i’d say that’s exactly what you’ve done! sounds delicious!
I’ve had a similar dish containing rice, orange juice, and cumin, and LOVED it! This sounds fab!
Black quinoa? Never seen it! I need to be a little more experienced w/ quinoa…
Lori, once we started working quinoa into our diets, we couldn’t get enough of it. One of the beauties of this whole grain is that it cooks so quickly.
I love using red and black quinoa – it adds such a great pop of color! This would be fantastic with some black beans, too.
I agree, Brandi. Black beans would be a great addition, particularly if you wanted to make this into a full meal.
Thanks for this information, I always buy white, red an black but didn’t know the story behind the black variety. I find that it takes longer to cook, I usually mix them to make tricolor quinoa dishes. I’m always looking for new ways to serve quinoa so I’ll be trying this dressing soon
This is beautiful!
How pretty…I love that you made them into little mounds. I really love your ingredients, nice combination!
What an incredibly delicious looking dish! I love quinoa and I know my husband and I both would enjoy this so much. Now, to find the black stuff…
Georgia, don’t let the black quinoa hold you back. This dish would work just as well with red or white quinoa.
This looks so simple and yummy. I’ve been wanting to try Quinoa..can I use the regular light coloured instead of black? I’ve never seen black Quinoa around here.
Asiya – yes, you can use white or red quinoa in place of the black.
I LOVE quinoa! This looks delicious!
I love Quinoa! Thanks for a new idea! It looks super tasty!
I have some black quinoa and keep meaning to try it. This sounds like a great way to use it!
This looks amazing! I’m so loving quinoa right now so I will have to try this!
I didn’t know the history of this – what a neat story! Looks delicious.
What a beautiful salad and such tasty ingredients. I have had white quinoa, but now I will hit my neighborhood Whole Foods for the black variety. Love the crunch. Thanks for stopping by my blog. I’m looking forward to meeting you at Camp, too.
I like the versatility of quinoa and the way different colors play off different foods. I am planning to experiment with black quinoa and ingredients like pineapple and walnuts that seem to disappear against white quinoa.
This looks totally yummy, but I have to ask where those beautiful bowls were purchased. I’m a sucker for anything that nests…
Melanie, I found those dishes at our local Asian market. They have great deals on dishes.
Now I am going to have to go on a hunt for Black Quinoa!! I am with you Dara, once I tried quinoa I couldn’t get enough of it either!
I found a bag of black quinoa at Wegman’s grocery store last weekend and now I have a recipe! Looks yummy and love the black bean suggestion too. Thanks!
Hey Dara,
We eat a lot of quinoa, but I’ve not found black quinoa yet. It’s so pretty and sounds delicious with the oranges.
I adore quinoa, and especially love that it is so good for you. I found quinoa pasta not too long ago and think I like that better than white flour pasta. I’m into red quinoa these days because I love the color mixed with vegetables, but I’ll have to check out black next!
I’ll be honest I have never tried quinoa…so this will be what I make when I give it a try! Sounds delicious
I adore quinoa, but I’m usually boring and go with the regular kind…this is so visually striking I’m totally tempted to branch out to the black stuff. Who knows – might even get really crazy and try the red…
I am obsessed with quinoa! I was so glad to find this recipe because my husband and I have quinoa about twice a week during the summer. He gets very tired of the same old recipes, even though he eats every bite! So, thanks for the inspiration. It was so great meeting you this weekend!
Loving all the flavors in this quinoa salad. It’s so nice to see different varieties of quinoa on the market more readily available. I like the red and black for their deep colors, makes salads look more exotic.
This looks so beautiful! Strangely, although I cook quinoa all the time I’ve never tried black quinoa. It’s interesting that the flavor is different from red and white. I’m going to go to Whole Foods this weekend and pick up some and try it with this recipe. Thanks for the inspiration and beautiful photographs!
White Quinoa crossed with Lamb’s Quarter’s? On it’s own? Not likely… Sounds like a GMOd thing to me!!
Hi Lynn, thanks so much for your kind and diplomatic comment. However, from all of the research I have done, it is my understanding that black quinoa is not a GMO food. However, if you come across information to the contrary, I would be happy to listen.
You must proceed your writing. I’m sure, you have a great readers’ base already!
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