Moroccan Citrus Salad with Quinoa

February 2, 2023 45 Comments

Moroccan citrus salad of oranges and kalamata olives dressed in a spicy vinaigrette. Add peppery arugula and quinoa for a vegetarian main dish.

This recipe was originally posted in January 2012, and updated January 2020.

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Salad of baby spinach, orange slices, quinoa, and kalamata olives dressed in a Moroccan vinaigrette.

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❤️ Why you'll love this recipe
🍊 Why use citrus now
🧅 Main Ingredients + Notes
🔪 Recommended Equipment
📝 Instructions Overview
⏰ Tips to Simplify and Save Time
💡Ideas for Possible Variations
Moroccan Citrus Salad with Quinoa

Citrus is at its peak right now, and brightening hearty winter salads is one of the best ways to use it. Like this Moroccan Citrus Salad that I love to make all winter, or one of my Sumo citrus salad recipes with cauliflower, olives and feta. Or this Asian Winter Salad.

And quinoa salads are wonderful with citrus, like in this quinoa, avocado and black bean salad with lime vinaigrette. Or you may prefer couscous salads, such as this Bok Choy Salad Recipe with Couscous! It's perfect in spring with fresh asparagus and strawberries.

❤️ Why you'll love this recipe

Great way to use citrus that's in season.
Main dish with protein from the quinoa.
Light but filling meal.
Meat eaters at the table can use this as a side dish.

🍊 Why use citrus now

Variety

Grapefruit, oranges, lemons, limes are the most common. But, in winter, they're joined by so many friends. Look for mandarin oranges, tangerines, tangelos, sumo, satsuma and Buddha's hand. Pomelo, closely related to the grapefruit, is considered the largest citrus. It offers a sweet, mild grapefruit flavor. Kumquats are unusual in that their rind is sweet, while the pulp is sour (although some kumquat strains boast a sweeter pulp).

Flavor

At their peak, citrus is at its sweetest, juiciest, and most flavorful. Many citrus can taste more sour, bitter or even bland when harvested at other times of the year as compared to now.

Nutrition

We all know citrus is loaded with vitamin C, and may shorten a cold. But they're also loaded with potassium, provide fiber, and are heart healthy. For bonus points: citrus, when added to nutritious greens, makes the green's nutrition more bioavailable. So, next time you're choosing some kale, Swiss chard, or collards, think about adding citrus to the mix.

🧅 Main Ingredients + Notes

For the all of the ingredients, measurements and directions, go to the Recipe Card at the bottom of this post.

Citrus Salad

Cooked quinoa
Oranges - use any seedless variety, such as navel, blood oranges, sumo mandarins, satsuma or tangerines.
Salad greens - The peppery flavor of arugula is a great foil for citrus and quinoa, but the arugula can be combined with other greens. Good examples are spinach, shown in the featured photo, baby kale or baby Swiss chard..
Shallots
Kalamata olives

Moroccan Vinaigrette

Sherry wine vinegar
Orange juice
Smoked paprika, I use Pimentón de la Vera
Cayenne pepper

Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links to products and foods I use in my kitchen. This means that at no additional cost to you, I will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase. To view my entire storefront of recommended kitchen tools and equipment, check out my shop on Amazon.

🔪 Recommended Equipment

Four process shots of making a citrus and quinoa salad with text overlay.

📝 Instructions Overview

Detailed instructions for making this citrus and quinoa salad are in the recipe card below, but here's an overview!

Step 1

Make the quinoa. If you don't already have cooked quinoa on hand, make it first and set it aside for cooling.

Step 2

Whisk. Whisk up all of the ingredients for the vinaigrette.

Step 3

Slice and toss. Peel and slice the oranges. Toss all of the salad ingredients together in a large bowl. Drizzle with the vinaigrette, and toss again.

⏰ Tips to Simplify and Save Time

Make the quinoa ahead of time, and store in a container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

💡Ideas for Possible Variations

Swap out quinoa for barley.
Toss ¼ cup chopped mint leaves with the greens.
Cook the quinoa with orange juice and stir in the zest of 1 lime when done.
Add roasted crunchy chickpeas spiced with curry and smoky paprika.
Add crumbled feta cheese over the top of the salad.

An optional topping for this salad is this pickled relish, with dried fruits such as dried apricots and golden raisins. If you choose to take this salad in this direction, nix the kalamata olives.

Don't have time to run to the grocery store? Order the ingredients for this recipe using Instacart (affiliate link). Just click on the Instacart button in the recipe card below, and the ingredients will all be organized for you on their site. Plug in your zip code, choose the store you prefer, and select the ingredients you want delivered to your home.

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3.72 from 7 votes