Moroccan citrus salad of oranges and kalamata olives dressed in a spicy vinaigrette. Add peppery arugula and quinoa for a vegetarian main dish.
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Citrus is at its peak right now, and brightening hearty winter salads is one of the best ways to use it. Besides this Moroccan Citrus Salad that I love to make all winter, I often make this Winter citrus Salad with cauliflower, olives and feta and 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.
For more winter salad ideas, check out this post on what to cook in January.
❤️ 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, and 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 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
🔪 Recommended Equipment
- Dutch oven or other heavy pot
- Fine mesh strainer
- Chef's knife
- Whisk
📝 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 it in an airtight 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.
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Moroccan Citrus Salad with Quinoa
Equipment
- fine mesh strainer
Ingredients
Citrus Salad
- 1 cup cooked quinoa
- 2 large oranges, see notes
- 4 cups arugula and spinach (or other greens) see notes
- 2 large shallots, peeled and thinly sliced lengthwise
- 20 pitted kalamata olives, halved
Moroccan Vinaigrette
- 2 tablespoons sherry wine vinegar
- 2 tablespoons orange juice
- 2 teaspoons sweet paprika, I use Pimenton de la Vera
- ¼ teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
- ¼ teaspoon Kosher salt, to taste
- 6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Instructions
- Cook up the quinoa, if you don't have any on hand and you're cooking it from seed. Use these directions for cooking a perfect pot of quinoa.TIP: I typically either have cooked quinoa on hand or a bag of store-bought frozen quinoa in the freezer for a big time saver.
- While the quinoa cooks, make the Moroccan Vinaigrette. To do this, whisk together the sherry wine vinegar, orange juice and spices until spices and salt are dissolved. Whisk in the olive oil until emulsified. Set aside.
- Slice off the tops and bottoms of the oranges. Set them on their flat bottoms, and carefully slice away the peel and pith, leaving the fruit completely intact. Slice the whole, peeled, oranges horizontally in ¼" slices or bite-sized pieces.
- In a large bowl, combine the arugula and other greens you're using with the cooked quinoa, olives, and shallot. Add the orange slices and drizzle ½ the dressing over the mixture. Toss and add remaining dressing as desired.
Notes
TIPS
- Make this dish in 15 minutes by making the vinaigrette and quinoa in advance. I almost always have either a jar of quinoa already cooked tucked into the refrigerator, or a package of store-bought frozen quinoa in the freezer.
- Any seedless orange works great in this salad. I recommend navel oranges, blood oranges, tangerines, sumo mandarins, or satsuma.
- The peppery flavor of arugula is a winning combination with the quinoa and oranges, but can be combined with other greens, such as baby spinach, baby kale, or baby Swiss chard.
- Kick up the flavor even further:
- Cook the quinoa in orange juice, and a pinch each of salt and paprika.
- Stir the zest of 1 lime into the quinoa when it's cooked.
- Add ¼ cup chopped fresh mint leaves to the greens
Rosemary
This photo makes my mouth water! Moroccan Orange Salad will be on my table this week for sure!
The Wimpy Vegetarian
Thanks Rosemary! It's really one of my favorite salads this time of year. I hope you like it too! Bought beets yesterday to make your beet salad I found on your blog. Can't wait!
Rosemary
I really did make your salad last week! Love the olives with orange and quinoa.
As soon as I have time I'll try to post a citruslove recipe.
The Wimpy Vegetarian
Hey - I'm so glad you liked it! I keep making it here for lunch - it just so easy. I would love to see a citruslove recipe from you on the panel!!
LiztheChef
Oh gosh, I am planning to enter - guess I should have signed up to host...Susan, your recipe and photos absolutely sparkle. Brava re the new camera - I need a big nudge to order mine! Lovely post.
The Wimpy Vegetarian
You are the Meyer Lemon Queen!!!! You HAVE to post something, girlfriend! Really looking forward to seeing what you post!!
Georgie
WOW, your salad looks incredibly refreshing and so good! Happy New Year & enjoy the #citruslove!
The Wimpy Vegetarian
Thanks so much Georgie!! Happy New Year to you too!
EA-The Spicy RD
This is a gorgeous salad, and I love how you turned it into a main dish with quinoa and arugala! I'm imagining cara cara oranges in the salad...fabulous 🙂 So happy to be hosting another lovely bloghop with you!
The Wimpy Vegetarian
Cara cara oranges would be wonderful in this!! Thanks for stopping by - #citruslove back to you too!!
Carol Sacks
Susan, this recipe looks so fresh and tasty. Such a thoughtful mix of flavors and textures -- and I'm grain-crazy these days. I look forward to trying it soon.
The Wimpy Vegetarian
Hey thanks, Carol! Me too - I'm loving grains and greens this time of year. I think it's driving my husband a little crazy, but he's mostly ok with it as long as I throw down a beautiful steak on his plate 🙂
Sue @ Cakeballs, cookies and more
Looks great!
The Wimpy Vegetarian
Thanks Sue! And thanks for stopping by!
Soni
Lovely recipe!Such a coincidence that we along with Lisa had similar ideas.Great fun to be hosting this with you :)Happy Citruslove!
The Wimpy Vegetarian
I know! I love it! Happy #citruslove back to you, Soni!
foodwanderings
Wow I;ve got all the ingredients I might make this salad for meatless mondays today. looks delicious and nice meeting yout hrough the blog hop
The Wimpy Vegetarian
This would be perfect for a meatless monday dish! Hope you like it too. And lots of #citruslove back to you!
Laura @ Sprint 2 the Table
The flavors combination here is so unique - I can't wait to try it! Sweet and spicy is my favorite profile.
The Wimpy Vegetarian
Thanks so much, Laura. I love that flavor combo too. I hope you like it - I'm making it again today. I just felt so good all day after having it 🙂
Rita Held
Yumm, Susan. This will make me dig out a recipe I developed years ago: Moroccan Orange & Date Salad. Has some classic North African ingredients. In addition to oranges, there's dates, pistachios and a dressing laced with ground cumin. Our recipes are perfect for this time of year!
The Wimpy Vegetarian
Dates!! How perfect. And if I weren't allergic to nuts, I would hop on the pistachios too. I've got some dates and will add them to the salad I make today! Thanks, Rita - and you're right, these are the flavors that really work this time of year! I'll be looking for your recipe on your blog now! Thanks for stopping by 🙂
juniakk @ mis pensamientos
i LOVE the idea of tossing quinoa with orange! i was going to do a grapefruit quinoa salad but changed my mind. i love clean, healthy meals! j
The Wimpy Vegetarian
Thanks juniakk! This time of year, I crave salads almost more than I do in the summer, especially salads with grains. I would love to see your quinoa salad with grapefruit sometime. I did one a few years ago with grapefruit and oranges and I just loved it!
Richgail
I've got to try more quinoa in my recipes, maybe I should start with this one. Thanks for sharing!
The Wimpy Vegetarian
I feel the same way, and have found quinoa to be an easy thing to add to a salad to make it a main event instead of a side salad. Thanks for stopping by!
Laura @ The Art of Cooking Real Food
This looks so fantastic! I love everything in it, but I never would have thought to put them all together in one dish - can't wait to try it!
The Wimpy Vegetarian
Thanks Laura! Hope you try it! Thanks for stopping by 🙂
Bevi
I stayed in Southern California this past week, and a Meyer lemon tree was in our backyard. Needless to say, every dish had a Meyer lemon in it - from Shrimp a la Bittman, to a tuna salad we ate for lunch every day! The first recipe I posted on food52 is chicken baked in citrus juices. This is so exciting!
The Wimpy Vegetarian
I love citrus, and how wonderful to have a Meyer lemon tree in your backyard - even if it was only for this past week - LiztheChef has one and I'm just green with envy! Hope to hook up at FFS!
Richa@HobbyandMore
i love everything about this salad, the olives, the spice, quinoa, mint and fresh citrusy goodness! colorfully gorgeous!
The Wimpy Vegetarian
Thanks so much Richa!! I hope you have a chance to try it - and really hope you like it as much as we did 🙂
Cindy
Coming back to visit this recipe again, love it! Following you on FB. Thanks for dropping by the other day!
The Wimpy Vegetarian
Wonderful!! Thanks so much. I loved going through your blog - there are so many things of yours I'd love to try. Hope you have a chance to try it soon 🙂
Sharyn Dimmick
So many things I like in this salad: arugula, oranges, mint, feta, olives. Salads of oranges and greens are so refreshing in January.
The Wimpy Vegetarian
Thanks Sharyn!! It's so perfect after all the heavier fare and desserts of the holidays, isn't it? Thanks for stopping by!!
Lisa
I love sweet, salty and savory in a salad. It's gorgeous, and the addition of quinoa makes it even better and so healthy! Nice to meet your blog and c-host #citruslove with you!
The Wimpy Vegetarian
Thanks Lisa! I enjoyed meeting your blog too. Thanks for stopping by!
bakingaddict
This looks delicious and healthy! Love the vibrant colours too 🙂 its been fun co-hosting #citruslove with you 🙂
The Wimpy Vegetarian
Thanks and thanks for stopping by! I love your lemon whoopie pies!!! Very fun co-hosting #citruslove with you too 🙂
Terra
Love the addition of the kalamata olives, that is so unique! My husband and I just watched a cooking show where they incorporated the quinoa in a lovely salad, sounds so healthy, and delicous! your salad looks wonderful! Hugs, Terra
The Wimpy Vegetarian
Thanks so much Terra! I really appreciate it. I like to keep some cooked quinoa or cooked farro in the refrigerator so that it's easy to add to various dishes for a little protein 🙂 Thanks for stopping by!
mjskit
I love everything about this salad! It is definitely a healthy full meal and sounds extremely tasty! I didn't know that moroccan orange salad was oranges and Kalamatas. Interesting because I love that combination! Thanks for co-hosting the citrus hop!
The Wimpy Vegetarian
Paula Wolffert has some great recipes in her Moroccan food portfolio that you might want to check out! I love this combination too. Thanks so much for stopping by!! Sending you #citruslove!