This easy gluten-free quinoa tabbouleh recipe is one of my favorite salads, and I know you’re going to love it too! This classic middle eastern salad tastes like the best of summer and is loaded with fresh herbs and vegetables. It’s been one of my go-to top picks in recent years, and I’m excited to share it with you today.

Mediterranean food has to be one of my favorites: it tastes incredible, and you always feel amazing after eating it. So much of the food from that part of the world is made with real ingredients, bright flavors, and the perfect combination of cooked, pickled, and fresh ingredients. 

What is tabbouleh, and what is it made of?

Classic tabbouleh is a delicious middle eastern salad made with primarily fresh parsley, fresh mint, grains (such as bulgur wheat or couscous), and additional finely chopped vegetables (such as cucumber and tomatoes). The salad is dressed with a delicious lemon olive oil dressing, giving it a tart lemon flavor and refreshing taste. It’s an amazing, healthy salad which is a great recipe to cleanse the palate and complement just about any meal.

Why is this recipe gluten-free?

This tabbouleh salad substitutes the bulgur wheat or couscous in a traditional tabbouleh salad recipe with quinoa, a delicious textured grain with a nutty flavor. Since quinoa is naturally gluten-free (source), and all of the rest of the ingredients are too, this version is a wonderful gluten-free option for those who need it.

Honestly, this recipe is my favorite regardless; I tend to have quinoa on hand much sooner than the more traditional bulgur wheat or couscous. Using quinoa as a primary ingredient makes it so that I can usually pull this together without too much worry.

Different types of quinoa (and how to cook it)

There are several different types of quinoa out there, and I’ll be honest – I’m not an expert on quinoa by any means! I’ll let you know what I’ve found for the 3 most common types, white quinoa, red quinoa, and black quinoa.

White quinoa

White quinoa has a nutty flavor, fluffy texture, and crisp bite. When I first started cooking with quinoa, I made it much like I cook rice (using white quinoa rather than red quinoa). This method works well for white quinoa, which is what I have outlined for this recipe. 

Red quinoa

Red quinoa has a more starchy texture, but the flavor is very similar (although slightly more bitter) than white quinoa. 

If you want to use red quinoa for this recipe, you can; however, red quinoa will be much too starchy if you cook it the way I have suggested above. Rather, pour the red quinoa into boiling water and cook it like pasta, draining the quinoa through a sieve once it has finished cooking to discard the excess water.

Black quinoa

I’ll be honest, my experience is black quinoa is literally just that I’ve seen it around. That said, I’ve never tried this one! Have you? Let me know in the comments what you recommend it for, and how you would describe its flavor. Eventually, I’d love to edit this post with a more personally informed report on this one, but for now – I’ll depend on you, my reader, to bring it to life for me.

Choosing the best ingredients

When choosing the best ingredients for making a side dish like this quinoa tabbouleh salad recipe, I have a couple of tips for you! This is pretty straightforward, but hopefully this will help you out if you haven’t used any of these things before, or you’re not sure which option in the grocery store is best for this recipe. For this fresh salad recipe, the best tip I have is this: use fresh ingredients, and chop them into very small pieces (nothing dried or bottled as much as you can help it). 

Quinoa

For this recipe, I recommend using white quinoa. Use rinsed quinoa for best results, and cool it completely after cooking before adding it to your salad.

Mint

Fresh mint is essential to giving this salad its most optimal fresh, Mediterranean flavor. You can find this with other fresh herbs in your local grocery store.

Parsley

I like to use curly parsley for this recipe (rather than flat leaf). You can use Italian (flat leaf) parsley, however, if you’re in a pinch.

Tomatoes

I tend to just use whatever I have on hand for this. Most often, I get tomatoes on the vine, but you can use beefsteak tomatoes, roma tomatoes (2 for this recipe), or a handful of cherry tomatoes (which are a little sweeter). Juicy tomatoes (like heirloom tomatoes) are also ok, but since these are often so large, I recommend using just half of one for this recipe. 

Cucumber

Again, I like to use what I usually have on hand: English cucumbers. You can use any type for this recipe, but make sure that field cucumbers are peeled and seeded before they are added to this recipe.

Onion – I use a small white onion for this recipe, but red onion would be a delicious substitute, and green onions would be delicious as well. If you want to use green onions, use 2 for this recipe.

Lemon

Fresh lemons are the way to go. While you can use bottled lemon juice, fresh lemon juice is so much more fresh and delicious tasting. Again, whenever you can, always go for fresh ingredients!

Olive oil

The best oil for this recipe is cold pressed extra virgin olive oil. 

Salt and pepper 

Use whatever you have in your kitchen – and make sure not to forget these small, mighty ingredients!

When to prepare tabbouleh, and how long does it last?

I like to prepare my tabbouleh the day that I want to serve it, or the day before. While it will last for several days in the fridge (and still be delicious!), I find that chopped tomatoes and cucumbers lost some of their freshness the longer they sit, making the salad a little bit less crisp. 

For the best flavor, prepare this gluten-free tabbouleh salad recipe on the morning of the day that you want to serve it. Tabbouleh is delicious if it has had lots of time to sit in the dressing and absorb its flavor.

How to wash fresh herbs

To wash your herbs, I like to unbind the bundles (remove the rubber bands or tie twists keeping them together), and submerge them in a bowl of cold water. This allows me to separate the stalks a little bit as I wash them, and encourages any dirt left on the leaves to sink to the bottom of the bowl, leaving the herbs nice and clean. I once made this recipe without doing that… I washed the bundles under running water, and I was very dismayed to find that my tabouleh had a little extra “crunch” (dirt) than I wanted… Don’t let this happen to you!

An easy way to remove parsley leaves from the stems

The simplest method I have found for removing parsley from the stems is to wash the parsley, and then hold it by the stems on a cutting board flat against the board. Using your other hand, take a fork and use its prongs to scrape the leaves away from the stems to detach them.

I’ll be honest, I don’t usually remove the parsley leaves from the stems for this recipe! My favorite way to do this is to hold the stems after I’ve washed the parsley, and then mince it as small as I can from the leaves toward the stems. Once the leaves are all chopped, I discard whatever is left of the stems in my hand. This method will leave a lot of chopped parsley stem in there, but since the whole amount get minced really small anyway (and the flavor of the stems is about the same as the leaves), I don’t find it necessary to separate the leaves and stems from each other entirely.

You will need:

• Ingredients (see recipe card)
• Medium saucepan
• Sieve
• Cutting board
• Quality chef’s knife
• Lemon juicer
• Serving bowl

If you like this recipe, you may also like:

• Creamy Yogurt and Dill Salad Dressing
• Pesto Caprese Salad
• How to Make Pita Chips
• Roasted Tomato Soup

So fresh, so easy, and so delicious. I love to serve this wonderful recipe as a side to homemade kafta, pita bread, and hummus.

If you make this, don’t forget to leave me a comment or tag me in your tabbouleh pictures on Instagram @naomicakesofficial! I always love to see that my recipes are being enjoyed.

Back soon,

Naomi

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