Sweet and spicy come together in this Quinoa Mango Black Bean Salad with a scrumptious Chipotle Lime Vinaigrette and Smoky Pepitas. Cook black beans from scratch and make this ahead, ideal for lunch, dinner, potluck or picnic. It comes together in about 35 minutes!
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ “We loved this salad and it has been added to our family favourites list. Tasted great the next day too.” ~ Sue
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A Hearty Salad for Lunch or Dinner
Vibrant color, flavor, texture and so hearty!
Quinoa salads are a staple around here because quinoa is easy to cook and offers a bulky blank slate for flavor and texture. Readers have spoken too! Since this salad has become a reader favorite, I’ve also added this Summer Veggie Quinoa Salad and also Sweet Potato Black Bean Quinoa Salad to the Vanilla And Bean recipe collection.
Salads for lunch or dinner are ideal for an easy to make, lightened up meal. And, I love having them ready for lunch so I don’t end up snacking instead. For this salad, there’s only a bit of cooking involved, and if needed, any of the cooked components can be made ahead during a meal prep sesh so it’s easy to pull together when dinner time comes.
This Salad Is
- hearty and satisfying
- shared as a main or side
- sweet and savory
If you love dinner salad recipes that take center stage as a main and spicy-sweet flavors, you’ll enjoy this black bean quinoa salad.
About the Key Ingredients
For the Salad:
- Quinoa – pronounced KEEN-wah, this delicious seed, often used as a grain, is mild yet nutty in flavor. For this salad, it provides bulk and give that luscious dressing something to hold on to. Look for quinoa in the bulk bins for best value.
- Pepitas – these are edible seeds that come from specific varieties of pumpkins. They’re nutty in flavor and nutritious! In this recipe, they’re toasted with a bit of olive oil, salt and smoked paprika. Look for pepitas in the bulk bins for best value.
- Black Beans – provide bulk and flavor in this salad. If you can, cook black beans from scratch for the best flavor, or use canned black beans for convenience.
- Mango – adds sweetness, color and juicy texture. Look for firm mangos and allow them to ripen at home. You know the mango is ripe when the skin gives a little when pressed gently. If it is too soft/mushy, the mango is over-ripe. It’s similar to testing an avocado for ripeness.
- Avocado – provides a creamy texture and savory-earthy flavor. Like mangos, to test the ripeness of an avocado, give it a gentle press. It’s ready when the skin gives a little. If you’re not ready to use an avocado, once ripe, set it in the refrigerator, where it’ll stay fresh for days until ready to enjoy.
For the Dressing:
- Chipotle Chilis in Adobo Sauce – you’ll use both in this recipe. They offer spice and smoky flavor. Find chipotle pepper in adobo sauce in the Mexican food section of the grocery store. Store leftover chipotle pepper in adobo sauce in the refrigerator for up to two weeks or in the freezer for up to one month.
- Fresh Lime Juice – adds so much flavor and balances the sweet and savory flavors of the salad.
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How to Make Quinoa Mango Black Bean Salad
step by step
Tip: if making the salad ahead, hold out the avocados and add just before serving. otherwise, they tend to brown a bit.
Traci’s Tips
- Chipotle Chilis in Adobo Sauce: look for cans on the Mexican food aisle of your grocery store, gluten-free if needed. Leftovers will last weeks in the fridge, and store for months in the freezer. Use your leftovers in 10 Minute Black Bean Dip or easy Mexican Chipotle Salsa.
- Make Ahead: the quinoa can be made up to two days in advance, and the toasted pepitas, up to a week in advance. Cook black beans from scratch up to a week in advance and freeze. Thaw in the fridge overnight.
- This salad’s flavor improves with a bit of time in in the fridge. Add the avocado just before sharing as it tends to brown a bit otherwise.
35 Minute Quinoa Mango Black Bean Salad with Chipotle Lime Vinaigrette
Ingredients
For the Salad:
- 1 C (195g) Quinoa, rinsed under running water
- 1 3/4 C (420g) Water
- 1/2 C (70g) Pepitas
- 1/2 tsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 1/2 tsp + 1/8 tsp Fine Sea Salt, divided
- 1/4 tsp Smoky Paprika
- 1 3/4 C (300g) Cooked Black Beans, rinsed, drained, about one 15 oz can
- 3/4 C (70g) Purple/Red Onion, small diced, about 1/2 an onion
- 2 C (330g) Mangos, diced, about one mango* (see note)
- 2 C (90g) Baby Spinach, chopped and packed
- 4 Tbs Cilantro, finely chopped
- 2 Avocados, diced just before serving
For The Dressing (makes 1/2 C):
- 1/2 tsp Apple Cider Vinegar
- 1 Chipotle Pepper in adobo sauce**, gluten free if needed
- 2 tsp Adobo Sauce
- 2 Tbs Lime Juice, fresh squeezed, about two limes + more for serving
- 1/4 tsp Fine Sea Salt
- 1/4 tsp Ground Cumin
- 15 Stems of Fresh Cilantro, leafless stem part removed
- 1/4 C (50g) Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Instructions
For the Salad:
- In a small saucepan, bring quinoa and water to a boil, turn to low and simmer uncovered for 13-14 minutes. Remove from heat, stir, cover and let set for 5 minutes. The quinoa is ready when all the water is absorbed, and the quinoa is tender with it's 'tails' showing. Remove lid and place in refrigerator while the rest of the salad is being prepared.
- Preheat oven to 325F (163C). Toss pepitas with olive oil, 1/4 tsp salt and paprika. Toast pepitas for about 8-9 minutes. They'll be slightly golden and fragrant when ready. Set aside to cool.
- In a large bowl combine the chilled quinoa, beans, onion, mango* (see note), spinach, cilantro, pepitas and the remaining 1/4 + 1/8 tsp salt. Set aside.
For the Dressing:
- In a food processor, combine the apple cider vinegar, chipotle pepper, adobo sauce, lime juice, salt, cumin and cilantro. With the processor on, pour in the olive oil. Process until smooth. Set aside.
To Assemble:
- If time is available, dress the salad about an hour before service. The flavors will come together as it sets in the fridge. Drizzle 3/4 of the dressing over the salad and toss well. Taste to see if more dressing is desired and adjust as needed. Add a few twists of fresh ground pepper and adjust salt as needed.
- Just before serving, dice the avocado and gently toss into the salad. Store the salad in a lidded container for up to two days in the refrigerator. Longer and the mango tends to get a bit soggy.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition is provided as a courtesy and is an estimate. If this information is important to you, please have it verified independently.
Made it? Leave a comment below!
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This was fabulous! I just finished the last of it for lunch after having it for lunch yesterday and serving it for dinner the night before. I had to half the recipe becuase there are only two of us but couldn’t leave half of a perfectly ripe mango so I put the whole thing in. I also made a full batch of the dressing and pepitas to have extra for other uses. Thank you for posting this.
Hi Hansi! Thank for your note and sharing! So happy you enjoyed the recipe – I love this for dinner too. Isn’t that dressing so nice? The extra mango sounds wonderful! It just adds so much to this salad.
The salad looks really good Traci and if you can add one more item with red color it would even looks better… It’s a healthy salad…. !Good Job Traci
Hi Nathan! Thank you for your note and kind words. I bet red bell pepper would be an amazing addition! Appreciate your suggestion :D
This was delicious! Such a great combination of flavors . Thank you for this wonderful recipe!
Hiii Nikk! So happy to hear you enjoyed it. Thank you for coming back and leaving a note! :D
Best. Salad. Ever.
With only 3 in the house I initially thought that I’d cut back on quantity but in the end made according to the recipe. Will make a few tweaks next time (prefer more chipotle) but the mix of flavours and textures is top notch.
Had to fight the others off for seconds and lunch is sorted for tomorrow now as well.
Hahaha! Hi Dave! Thank you so much for coming back and leaving a note… OMGee, I lol “fight the other off!” So happy to hear and yessss on more chipotle! I often hold back on the blog because I can get carried away with it. So happy to hear you and family are enjoying it!
I’ve had this on my to-make list for quite a while and just got to. It was so good!! I added a small clove of garlic to the dressing, something about cilantro and lime always makes me want garlic too. Next time I’ll try adding cojita to the finished salad, but I’m all for cheese! I also had to make a couple slight tweaks due to what was in my pantry, I only had red quinoa which worked, but I’d use regular if I had the choice, it was a little more dominant of a flavor with red. I also had roasted and salted pepitas in my pantry, so I just dry roasted them in frying pan with the smoked paprika and that worked great, was quick and kept my kitchen cooler.
This was my first recipe off of your blog and I’ll definitely be back for more!!
Thank you for coming back and leaving a note, Jesse! So happy you enjoyed the recipe. Thank you for your tip, too, regarding the salted pepitas. Cojita sounds like a fabulous addition!
That was delicious! I used basil since I didn’t have cilantro on hand, and sunflower seeds instead of pepitas. Yum!
So happy to hear, Sara! Thank you for your note and tips on your subs!
So delicious!!
Thank you Barbara!
Made this last night, and we are obsessed! Loved the spiciness of the chipotles with the sweetness of the mango and the tanginess of the lime. By far our most favourite quinoa salad to date (and we make lots)! Thank you for this beautiful recipe, we’ll be sure to enjoy it many times! :)
Love to read this Alissa! Thank you for coming back and leaving a note! Aren’t the chipotles so nice?
This recipe is about using the best ingredients. I made & enjoyed the salad last night. However, the mangoes weren’t very good. Next time I’ll sub whichever fruit is the best…strawberries would have been great…in season & superfresh.
Sincere thanks for this yummy recipes.
Thank you for your note, Stacey! Agreed, in season ingredients always taste best!
I finally got around to making this…what had enticed me were all the healthy ingredients, plus the spiced pepitas (which I’ve become addicted to)! But, I ran out of mangoes couple days ago, which I’d been buying every week for the last few months. Go figure! So, I subbed by using apples instead. Wow, so delicious!! I can only imagine it would be equally, if not more, delicious with the mangoes (which I’d had my heart set on)! No worries…I’ll definitely be making this salad often, plus my weekly shopping day is tomorrow to get the mangoes. Thanks for sharing the delicious recipe.
Thank you for your note Jigna! Wow – what a delicious sub. I’m so happy you enjoyed the recipe. Now, about those mangos… I hope you were able to locate one!