Honey Dijon Shrimp Quinoa Salad

This Honey Dijon Shrimp Quinoa Salad is the perfect, easy, healthy, and tasty weeknight meal. Whip this up in thirty minutes and enjoy!

Honey Dijon Shrimp Quinoa Salad

As I’m sitting here stuffing my face with this Honey Dijon Shrimp Quinoa Salad, the Rio Olympics are playing in the background. Okay, I’ll be honest, I’m not really paying attention because I have the attention span of a goldish when tennis is on, but I seriously have been into these 2016 games.

I’m a little biased, but I’ve been fixated on the women’s gymnastics. Simone Biles is seriously unbelievable. I have never seen a gymnast do what she does. I might be driving my Facebook “friends” crazy because I’ve shared maybe a little too much about her on my timeline… like “she’s an amazing human being” and a “PHENOM!!!!” and, of course, her amazing floor routine video. I just can’t NOT! Simone, if you’re reading this, ILYSM.

Okay, let’s rewind for a second. Why would I be biased? Well, yeah, I’m a woman. But that’s not why. Fun fact: I was a gymnast for about five years! Actually, I wouldn’t really call myself a “gymnast” because I never actually competed. I basically just took lessons and chose not to compete. Taking those lessons, however, certainly prepared me for the tumbling I did with cheerleading for eight years.

Honey Dijon Shrimp Quinoa Salad

Every time I watch the Olympics, it brings me back to my childhood/teenhood (if that’s a thing). Not because I was training to become an Olympic athlete starting at the age of fetus, but because I did so many sports as a child. I was always doing something active, and I totally enjoyed it.

The only sport I really “stuck with” was cheerleading, but before cheerleading and pole vaulting (I pole vaulted all throughout high school), I was a serial athlete. I did tee-ball as a wee thing, then basketball for quite a few years, gymnastics, I tried volleyball in middle school, and in college, I’m not sure if this counts, but I played flag football for four years. I was so in love with sports that I even got my Bachelor’s in Sport Management.

I feel so lucky to have grown up in a family that promoted fitness, health, and all-around wellness (with indulgence, too). Every time I eat shrimp I think about my childhood because I haaated shrimp. I’ll never forget sitting at our dinner table in Memphis… it was Halloween and I was dying to go trick-or-treating. My parents would not let me go until I ate the shrimp on my plate. I’m pretty sure I was a brat and ended up making a deal with them that I’d eat one or two. Oh, and I think I was a pumpkin for Halloween. A pumpkin brat. I just laughed out loud because I legitimately was a pumpkin for Halloween. I mean, don’t hate me ‘cause you ain’t me.

Honey Dijon Shrimp Quinoa Salad Honey Dijon Shrimp Quinoa Salad

What I love about this Honey Dijon Shrimp Quinoa Salad is the marriage of textures. You’ve got creamy avocado mixed with the varying levels of crunch from the quinoa, caramelized red onion, sauteed shrimp, and salad mixture. I love these Taylor Farms salad mixes because they take so much work out of making your meal. These Greens and Sunshine, in particular, already come with green onions, broccoli, grape tomatoes, carrots, and radishes. Imagine how much food prep you’d have to do for all of that! Hello, easy weeknight dinner. Welcome home.

I love “bowl” meals because anything that I can literally throw together is wonderful in my book. Additionally, shrimp is the bomb because it takes about 3-4 minutes to cook. Quinoa takes about 20 minutes to cook. While your quinoa is cooking, saute your onions (which takes about ten minutes) Then, with Taylor Farms Greens and Sunshine, you literally just grab a handful of salad mix and toss it in your bowl. 30-minute meals are my homeboy.

Honey Dijon Shrimp Quinoa Salad Honey Dijon Shrimp Quinoa Salad

[Tweet “This Honey Dijon Shrimp Quinoa Salad will take you 30 mins. That’s IT.”]

Thank you to Taylor Farms for sponsoring this post. As always, the recipe, photos, and opinions, are my own. Thank you for your continued support.

Honey Dijon Shrimp Quinoa Salad
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: Serves 2
Ingredients
  • [b]Salad:[/b]
  • 2 cups quinoa
  • 3 tsp salt
  • 2 tsp black pepper
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 red onion, thinly sliced
  • 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 12 medium shrimp, peeled/deveined
  • 1 avocado, cubed
  • 2 cups Taylor Farms Greens and Sunshine salad mix
  • [b]Dressing:[/b]
  • 1/4 cup honey
  • 1/4 cup dijon mustard
  • 4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp black pepper
Instructions
  1. Add quinoa and 2 cups of water to a rice cooker and set to cook.
  2. To make the dressing, add all five ingredients to a liquid measuring cup and whisk together with a fork until well-combined. Place in the refrigerator until food is ready.
  3. While quinoa is cooking, prepare the red onions.
  4. In a small-medium saute pan over medium heat, add 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil. When pan is hot, add in sliced red onion. Stir continuously while onions caramelize.
  5. After about 3-4 minutes, add 1 clove minced garlic, salt, and pepper to the onions. Continue stirring (tongs are easiest to use for this).
  6. When onions are soft and almost translucent, turn off the heat and transfer the onions to a bowl.
  7. When your quinoa is finished, it’s time to cook the shrimp. Heat another tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil in your pan. Add the remaining garlic.
  8. After about 30 seconds, add in your shrimp, salt, and pepper. Cook for about 3-4 minutes or until shrimp turn pink.
  9. To assemble your bowl, add in the Taylor Farms Greens and Sunshine salad mix, the quinoa, the red onions, shrimp, and avocado. Top with the honey dijon dressing.
Notes
I used frozen shrimp for this recipe. Fresh or frozen, use whichever you prefer!

Honey Dijon Shrimp Quinoa Salad Honey Dijon Shrimp Quinoa Salad

 

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What sports did you enjoy as a kid?
What foods did you hate as a kid that you now love?

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Honey Dijon Shrimp Quinoa Salad

Comments

  1. says

    Omg love love love this recipe. Honey dijon anything makes me happy, especially when dressed in a delicious salad bowl! Hello tomorrow’s dinner! When I was a kid I HATED Brussels sprouts but now I love them! I’m also pretty sure I wouldn’t touch sweet potatoes but now I’m basically orange because I eat so many of them, 😉

  2. says

    LOL, i’m pretty sure I’M now newly obsessed with Simone Biles because of all the things you’ve been sharing. Totally love it though. Although it does make me feel pretty incompetent with my own strength…. so thanks for that 😉
    Also, I definitely need to make this ASAP. That dressing looks amazing and i lervvvv me some shrimp.

  3. says

    Drooooling over this right now! I mean, how could I not? I am pretty sure I have always loved shrimp, especially shrimp cocktail growing up, but I have had my fair share of foods that I turned my nose up at when I grew up, only to realize I love them now (beets and brussels sprouts)

  4. says

    I used to despise salmon and dill and now I cannot get enough of both of them! I could eat salmon every night and I really am craving it during these summer months…SO GOOD!

  5. says

    I love this combo Christina! I used to really hate shrimp, but I do like it now, and I love how you combined a grain into it, that has a lot of protein, so it will keep people full too.

    I agree with you that it is so wonderful to have a family that likes being active but likes their treats and indulgences too. :)

  6. says

    Haha, a “serial athlete”… that’s how I’d describe little kid Claire, too! I did dance, soccer, softball, volleyball, swimming, tumbling… pretty much everything besides running. I’ve never been a runner. 😛

    I was also the pickiest eater! I didn’t even like pizza until we went to Italy and I was forced to eat it all the time. But I’ve always loved shrimp. This looks so good! 😀

    • says

      I am still mad at my mom for not putting me in dance LOL she says I didn’t want to, and I say you should have forced me!! Haha. Because now I am obsessed with dance, I watch dance on youtube all the time, SYTYCD was my favorite show (RIP), and we watch dancing with the stars every year.

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