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Lunch recipe

Crunchy Black Bean Quinoa Salad Boxes with Lime

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Make-ahead quinoa lunch boxes with black beans, sweetcorn, peppers, cucumber, coriander, and lime.

Start planningStart cookingIngredients
55 min470 kcal4 base servingsLunchVeganMake AheadGluten FreeFilling Lunch
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Recipe and nutrition estimates

Recipe times, servings, calories and nutrition notes are estimates for planning. They are not medical or dietary advice. Check food is cooked safely and adjust recipes for your household's needs.

Focus ingredients: black beans, quinoa, sweetcorn, red pepper

Dietary fit: Vegan, Vegetarian, Gluten-free, Dairy-free

Serving tip: Refrigerate shallow portions within 1–2 hours at 0–5°C and use within 48 hours or an earlier ingredient use-by limit. Full chilling time varies with portion depth and fridge conditions. Transport chilled with an ice pack. Repeat complete batches for larger households; sequential batches add the stated cooking time.

Crunchy Black Bean Quinoa Salad Boxes with Lime plated and ready to serve.

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Ingredients

What you need

  • 250g quinoa
  • 2 × 400 g tins black beans
  • 250g sweetcorn
  • 1 red pepper
  • 1 cucumber
  • 300g cherry tomatoes
  • 4 spring onions
  • 2 lime
  • 20g coriander
  • 1 tsp ground cumin
  • 1 tsp smoked paprika
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 750ml water
  • 1g salt
  • 1/4 tsp black pepper

You'll also need

knife and chopping board, grater, measuring jug and scales, sieve, 4l mixing bowl, 3l lidded saucepan, cooling tray, shallow lidded lunch boxes

Method

Step by step

Up to 8 clear steps
  1. Crunchy Black Bean Quinoa Salad Boxes with Lime cooking step 1: Prep the salad.
    Step 1

    Prep the salad

    For more than four servings, divide all ingredients between separate four-serving batches before starting; use each batch’s share of the displayed total amounts in its own equipment. Dice the red pepper and cucumber, halve the cherry tomatoes, slice the spring onions and chop all coriander leaves and tender stems. Zest and juice half of the listed limes; divide that juice into two equal portions. Cut the remaining half of the limes into serving wedges.

    10 min
  2. Crunchy Black Bean Quinoa Salad Boxes with Lime cooking step 2: Cook the quinoa.
    Step 2

    Cook the quinoa

    Rinse the dry quinoa thoroughly. Bring all measured water to the boil in a 3l saucepan, stir in quinoa, cover and simmer gently for 20 minutes until the grains are tender and most water is absorbed. Follow the actual packet if its measured water requirement or time differs. Drain excess water, remove from heat and stand covered for 10 minutes.

    14 min
  3. Crunchy Black Bean Quinoa Salad Boxes with Lime cooking step 3: Cool and season.
    Step 3

    Cool and season

    Fluff the quinoa and spread thinly on a clean tray for 5 minutes to release steam. Toss with half the listed olive oil, all lime zest, cumin, smoked paprika, measured salt and black pepper, and the first portion of measured lime juice. This is not a claim that the quinoa is fully chilled.

    6 min
  4. Crunchy Black Bean Quinoa Salad Boxes with Lime cooking step 4: Warm the sweetcorn.
    Step 4

    Warm the sweetcorn

    Drain and weigh the canned cooked sweetcorn. Drain and rinse the canned cooked black beans. No boiling-water soak is needed for canned corn.

    4 min
  5. Crunchy Black Bean Quinoa Salad Boxes with Lime cooking step 5: Toss the boxes.
    Step 5

    Toss the boxes

    Fold all drained black beans and sweetcorn, pepper, cucumber, tomatoes, spring onions and coriander through the quinoa, with the remaining half of the olive oil and the remaining measured lime juice.

    5 min
  6. Crunchy Black Bean Quinoa Salad Boxes with Lime cooking step 6: Pack with lime.
    Step 6

    Pack with lime

    Divide between the planned servings, with all reserved lime wedges alongside. For lunch boxes, spread into shallow portions and refrigerate promptly rather than waiting for a large bowl to cool.

    3 min