Name: Hawaiian Quinoa Bowl with Spicy Peanut Sauce & Honey Cilantro Vinaigrette
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 1 h
Yield: 6
Cuisine: Hawaiian
Ingredients: 2 cups cooked quinoa (cooked according to package directions); 1-2 large red peppers (depending on size), roughly chopped; 2 green onions, thinly sliced; 2 cups chopped pineapple; ½ cup chopped raw (if possible) cashews, or macadamia nuts if you are feeling really tropical :); 2 tablespoons extra nuts to sprinkle on top at the end; 1/2 cup Spicy Peanut Sauce (recipe follows); cilantro Honey Lime Vinaigrette (recipe follows); 2 medium chicken breasts (or about 2-3 cups already grilled chicken breast strips or rotisserie chicken, diced); salt & pepper to season chicken; ½ teaspoons red pepper flakes; Cilantro for garnish; 2 tablespoons lite soy sauce or Bragg Liquid Aminos; 1 teaspoon fish sauce (found in Asian section of grocery store); 2 teaspoons sesame oil; 2 tablespoons raw organic honey; 2 teaspoons sweet chili sauce; 1 teaspoon rice vinegar; 2-3 tablespoons peanut butter; ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (optional); 1/4 cup fresh squeezed lime juice, if possible; 3 tablespoons raw organic honey, if possible; 1 teaspoon dijon mustard; 1/2 cup loosely packed cilantro; 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil; 1/4 teaspon salt; 1/8 teaspoon pepper

These Hawaiian Quinoa Bowls with Spicy Peanut Sauce & Honey Cilantro Vinaigrette are a little taste of paradise, and will definitely help you feel like you are on an island retreat! They are a more work intensive recipe, but the time is worth it for these flavors to pop in your mouth!! It’s a great meal to impress guests or to have for a fun girlfriend lunch. With all of the different layers of flavor between the Sweet Cilantro Vinaigrette and punch of juicy pineapple for the Hawaiian flare, to the Spicy Peanut Sauce, you can customize your flavors to fit all the different mouths that you have to feed. Can we all say Aloha?!

It has been one snowstorm after the other the last few weeks here in Utah, especially where I live up by Snowbasin Ski Resort. It has been building up over the mountain and then dumping all that fresh powder pillowing up around every exit out of my house. 🙂 And while that may be a great thing on my fresh powder skiing days, at home, I want to stay in my house and never leave again. That’s why when I came across a play on this recipe for Hawaiian Quinoa Bowls from Nicole at Cooking for Keeps we had to try it just to take a mini vacation to Hawaii (at least with our palettes) and escape this freezing cold weather! It gave me the courage to brave the cold and make my way to Suzy’s house to whip it up. 🙂

Spicy peanut sauce is a very versatile sauce and if you are a no spicy type of family, can certainly leave the crushed red chili peppers out. The sweet chili sauce is delicious and doesn’t carry much heat with it so make sure to leave that in. We hope you enjoy it as much as we did. Aloha!!

Hawaiian Quinoa Bowl with Spicy Peanut Sauce & Honey Cilantro Vinaigrette

These Hawaiian Quiona Bowls with Spicy Peanut Sauce & Honey Cilantro Vinaigrette are a little taste of paradise, and will definitely help you feel like you are on an island retreat!

Author: Foodie Gone Healthy
Prep Time: 30
Cook Time: 30
Total Time: 1 hour
Yield: 6
Category: Lunch, Dinner
Cuisine: Hawaiian

Ingredients

2 cups cooked quinoa (cooked according to package directions)
1-2 large red peppers (depending on size), roughly chopped
2 green onions, thinly sliced
2 cups chopped pineapple
½ cup chopped raw (if possible) cashews, or macadamia nuts if you are feeling really tropical 🙂
2 tablespoons extra nuts to sprinkle on top at the end
1/2 cup Spicy Peanut Sauce (recipe follows)
cilantro Honey Lime Vinaigrette (recipe follows)
2 medium chicken breasts (or about 2-3 cups already grilled chicken breast strips or rotisserie chicken, diced)
salt & pepper to season chicken
½ teaspoons red pepper flakes
Cilantro for garnish

Spicy Peanut Sauce

2 tablespoons lite soy sauce or Bragg Liquid Aminos
1 teaspoon fish sauce (found in Asian section of grocery store)
2 teaspoons sesame oil
2 tablespoons raw organic honey
2 teaspoons sweet chili sauce
1 teaspoon rice vinegar
2-3 tablespoons peanut butter
½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (optional)

Cilantro Lime Vinaigrette

1/4 cup fresh squeezed lime juice, if possible
3 tablespoons raw organic honey, if possible
1 teaspoon dijon mustard
1/2 cup loosely packed cilantro
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/4 teaspon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper

Instructions

Cook quinoa according to package directions.
To make vinaigrette, add lime juice, honey, dijon, salt, and pepper to a food processor. Blend until combined. With the mixer on, add olive oil a bit at a time. after blending in oil add cilantro and pulse until tiny pieces.
Heat a small sauté pan to a medium-low heat. Add nuts, toast just until fragrant. Be careful not to burn.
To make the sauce, in a small pot on the stove, heat on medium low and add all ingredients for the spicy peanut sauce and wisk until blended. Heat until warm throughout.
Toss cooked quinoa with peppers, onions, pineapple, ½ cup nuts and ½ of the cilantro vinaigrette. Add more vinaigrette to taste if necessary. You might not use it all depending on size of chicken and produce. Season with salt and pepper in your serving bowl.
Heat a grill pan to a medium-high heat if cooking chicken. Add 2 teaspoons of Avocado, Coconut, or olive oil. Sprinkle chicken liberally with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with red pepper flakes. Grill until cooked though, about 3-4 minutes per side. Set aside to cool. Once cool, cut into strips.
Place chicken strips on top of quinoa and drizzle with peanut sauce. Sprinkle with remaining nuts and extra cilantro.

Enjoy!