Spinach Salad with Chicken, Walnuts and Quinoa

How to prepare spinach salad with chicken, walnuts and quinoa

1. How I cooked the quinoa: in a small pot I put 100g quinoa and 230g water. I added 1/4 teaspoon salt and brought to a boil. I turned the heat to low and let it simmer for 15 minutes. During this time almost all the water was absorbed and I stirred in the pot every 5 minutes. At the end I turned off the heat, put the lid on and left it covered for 10 minutes. I lifted the lid and fluffed the quinoa with a fork. I let it cool completely. It makes more quinoa than needed for this salad.
2. Cut the chicken breast into thin slices and then each slice into small strips. Sprinkle with a little salt and then with 1/4 teaspoon of garam masala, turmeric and 1/2 tablespoon oil. Mix well until the chicken is uniformly colored.
3. Prepare the dressing: cut the onion into thin slices. Sprinkle with a little salt and massage lightly with your fingers to separate the onion slices. Let it sit for 5 minutes. Then add the lemon juice and the peel of the preserved lemon cut into small cubes. Let it marinate for 10 minutes. Add the oil at the end.
4. Spread the walnut kernels in a baking tray lined with parchment paper. Bake at 170C for 10 minutes until nicely golden. Remove and after they cool a bit, rub the kernels between your palms so the dry skins fall off. Coarsely chop or lightly crush in a mortar.
5. In the tray where you baked the walnuts, spread the chicken strips and put them on the second level under the grill (at 250C if you have a thermostat on the grill). Leave for only 3 minutes, then test a piece. Don't leave the chicken under the grill too long, it will dry quickly.
7. Remove the chicken over the walnuts, add the remaining 1/4 teaspoon Garam Masala and 1 tablespoon of oil. Mix well and taste for salt.
8. Put the spinach in a wide, deep bowl. Pour half the dressing and mix with your hand, gently massaging the leaves. Then add the coarsely chopped parsley, quinoa and the rest of the dressing and mix everything gently.
9. Arrange 1/2 of the salad in a wide bowl. Sprinkle half of the chicken strips and walnuts. Add the rest of the salad in the center, like a mound and finally the rest of the chicken. Sprinkle hot pepper slices over the salad.

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