Ahhh. I love Quinoa (pronounced Keen-wah). I made some last night in my rice cooker and added some chopped green onion, apple, carrot and balsamic vinegar dressing and let it sit over night. It's one of the few things I buy at the health food store because it's actually cheaper there and it's so worth the trip. I highly recommend this for anyone who packs a lunch and is tired of sandwiches. I gave Brian a turkey and cheese break today by sending this with some spinach in his lunch bag.Here's what wholehealthMD had to say about quinoa:
Nutritionally, quinoa might be considered a supergrain--although it is not really a grain, but the seed of a leafy plant that's distantly related to spinach. Quinoa has excellent reserves of Protein, and unlike other grains, is not missing the amino acid lysine, so the protein is more complete (a trait it shares with other "non-true" grains such as buckwheat and amaranth). The World Health Organization has rated the quality of protein in quinoa at least equivalent to that in milk. Quinoa offers more iron than other grains and contains high levels of potassium and riboflavin, as well as other B vitamins: B6, niacin, and thiamin. It is also a good source of magnesium, zinc, copper, and manganese, and has some folate (folic acid).An ancient grainlike product that has recently been "rediscovered" in this country, quinoa has a light, delicate taste, and can be substituted for almost any other grain.
Send me your recipe please. Quinoa is one of the things that I CAN eat as it is gluten-free, but as I've never tasted it, I'm a bit hesitant as a lot of my experiments remind me why you pay so much at restaurants--you're paying for someone who knows what they are doing making food that is edible.
ReplyDeleteKim,
ReplyDeleteIf you have a rice cooker, I would use that. Very easy. If not, you can cook on the stovetop (it's just a little messier because the quinoa is so small and makes a mess). Follow the package instructions for water/quinoa ratio for the rice cooker and stove top.
Flavoring your quinoa happens after cooking it. I use Good Seasons dressing (an at home mix that comes with a bottle and italian seasonings in a box that you can buy at the grocery store on the dressing aisle). Instead of adding white wine vinegar to the dressing mix, I add balsamic vinegar. I add a light amount to the quinoa (just enough to taste, not enough to make it liquidy) and chopped carrots, green onions, apple and raisins. I chill it and serve over spinach.
The first couple times I made it, it wasn't so good because I wasn't using the good seasons. Section out batches of single cup servings and experiment. It's worth practicing.
This has practically replaced bread in our house.