Cooking Quinoa

Cooking quinoa is a great way to start a healthy diet. Quinoa is actually a seed, but it is treated like a grain when it is cooked. Quinoa is loaded with vegetable protein and slow digesting carbohydrates which means it keeps you full for a long time. On top of that, this relative of spinach is considered a complete amino acid because it has all eight essential amino acids. This is very important to vegetarians and vegans, who often struggle to get the full spectrum of amino acids in their diet. Quinoa also contains more calcium, iron, phosphorous and B vitamins than many other grains.

Cooking quinoa is easy and fast. You can use quinoa in the place of most any grain. It is very often used in place of rice, oatmeal, couscous and pasta. This means that you can use quinoa to make everything from a quinoa salad to dessert! I even like to use it as a binding agent when I make meatballs and meat loaf. It is a great alternative to starchy white carbs!

1.      Soak the Quinoa in cool water for 15 minutes and then place in a fine colander and rinse thoroughly for 4 minutes.  This removes the saponin on the exterior of the seed.  Make sure that you don’t skip this step or your quinoa will have a bitter taste to it!

2.      For every cup of quinoa seed, you will need two parts liquid.  There are many different types of liquids that you can use depending on how you are cooking quinoa.  They include:  chicken broth, vegetable broth, water, milk and apple juice.  Bring your liquid of choice and quinoa to a boil.

3.      Reduce heat and simmer covered for 15 minutes.

4.      Remove the pot from heat and let sit covered for 5 minutes.

Great Quinoa Recipes!

Roasted Garlic and Sundried Tomato Quinoa

2 T Olive Oil, divided

1 head garlic

¾ cup sundried tomatoes

1 chopped onion

4 cups chicken or vegetable broth

2 cups quinoa

1/8 tsp cayenne pepper

½ tsp salt

1 tsp thyme

1 lb cooked chicken or sausage (optional)

1. Place garlic in a dish and drizzle with 1 T olive oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cover with foil and roast at 350 degrees for 45 minutes. Allow to cool and then squeeze softened garlic into a bowl. Set aside.

2. Place remaining olive oil in pan and heat to medium. Add chopped onion and sundried tomatoes and cook for 15 minutes or until softened. Add garlic, broth, quinoa, cayenne pepper, salt and thyme and bring to a boil

3. Reduce heat and simmer covered for 15 to 20 minutes. You will know it is done when the water is absorbed. If you like, you can add in cooked chopped chicken or sausage in the last five minutes of cooking.

4. Remove from heat and let sit covered for 5 minutes.

Breakfast Quinoa Recipe

¾ cup almond milk

½ cup cooked quinoa

¼ cup uncooked oatmeal

1 T ground flaxseeds

1 T pumpkin seeds

1 T almonds or walnuts

1 T dried cherries

¼ cup kefir

¼ cup berries

1. Cook quinoa according to instructions above. For added sweetness, cook in apple juice

2. Warm milk in the microwave for 2 minutes.

3. Place all ingredients through the dried cherries in a bowl and pour warm milk over it.

4. Top with kefir and berries and serve

Have a favorite quinoa recipe? Please share it with us!