This morning I saw an article about a pseudocereal called quinoa (http://encyclopedia.thefreedictionary.com/Quinoa) . This particular food is native to South America and had been grown by the Incas for over 6000 years. It is nutritious and has a balanced set of proteins, unlike wheat and rice which have low levels of the essential amino acid lysine. I am wondering if anybody has any experience cooking or tasting quinoa? Is it reasonably priced? Thanks, Joe
I've used quinoa pasta and hot cereal, and have used the whole grain in some bread recipes. It's a bit more expensive than just plain flour products, but I think the health benefits are worth incorporating the quinoa into the diet here and there. I like the quinoa pastas, the hot cereal has a bit of a bitter taste so I use pure maple syrup or agave nectar to sweeten it up. I am in the slow process of learning about grain alternatives, and am a regular user of spelt flour, and have also tried amaranth, which I really like too. I haven't baked with quinoa flour though, so don't know how it is as far as the gluten issue. Considering how healthy thesse grain alternatives are though, it's certainly worth continued experimentation. Could be the internet would have some great recipes and information also. I have a fantastic bread recipe that uses whole quinoa grain, and about 4 other grains and seeds, and it is so delicious!
I had read where quinoa was the wonder food, and ran out and bought some. Unfortunately, the sour, bitter taste was a real turn-off for me , and I never tried it again. Someone (here on the forum, I think) said that it needs to be washed several times to remove the bitter taste. I didn't do that....
Thanks Terry and Bonnie for your helpful comments. I will see if I can get any quinoa in my area and will definitely give it a try. The reason that quinoa caught my eye is that NASA is thinking that they might use it on deep space missions where astronauts will have to grow their own. I thought: "It's got to be out of this world". That link I posted above is explains a lot about this grain. There are further links to other grains. Joe
Hi, You definitely have to rinse quinoa otherwise you get the bitter taste. I find a 30-second rinse is fine. I like it's texture and the fact that the grain looks like the planet Saturn. I cook it pretty much as I would rice, with salt and some spices.
Thanks Susan. I will definitely rinse if I can find any unprocessed quinoa in my area. On weekend I tried quinoa flakes which was packaged as a breakfast food. I only had to boil water, add flakes, and then I simmered for 90 seconds. No rinsing was required. No doubt this was due to the processing of raw quinoa into quick cooking flakes. I found the flavour good but I did not like the texture. Joe
Zesty Quinoa with Broccoli & Cashews Serves 4 * 1 TB extra virgin olive oil * 2 cloves garlic, minced * 1/2 medium red onion, finely diced * 1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes, julienned or chopped * 1/2 cup vegetable broth * 1/2 cup dry white wine * 2 TB lemon juice * 1/2 cup quinoa * 1/2 tsp sea salt, or to taste * 1 cup broccoli florets, cut into bite-sized pieces Fresh ground black pepper to taste * 1/2 cup roasted cashew pieces * 2 scallions, thinly sliced Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a saucepan and sauté the onion and garlic for 3 minutes. Add the sun-dried tomatoes, vegetable stock, wine and lemon juice and bring to a boil. Stir in the quinoa and salt. Reduce heat, and simmer covered about 20 minutes. Add the broccoli on top and simmer an additional 5 to 6 minutes. Remove from heat, toss gently until combined. Add ground pepper and additional salt, if desired, to taste. Garnish with cashews and scallions before serving. Joe.....rinse the grain about 5 times in cold water so the bitter taste washes off. Also don't overcook quinoa, make sure the white rings don't come off completely. Try toasting it before preparing your recipes, it gives it a better flavor.
Thanks for recipe, Sarita. I bought some Quinoa on Thursday from my local health food store. It was expensive at $4.59 per 400 g bag but I went for it because I am interested in seeing how it tastes. If I like, then I will find a cheaper source. I asked about the necessity of rinsing quinoa. The sales person told me that that is no longer required as most of the outer shell is taken off during initial processing. Nevertheless, she still recommended one wash, just to be sure, and toasting in pan for more flavour. I'll try next week when I get home. I am away in Vancouver looking for new digs. Ta, Joseph
Joe, One tip for cooking Quinoa is to put some acidic fruit juice in while cooking, I see that Sarita's recipe has lemon juice. I tried half a cup of orange juice. I found that tip in a 'Cooking with Grains' cookbook that I have. Did you know that they say the Inca's demise was quickened by the loss of quinoa in their diets? It is a near perfect food. (that and being slaughtered by the Conquistadors.......) Please let us know how your quinoa cooking went. It is a very tricky one.-Yvonne
I cooked quinoa yesterday evening and it came out quite good. I took Yvonne’s suggestion to add some sourness. I decided to make two servings as I knew that I would be having a stir fry this evening. Here is what I did: Quinoa ala Meniere’s Kitchen ½ cup of quinoa Canola oil ½ onion, sliced into thin half rings 1 clove garlic, minced 1/8 teaspoon Chinese Five spice ¼ OJ ¾ cup water 1. Rinse quinoa once and let dry in strainer. 2. Sauté onions and garlic in oil. 3. Add quinoa and fry until they slightly turn colour. 4. Add spice; stir fry for one more minute. 5. Add liquids, bring to boil, cover, and gently simmer for 20 - 25 minutes. 6. Let rest for 10 minutes. It tends to absorb more liquid even though it is cooling. I used part of the quinoa as a side dish so that I could really taste test it and I added the rest to the pot of fish stew that I had been cooking. The next time I will try other combinations of spices. Oh, yes. There was no bitterness. Joe
Next time I am in the health food shop I will buy some more Quinoa...I like your idea of 'pan frying' (browning) it first. I love to cook rice that way (and kasha...another great grain) when I cooked it I did not pan fry it first. And chinese five spice powder sounds great in this too.
I love quinoa! It is great if you dice up tomatos, pineapple and and peppersto mix in. You will want to make the pieces really small. It is reasonably priced. Very easy to cook. It's usually found in the department of the grocery store where you find cous cous.
Thanks JWS793, Great tips.....I bet the diced pineapple does the same thing as the added fruit juice to cut the bitter taste. See this is your first post so good to meet you!-Yvonne
Yvonne, Thank you for the welcome. I have never been one to join an online group, but since being diagnosed with MM it has been helpful knowing I'm not alone! -Jen
Hi Jen and welcome to the MM site. I like your idea about adding pineapples, tomatoes, and peppers to the quinoa. I've even thought of adding some raisins and nuts to vary texture and appearance. Joe
Love, love, love quinoa! Unless I rinse mine to Mars and back, I get that bitter taste which is utterly yucky. Yep, it is a rare grain which has all 8 essential proteins required by humans. We had it at least once a week back during our vegetarian years. Best food I ever had was vegetarian food. Both of those recipes look wonderful, BTW.
