329426 Wed Sep 27 17:20:25 -0700 2006 36 31 Home Cooking 0 1905852 Well, my husband wants to lose 20 pounds and the nutritionist at Kaiser says he should eat quinoa - I guess for a carb it is very nutritious. Neither of us has eaten it before and I have no idea what to do with it. Looks like millet - only a little larger. Do you have any good recipes for making it into something delicious? Actually, I am starting at square one. With an unknown grain my tendency is to just boil it in a lot of water until it's tender and then drain it in a colander. Just looking at this in the raw state without having tasted it I'm assuming I would use quinoa in any recipe as if it was cooked rice. Perhaps chopped stir fried veg. and chicken over it, or mix it with chopped cooked broccoli and melted cheese? Do you think I could use my rice cooker to cook it? It's a basic model with no fancy settings - just on & off. Thanks! Wed Sep 27 17:20:25 -0700 2006 23824 niki rothman 1 1905902 My favorite salad involves cleaning a lot of pots, but it is super easy. Add equal amounts quinoa, lentils, brown rice, then add steamed broccoli, red bell pepper, red onion, corn, mint, basil, and cilantro, salt and pepper. My family, who doesn't really accept such overtly healthy food into their meals has really added this salad to their meals happily. I think it is tastey on it's own but my family likes to add salad dressing like a balsamic vinagrette. A box of quinoa usually has cooking directions on it. It is extremely simple to prepare. Wed Sep 27 17:39:55 -0700 2006 1905852 17213 LLLLL 2 1905945 This was purchased from a bulk bin - so there was no packaging or instructions. I like your idea for a salad. It would work for short grain brown rice too I suppose. Wed Sep 27 17:53:27 -0700 2006 1905902 23824 niki rothman 1 1905996 I usually simmer quinoa one-to-one with water for about 20 minutes. Toward the end you can just turn the heat off and keep it covered to let it absorb the last of the water and get nice and fluffy. Once it's cooked there's lots you can do with it. Try tossing it with fresh tomatoes, basil, and olive oil. Wed Sep 27 18:10:35 -0700 2006 1905852 43372 Ed4 2 1906089 Oooh nice idea about the tomatoes and basil - of course I would want to add some butter and parmesan, maybe that is why he needs to lose 20 pounds! But your saying it cooks in 20 minutes leads me to think my rice cooker could do it because 20 minutes is the standard time it takes rice to cook too. Wed Sep 27 18:41:14 -0700 2006 1905996 23824 niki rothman 1 1906207 I have been experimenting with quinoa recently as well. I love it's texture. The first time I had it was at Border Grill in Santa Monica, where it's served like a couscous salad. It had lots of lemon/lime juice, some roasted corn kernels and chopped tomatoes in it. Deborah Madison's Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone has a few recipes, one of which is similar to the above with the addition of scallions. Here's what I had recently at Wilson in Culver City - a curried quinoa timbale served along side a tomatoey mushroom stew. I've tried to recreate it home thus using the above cookbook as a guide: Mushroom Stew - Heat some olive oil in a wide pot, add a little chopped onion and saute until just beginning to color. Add some chopped marjoram and parsley or cilantro and finely diced (peeled would be nice) sweet heirloom tomatoes, minced garlic. Saute until tomatoes break down and reduce. Add sliced mushrooms - I used cremini - restaurant had used fancier wild ones. Saute those until they color a little. Add a little water/broth/mushroom soaking liquid and salt and pepper and cook until mushrooms soften. Garnish with additional chopped cilantro/parsley. If tomatoes are not sweet, add a little pinch of sugar or a dribble of honey to balance flavors. The stew should have enough sauce to need a spoon to eat. Quinoa - I use Trader Joe's and the packet says to rinse a few times and then add twice as much water and bring to a boil in a saucepan, with a little salt to taste. Then cover and simmer for about 10-15 minutes until the water is absorbed. One time I accidentally added thrice as much water and by the time I prepped other things, the quinoa had absorbed it all and the texture was very mushy. So if you're going to boil it in lots of water, remember to drain as soon as desired doneness is reached. BTW, I am not sure if you lose any nutrients when you use that method. You might want to check with your nutritionist. Here is how I curried the cooked quinoa - finely chop a small mild onion for a cup of raw quinoa. Heat oil in a non-stick skillet. Add onions, soften and then add chopped coriander/parsley, corriander powder, cumin powder, garam masala and paprika or cayenne to taste and saute for a minute or two until spices are fragrant. Add the cooked quinoa, check for salt and adjust. Wed Sep 27 19:25:48 -0700 2006 1905852 16109 sweetTooth 2 1906355 Your recipes are lovely. Very subtle flavors. I'm going to try making the quinoa with my rice cooker as it sounds like the instructions being the same as for rice with the cooker, that it would come out the same. Wed Sep 27 20:15:05 -0700 2006 1906207 23824 niki rothman 3 1906730 Thanks! Yup, rice cooker would work I think. With 2 cups of water for a cup of quinoa, it didn't stick to the pan much or scorch at all, if that's what you're worried about. Wed Sep 27 22:13:36 -0700 2006 1906355 16109 sweetTooth 1 1906399 I like the flavor of quinoa when you toast it a little first, pilau style, but you may not reap all of the nutritional benefits if you do that. Anyone know for sure? Wed Sep 27 20:28:16 -0700 2006 1905852 12341 vanillagrrl 1 1906531 Per search, recent posts: http://www.chowhound.com/topics/show/326750 http://www.chowhound.com/topics/show/314122 Wed Sep 27 21:09:15 -0700 2006 1905852 23712 DiveFan 2 1906720 Ooh, thanks for those links! As someone mentioned in the first thread, Vegetarian Times has carried quinoa recepies in the last few months. I think I even remember some crunchy quinoa muffins that might be worth a shot. Wed Sep 27 22:11:11 -0700 2006 1906531 16109 sweetTooth 1 1906556 As sweetTooth noted, you need to clean quinoa before you cook it. The kernels are coated with a waxy something that needs to be rinsed off. I put the grain in the saucepan I want to use to cook it, and fill with cold water. Rub the grains together with your fingers for a bit and then drain into a wire mesh colander. Repeat 2 more times. As for recipes, I like it as a rice substitute and use it where ever I would normally use white rice -- pilaf, bed for stir-fry, etc. Wed Sep 27 21:15:14 -0700 2006 1905852 10232 yumyum 1 1906873 We made this in class and it was very good. Richie Vegetable Quinoa Bake With Red Kuri Squash white wine or veggie stock or 2 tbl of olive oil (we used canola in class) 1 medium onion, chopped 8-10 mushrooms, sliced 1 large bell pepper, diced 1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced (optional) 1 small zucchini, diced 2 cloves garlic, minced (I used 3-4) 3 cups water (or chicken stock) 1 1/2 cups quinoa, rinsed well 2 cups peeled and diced butternut, or other winter squash 1 cup chopped kale or escarole 1 /2 tsp. salt 1/2 tsp. pepper Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Sauté with wine, broth, or olive oil the onion, mushrooms, peppers, zucchini, and garlic for about 5 minutes. Stir in rest of ingredients and bring to a boil. Transfer mixture to a 9x13 casserole dish and cover. Bake until liquid is absorbed, about 35 to 40 minutes. Remove from oven and fluff with a fork. Let stand 5 minutes before serving. Makes 6-8 servings Wed Sep 27 23:08:26 -0700 2006 1905852 10646 javaandjazz 1 1906900 We eat this at Thanksgiving as a special soup (it's poured over a quinoa salad). It's wonderful (and I'm sure I've posted before) but the quinoa salad itself is great on it's own, too. Enjoy! Roasted Pepper Soup 3 of each: yellow and orange peppers 2 red peppers 1 bunch leeks 1 bunch scallions 1-2 English/seedless cucumber 1-2 cups white corn 3-4 cloves garlic fresh tarragon 3 cups vegetable broth 6-8 cups chicken broth 3-4 cups quinoa Roast peppers at 425* until skin on outside begins to char. Once roasted, place in a bowl covered with plastic wrap. Leave them alone to sweat. Chop leeks and garlic and cook in olive oil until translucent. Add tarragon, salt and pepper to taste. Pour in vegetable broth and simmer. Return to peppers. Peel off skin. Natural oils and juice will drain out. SAVE THIS and add to the broth mixture. Dice the peeled and de-seeded peppers. Add them to the broth and simmer for 5 minutes. Transfer peppers to a food processor or blender and puree. Gradually add the liquid. Once desired consistency is reached, return soup to pan. For quinoa salad: It is best to prepare this in advance so it can marinate. Cook quinoa in chicken broth according to directions. Cook corn and dice the cucumber(s) and scallions. Add these to the cooked quinoa and toss in balsamic vinegar and olive oil. Put in bowl and pour soup over the salad just before serving(if refrigerated, set out to room temp before adding to soup). It's work, but worth every minute. ENJOY! Wed Sep 27 23:21:09 -0700 2006 1905852 12487 krissywats 2 3836621 how many leeks and scallions are in a "bunch". Maybe you can give the recipe in terms of how many cups chopped leeks and cups chopped scallions? Thank you! Thu Jul 03 11:13:40 -0700 2008 1906900 19752 InmanSQ Girl 1 1906964 I just made this last night: Saute some chopped garlic, scallions and onion in a pan with olive oil. After a few minutes add the quinoa (rinse first) and toast it until light brown. Add chicken stock (ratio 2:1 liquid to quinoa), thyme and a bay leaf and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 20 minutes. Fluff the quinoa and remove the bay leaf. Add lemon zest and chopped black olives. YUM. Wed Sep 27 23:45:33 -0700 2006 1905852 38670 bereccca 1 1907287 I improvised the quinoa salad that is served at Border Grill by using sushi vinegar recipe for the acid then adding every fresh herb I could get hands on, with red onion, tomatoes, corn, chick peas... you name it, and then I add a copious amounts for Olive oil to keep it moist, not crumbly. Turns out great! Thu Sep 28 01:47:40 -0700 2006 1905852 25247 Veggietales 1 1913535 Thanks to each and every one of you for the wonderful ideas! I really appreciate everyone's help. Sat Sep 30 20:03:15 -0700 2006 1905852 23824 niki rothman 1 1913855 My mother always told me never to cook quinoa with salt or it won't "pop". I have always followed this advice and don't know if its true but thought I would pass it on. She also told me to never open the rice pot before the timer went off. I make a recipe called Pastel de Quinoa which is basically a picadillo recipe put in between two layers of quinoa. You mix the cooked quinoa with an egg and press half in the bottom of a baking dish add in picadillo and then put the second layer of quinoa on. Brush the top of the quinoa with an egg wash and bake until hot and with a nice crispy top. Sat Sep 30 23:54:37 -0700 2006 1905852 27101 bolivianita 1 1915627 I made quinoa tonight, partly inspired by above quinoa bake by javandjazz (thank you javaandjazz) and it was good enough to pass along. Preheat oven to 400. Sautee some chopped onion and whatever fresh veggies you have (I was using up broccoli and fresh corn I removed from the cobb). Add chopped garlic, cumin, salt & pepper. Add two cups rinsed quinoa and continue to sautee, then add 2 1/2 cups chicken (or vegetable) broth and a cup of crumbled feta cheese and transfer the mixture to a buttered baking dish. Bake for about 15-20 minutes and then sprinkle the top with a mixture of bread crumbs (1/4 - 1/2 cup) and grated parmesean and (if you like) some pepitas and chopped scallion. Came out very tastey. Mon Oct 02 04:34:53 -0700 2006 1905852 38077 JenMarie66 1 1930154 I like to cook up the quinoa and make a grain salad (sometimes also with wild rice, bulgur, etc) and add some sort of small fruit (halved grapes or dried cranberries), parsley and some sort of nut/seed. My favourite combo is cranberries and pumpkin seeds. Also, in the Moosewood cookbook with the orange cover (helpful, i know) there are two great recipes for curried quinoa and quinoa stuffed peppers. yum. Sat Oct 07 20:53:13 -0700 2006 1905852 25081 JennaL 1 2318747 This is by far my favorite Quinoa recipe -- the sweet corn and mint/scallion make for a delicious contrast. We serve it often alongside grilled mixed vegetables for a vegetarian feast! Last summer we had this dish almost every week, when corn was overflowing at our local farmers market. http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/recipe_views/views/235480 Thu Feb 22 11:36:48 -0800 2007 1905852 50389 melissalf04 2 2937714 I've made this recipe before too, and agree that it is has a wonderful combination of flavors. Thu Sep 13 08:55:22 -0700 2007 2318747 39747 ExercisetoEat 1 2318802 I eat quinoa all the time, especially in one-pot meals. I actually recently posted a hearty but healthy mexican quinoa dish on my blog. You can add some meat to it to make a a complete meal, or it's just good on its own: http://rainydaysandsundays-c.blogspot.com/2007/02/spicy-pan-o-goodness.html Clare K. Thu Feb 22 11:47:11 -0800 2007 1905852 17675 Clare K 2 2318915 Quinoa is such good stuff! The waxy substance on them is saponin, which can give it a bitter taste if not washed off. The package I have recommends washing the quinoa before using it. This recipe for Lemon-Scented Qunoa is quick and delicious beyond words: tahini, garlic, lemon juice, and lemon zest. http://www.101cookbooks.com/archives/001493.html Thu Feb 22 12:09:31 -0800 2007 2318802 57912 venera 1 2319035 We cook quinoa all the time. I have found that some kinds need rinsing, some do not (maybe some is pre-rinsed?). When I get it from a new source, I cook it without rinsing and see if it's bitter (it's very obvious!). If it is, rinse it after it's cooked (it'll still be edible), and you'll know to rinse next time. The stuff I get from the Whole Foods bulk bin doesn't need rinsing. The main way we cook it is in the rice cooker. We usually mix it half-and-half with white rice (a compromise in our house), and cook and serve it just as if it's rice. My favorite recipe is: cooked quinoa, raw onion, fresh sweet red pepper, sun-dried tomatoes, cilantro or parsley, toasted pine nuts, balsamic vinegar, olive oil, cumin, red pepper flakes, and garbanzo beans. It is delicious, nutritious, keeps well, good warm cold or in-between, and almost anyone will eat it. (vegan, wheat-free, high fiber, and pretty!) Thu Feb 22 12:32:50 -0800 2007 1905852 70866 Tartinet 2 2936427 Tartinet, I made quinoa for the first time last night using your half-and-half white rice method, and it was sooo good! I loved the crunchiness while still being enough like rice to not make me feel like I was eating too healthy. ;) Thanks! I have a plastic strainer that I bought at a Japanese grocery store made for cleaning rice. It was perfect and didn't let any quinoa drain out of the bottom. Wed Sep 12 19:43:53 -0700 2007 2319035 26664 mixmastermidori 1 2937272 Will have to try some of the baked quinoa recipes above. They look great! I use quinoa flour that I grind from the whole grain at home. (I buy mine from Purcell Farms in Idaho and they sell in bulk bags - It's organic too) I put the flour in bread and it is great, it gives it a hearty bite. Also, I use the flour to make breakfast cereal instead of oatmeal on some mornings. I just boil the flour in water with a dash of salt. It is a lot like African uji. It is good to drink on the run. Thu Sep 13 06:57:20 -0700 2007 1905852 103183 shelbyeileen 1 2937717 I had quinoa last night with a green tomato sauce over it--really really easy, quick, and tasty! I try to sneak quinoa in everything when I'm cooking at my parents' house, and so far the most successful has been zucchini stuffed with quinoa, sausage, tomatoes, corn, chilis, and then topped with crushed tortilla chips. Thu Sep 13 08:56:06 -0700 2007 1905852 67939 Sophia. 1 2937809 I use cooked quinoa and make fried rice with it. Usually use pork or beef for the protein, and I like 'shrooms in my fried rice. You can add celery if you like, and the usual fried egg in strips, plus oyster sauce to taste (or soy), and I toss in scallions toward the end. Really tasty. Thu Sep 13 09:19:47 -0700 2007 1905852 60923 MobyRichard 1 2938272 I made this salad for a picnic and was very pleased with the results: http://www.whatgeekseat.com/wordpress/2007/07/07/quinoa-saladthe-new-tabbouleh/ Thu Sep 13 11:17:38 -0700 2007 1905852 11388 Marsha 1 2938282 Quinoa has a lovely flavour and interesting texture. It is one of the grains highest in protein, and complete protein. Actually, it is not a grain per se (think it is related to spinach) and many authorities consider it kosher for Pessah. A bit of parmesan is fine, in calorie terms - it doesn't take a lot to give a full flavour - but hubby should probably pass on melted cheese. Quinoa was a staple for the Incas and other Andean Amerindian civilisations. Usually quinoa in boxes has been thoroughly rinced of the saponin that protected the grains from insects (and give it an unwelcome "soapy" flavour, but I re-rince it in any case. I'd make it as a pilaf, rather than boiling it in a lot of water. Thu Sep 13 11:19:53 -0700 2007 1905852 84119 lagatta 1 3837182 Here is liquidwater. I just use whatever pan I'm going to cook it in and turn on the heat and give it a few shakes. I probably do this over 5 minutes or so. I also don't use water but cook with chicken or vegi broth. After it comes to a boil, I cook on low for about 15 minutes for 2 cups of quinoa and 4 cups broth/water. It is very forgiving. When the liqiud is absorbed, turn off the heat. I like to add grilled vegetables like red onion, peppers, and squash. I toss the vegis in olive and salt and pepper before I grill them. Last time I also threw in some grilled corn sliced off the cob. Then I top with finely chopped fresh basil. You can be really creative and add what you like but this is my current favorite. I grill some fish or meat or whatever while the vegis are cooking. Thu Jul 03 14:19:46 -0700 2008 1905852 13962 Cheesy Oysters 1 5200778 Quinoa cooks faster than rice. In a pressure cooker brown rice takes 10 minutes at high pressure, then natural pressure release, quinoa takes only 1 minute at high pressure then natural pressure release. Yes, it can be used in pretty much any recipe that calls for rice. Good with broccoli, zucchini, red bell pepper, and hummus or with black beans, sweet potato, greens and guacamole or salsa. We also sometimes top some with Shepherd's Salad or put some in with squash soup, etc. It's got the highest protein of the carb(-like) foods. Can also used as a hot cereal for breakfast with some dried fruit and cinnamon. Sun Nov 22 16:00:55 -0800 2009 1905852 169792 lgss 1 5200948 http://food.yahoo.com/recipes/eatingwell/1008/quinoa-with-latin-flavors This is my favorite recipe for quinoa. I heat it up for breakfast and dot it with some sriracha sauce and some green chile sauce. Sun Nov 22 17:26:43 -0800 2009 1905852 290845 KristieB 1 5203858 Tonight we had quinoa with broccoli, mushrooms, onion, garlic, habañero, zuke, and tomatoes. Mon Nov 23 17:46:21 -0800 2009 1905852 169792 lgss 1 5204406 I usually go tex-mex or greek style with quinoa - either add black beans, tomato, corn, cilantro, jalapeno, cumin, and lime juice OR cucumber, tomato, olive, red onion, mint/parsley, and lemon juice in whatever proportion you prefer. A bit of queso fresco or feta can help out each respective dish, and I always put in some olive oil, but I think you can cut those ingredients while still maintaining a tasty dish. Especially w/ the black beans, it's easy to make that a vegetarian main, but either can serve as a bed for some lighter proteins like chicken or various types of fish, as well as an excellent side to a smaller serving of flank steak. Mon Nov 23 23:37:49 -0800 2009 1905852 194027 nickblesch