Quinoa...am I doing it right?

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Jamie_Lauren
Jamie_Lauren Posts: 211 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I've heard all about the health benefits of Quinoa and I recently bought a bag of it with the intention of using it as a rice subsitute. I cooked it according to the instructions (bring to boil and let simmer for 15 minutes) and mixed it up with some tuna and tabouleh salad.

Anyway....I didn't enjoy it and it made me feel a little bit ill. I'm just wondering what it should look/taste like when it's prepared properly?

Mine was still small and hard with a grainy texture and in all the pictures and stuff I've seen it looks like it is supposed to be fluffy like rice.

This post makes me look totally clueless but I'm now stuck with a whole bag of the stuff and I would like to know how to enjoy it! :ohwell:

Replies

  • Tokkeditok
    Tokkeditok Posts: 7
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    Seems like you did not cook it long enough. You should cook Quinoa until it's three times as big as it was before! You will also be able to see "circles" swimming in the water - that's the peel of the quinoa (looks like a white ring and when you cook it it springs off sometimes)
    When you chew Quinoa, it tastes a bit like rice but is not as hard as rice (because the balance water to quinoa is 3:1, water to rice is 2:1 as you may know.. this is why quinoa is referred to as a low-cal food .. the portions get HUGE when cooked!)

    When I cook Quinoa it takes about 15-20 minutes. After cooking, let it soak in the pot some 5 minutes more.

    Hope this helped :)
  • piratesaregrand
    piratesaregrand Posts: 356 Member
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    Mmmm I love it. I use 2 cups chicken stock, 1 cup water to 2 cups quinoa, then cook it till the liquid is gone
  • capricorn2721
    capricorn2721 Posts: 46 Member
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    Yes, it should be light and fluffy. You can season it to accompany meat, fish, poultry or veg. It also makes a tasty desert with a little sweetner, cinnamon, nutmeg, etc. Very versatile.
  • Nickiii_123
    Nickiii_123 Posts: 134 Member
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    It shouldn't be hard, it should be kind of fluffy. An individual grain will look like a little circle with a ring around it where it broke the casing in order to expand. What do the instructions on the package say? (I assume you followed them, I'm just curious :)

    Also, you didn't say if this was a problem or not but if it tastes bitter at all you probably will have to give it a rinse before cooking it. Some brand don't wash the quinoa before packaging it so it tastes kind of gross. Swirling it around with some water and dumping the water out will help with taste. My friend tried quinoa and Hated it before we figured out she had to rinse her brand first.
  • Sithian
    Sithian Posts: 5 Member
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    Try this recipe- Worked great for me! I am not a fan of mushy food, and this method came out light and fluffy.

    [url/]http://lowfatveganchef.com/how-to-cook-quinoa-perfectly-every-time/[/url]
  • c2111
    c2111 Posts: 693 Member
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    bump, I havnt tried quinoa yet so bumping for ideas. :)
  • loki3981
    loki3981 Posts: 249 Member
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    Rinsing it is the key that I've found. I use it a lot in casseroles in place of rice.
  • Jamie_Lauren
    Jamie_Lauren Posts: 211 Member
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    Thanks everyone! I obviously didn't cook it right :laugh:

    I will try rinsing it first and cooking it for longer

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