What is quinoa?

Its pretty awesome. I dont eat the red quinoa though. You can make so much with it....you can make desserts with it...breakfast with it and dinner. The other night I made a quinoa risotto with feta cheese and shredded carrots.

There are so many recipes out there so you should browse the net. It has carbs but its a good carb.

What is quinoa? What are some good recipes? Where can I buy it? How expensive is it? Is it actually good for you or low-cal?


I'd really like to know a little bit more about quinoa. Please post your replies!

Quinoa is a carb.

You really missed the boat with that answer. Quinoa is becoming popular because yes it is a grain, but it is also a complete protein. So much more than just a carb.

Quinoa, like rice, takes some cooking. Basically, like rice, you cook it 2 to 1. 2 parts of liquid to 1 part quinoa (or, to be more specific, 1C quinoa with 2C water or chicken stock). It has a mild, nutty flavor, similar to brown rice. It also has these weird little rings that come off as it cooks. It looks odd, but that's what happens. If you overcook it it turns to mush. So you want to make sure you cook it just long enough but not too long.

I like to cook mine in the oven. I brown the grains on the stovetop in a little butter then add the liquid, bring that to a boil, cover, and stick in the oven. I check it every 5-10 minutes to see if the liquid has been absorbed into the grain. It usually takes about as long to cook as white rice. Once all the liquid is gone, it's good eating time!

Quinoa is very versatile and can be used pretty much as a substitute for rice, or in any way rice was used. It makes a spectacular salad. EX: Cook and cool. Then mix with vinaigrette, orange juice, some dried fruit, chicken, and parsley. SO GOOD! It also makes good quinoa tabouleh. Mix cooled quinoa, lemon juice, olive oil, parsley. Heaven.

I hope this helps.
Enjoy!

I cooked up some quinoa earlier this week. I make it like 'Spanish rice'. I drain a can of tomatos- the spicy kind-, mixing the juice and water to get the correct amount of liquid, then throw everything in the pot and just cook it like rice. Little salt, some pepper, a sprinkle of cheese on top... yummy.

The only thing to remember with quinoa is to rinse it well before cooking. I made that mistake once and it had a tinge of bitter to it. Otherwise, it's pretty good stuff!

Quinoa is a seed high in protein and with lots of amino acids that our bodies need. However, the demand for quinoa has caused such a increase in price in the South American countries where it grows, that the local people who have depended on it for nutrition for hundreds if not thousands of years can no longer afford it. Honestly, it is just the new "fad" food. There are lots of other seeds and grains that are healthy for you. Just like oatmeal, a lot of people have difficulty with the texture of quinoa. The flavor itself is bland- you have to dress it up just like with oatmeal. Just stick with oats, that's my advice. Eat a well-balanced diet with as little animal products as possible. Read about The China Study for reference, if you haven't already. Diminish the suffering in the world- every choice you make has an impact somewhere, whether for good or for bad.

I kind of suspected that it was a "fad" food. I tried some from the salad bar at Whole Foods and I was not impressed. Just as you stated, it was bland like oatmeal, which I am not a fan of either because of the blandness.

Quinoa is a seed high in protein and with lots of amino acids that our bodies need. However, the demand for quinoa has caused such a increase in price in the South American countries where it grows, that the local people who have depended on it for nutrition for hundreds if not thousands of years can no longer afford it. Honestly, it is just the new "fad" food. There are lots of other seeds and grains that are healthy for you. Just like oatmeal, a lot of people have difficulty with the texture of quinoa. The flavor itself is bland- you have to dress it up just like with oatmeal. Just stick with oats, that's my advice. Eat a well-balanced diet with as little animal products as possible. Read about The China Study for reference, if you haven't already. Diminish the suffering in the world- every choice you make has an impact somewhere, whether for good or for bad.

Ha. I've also read articles saying it has HELPED quinoa farmers thrive because of the new demand. Plus, it is only bland if you suck at cooking.

P.s I hunt deer, elk, and duck and use my quinoa with it. Tasty!

I cooked up some quinoa earlier this week. I make it like 'Spanish rice'. I drain a can of tomatos- the spicy kind-, mixing the juice and water to get the correct amount of liquid, then throw everything in the pot and just cook it like rice. Little salt, some pepper, a sprinkle of cheese on top... yummy.

The only thing to remember with quinoa is to rinse it well before cooking. I made that mistake once and it had a tinge of bitter to it. Otherwise, it's pretty good stuff!

What she said! Rinse the quinoa or it has a funky taste.

It's true, you need to rinse it. I was told it has a natural pesticide in it. I need to look into that more, though.

In the UK you can buy quick cook bulgar wheat and red quinoa mixed together (10 min cooking time) which is really nice. (I got it from tesco so probably available in other supermarkets too). I was also making caramelised spicy sweet potato and just stirred in the cooked wheat/quinoa mix into the cooking pan to pick up the flavours at the end. It was great with a green herb salad, sharp feta cheese and a lemon balsamic dressing.

Interesting article in the UK Guardian last week:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2013/jan/16/vegans-stomach-unpalatable-truth-quinoa

oh look, its that hippy article..again. Same website has articles that contradict that one. Just saying.

Interesting article in the UK Guardian last week:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2013/jan/16/vegans-stomach-unpalatable-truth-quinoa

I'm going to look further into that.

Interesting article in the UK Guardian last week:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2013/jan/16/vegans-stomach-unpalatable-truth-quinoa

I'm going to look further into that.

You should, its propaganda. Fun stuff.

Definitely seems suspicious. Worth checking out. I wouldn't take the word of one article.