Couscous vs Quinoa
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I actually like both. And so does my husband.
If I need extra protein I opt for the Quinoa, if I need a small boost in carbs to hit my macros I opt for couscous.
I am currently working through the rest of my boxed couscous so that I can move into bulk and flavor my own. One thing I do like is making light "pasta" salad out of Israeli Couscous, so yummy0 -
Quinoa all the way. It is expensive, but it's a complete protein. Meaning that it's missing nothing! It's not a grain so it doesn't turn into sugar as soon as you eat it.
Sold! I'm diebetic so, you just said the magic words. I have never tried quinoa but I've seen recipes and saw it on Biggest Loser. I'm trying it this week for sure.0 -
Here is a breakdown comparison for both. Seems quinoa has more vitamins and minerals.
http://skipthepie.org/cereal-grains-and-pasta/couscous-cooked/compared-to/quinoa-cooked/0 -
They only look alike. Couscous is just pasta in ball form. I thought it was a drain of its own (like rice! like quinoa!) but it's NOT. It's just pasta. So if you're okay with just white flour pasta, know that's what you're getting. I love it--it's so fast and when you cook it with broth instead of just water it's a wonderful side dish. But it has practically no nutritional value. Brown rice is much better and quinoa, from a nutritional standpoint, is head and shoulders above either of them. It's a whole grain (as is brown rice) and packs a protein punch no other grain can touch. I'm surprised you said they looked about the same--I would check the packaging again--could be they're doing something weird with the serving sizes--because quinoa is WAY better for you.0
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Quinoa is NOT a grain.It is a pseudocereal rather than a true cereal, or grain, as it is not a member of the true grass family. As a chenopod, quinoa is closely related to species such as beets, spinach and tumbleweeds.0
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Depends on who's making it.0
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Just curious what everyone's thoughts are on these two foods. I saw couscous at the store today and noticed it was about half the price of quinoa. Seemed like it had pretty similar nutritional info.
Any thoughts?
Couscous is pasta. Tiny little dots of pasta. So basically you are asking quinoa vs pasta. Which is better is entirely up to what your presonal goals and what else you are eating. But as a general question with no other information provided, I'd give quinoa the nod for nutrition.0 -
Quinoa is NOT a grain.
Yes it is. Cereal grains are the most popular grains, but they are not technically the only grains.
From dictionary.com:
grain/greɪn/ Show Spelled [greyn] Show IPA
noun
1. a small, hard seed, especially the seed of a food plant such as wheat, corn, rye, oats, rice, or millet.
2. the gathered seed of food plants, especially of cereal plants.
3. such plants collectively.0 -
Quinoa is NOT a grain.It is a pseudocereal rather than a true cereal, or grain, as it is not a member of the true grass family. As a chenopod, quinoa is closely related to species such as beets, spinach and tumbleweeds.
Thank you! Exactly!!!0 -
Quinoa is a complete protein (Google it if you don't know what that means), which is hard to come by if you don't eat much on the way of animal products. Far superior to couscous, which as already stated is just tiny balls of pasta.0
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This is interesting as quinoa is often pushed as a high protein food but this shows cous cous to be pretty similar. Being in the UK I tend to avoid quinoa because:
a) it is expensive having travelled half way round the world from South America = poor carbon footprint etc.
b) its the staple grain of the Bolivians and Peruvians and the increasing popularity of it among western countries has pushed up the prices so they can't afford to eat it in their own country anymore
^^^^Interesting angle to this debate. Thanks for sharing.0 -
Just curious what everyone's thoughts are on these two foods. I saw couscous at the store today and noticed it was about half the price of quinoa. Seemed like it had pretty similar nutritional info.
Any thoughts?
I have never tried either, and I probably never will. Neither one sounds very yummy to me and I have never seen them at the store.0 -
Quinoa = protein!
Couscous = not.0 -
I hate that someone could ask a scientific question, yet get so many opinions in reply.
Scientifically: Quinoa has 48% of your recommended protein and fiber for the day - as opposed to 12% protein and 8% fiber for cous cous.
Point made.
No extra words needed.0 -
I hate that someone could ask a scientific question, yet get so many opinions in reply.
Scientifically: Quinoa has 48% of your recommended protein and fiber for the day - as opposed to 12% protein and 8% fiber for cous cous.
Point made.
No extra words needed.
One serving of quinoa (100 gms) has 4 grams of protein as does the equivalent amount of couscous. Quino does have 3 gm of fiber compared to1 gm in the couscous.
Not sure how much quinoa you're eating, but for most people, one would have to eat a lot of it to get 48% of recommended amount of protein.0 -
Couscous is not a grain?Personally, I would only compare a grain with another grain. Quinoa is very expensive and the only way to lessen the price burden (and it is a burden at least for me) is to buy it in bulk.
I look for protein and fiber percentages when comparing. I skip the couscous. Quinoa is a staple in my diet more so than brown rice. You may want to look check out millet too.0 -
i love quinoa - it has an awesome taste and texture and complete protein.
couscous is made with wheat, so i'm allergic, but i didn't used to like it as much as i liked rice, quinoa, pasta and barley - barley was my favorite!0 -
Wow.
I always thought couscous was super healthy. I bought some quinoa but yet to try it . Time to crack it out I guess!0 -
I just inputted 100g of quinoa, 100g of couscous and 100g of bulgur wheat (all dry weight) into MFP to compare.
Calories-wise they were pretty similar (368, 370, 376).
Couscous and quinoa both had 13g protein whereas bulgur whear only had 10.
Couscous was higher in carbs and quinoa was higher in fat out of the 2.
I really don't think there's that much in it. Quinoa may have the advantage of being a complete protein, but couscous DOES contain a fair bit of protein so those saying it has basically no nutritional value are wrong. You can also get wholewheat couscous (just like you can get wholewheat pasta) and that would probably be a bit better too.
I'm a bit disappointed that bulgur whear doesn't have as much protein as couscous, because that's my personal favourite out of the 3. But I shall continue eating it nevertheless (and couscous regularly, and quinoa occasionally).
None of them are terrible for you so eat whatever you prefer and what fits best in your budget.0 -
I prefer the taste of couscous, so there you go, couscous is the winner.0
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