To Quinoa or Not To Quinoa... that is the question.

I love it - much lighter than rice. I don't have any particular recipe, I just make up a batch or two a week and leave it in the fridge and then use it as a rice substitute as and when needed. I have made it in my rice cooker before - I find it comes out best being cooked at a lower heat for longer (which is why I make up a bunch to have on hand for quick reheating). Also, it is hard to get the volumne of water right - I recently tried 5:1 water to quinoa and although it seemed like loads of water, it came out nice and fluffy.

I also toast it a little bit before adding water, or if I want more flavour, using stock instead of water.

I'm not a HUGE fan of the flavour of it...so I tend to flavour the heck out of it. Just treat it like rice really...sometimes I add garlic/spinach/cherry tomatoes/basil to it. Can barely taste the quinoa that way haha

I just started eating it and really like it, but it has a very distinct texture that is different from rice.

I like it with either real butter, salter, pepper, basil and garlic or just cover it with a little bit of natural honey.
I think both taste great.

been thinking of trying some , the only quinoa i see there are in the little flavored envelopes though. I may have to try another grocery store to find more pure versions.

hmm.. I've had a box sitting in my cupboard for probably literally 3 years. I should probably use it up but I've been timid to try cooking it, since I honestly even mess up instant rice. haha

i just wish it weren't so bleeping expensive.

I just jumped on the Quinoa train recently myself. I make one of my favorite couscous recipes with it. I do not measure so here is about what I use:


1.5 cups of dry quinoa that I cook
Zest of one lime and about a tablespoon of the juice (do not use the whole lime for juice, its too much)
1 cup of chopped cilantro.

YUM!

This will keep in the frig for days. Its about 155 calories per cup.

i just wish it weren't so bleeping expensive.

This sounds stupid, but it's actually cheaper in the more upmarket shops - Ie. It's cheaper in Waitrose than it is in Tesco - because Tesco put it in the 'wholefoods' section and bump up the tag for being good for you, whereas waitrose it's just on the shelf with the rest of it.

True. The good thing about it though, is that (like rice) you can get one bag of quinoa and it can last you a REALLY long time. I'm a HUGE fan of quinoa!

Love quinoa, but it is too expensive for me to get very often. I'm finding bulgur wheat to be a nice alternative.

I make a quinoa taco soup that I love! Doesn't take long at all and you get loads of flavor and protein. I've also used it in stir fry. That was pretty awesome too.

I love to add cooked quinoa to my chili recipes. It stretches the number of meals I can get out of one batch. I've even added it to canned veggie soup (when it was all I had) so I could get 2 servings out of one can (too much sodium otherwise).

I do a quick cold salad with it too using cucumber, cherry tomatoes, olives, red onion, any color pepper, chick peas and a small amount of feta (though, I leave off the cheese if I don't have it). A sprinkle of herbs, and a splash of balsamic and I think it's pretty tasty for a quick meal or side dish.

This recipe is absolutely amazing!!! I generally make it as a side dish, but could VERY easily be the main course, it is so filling. The recipe says it serves 10, and has 76 calories per serving. I would say if it was the main course, it could probably serve 4-5 people. It also stores amazingly well in the refrigerator for leftovers.

Ingredients
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
1 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
3/4 cup uncooked quinoa
1 1/2 cups vegetable broth
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
salt and pepper to taste
1 cup frozen corn kernels
2 (15 ounce) cans black beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
Directions
1.Heat the oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Stir in the onion and garlic, and saute until lightly browned.
2.Mix quinoa into the saucepan and cover with vegetable broth. Season with cumin, cayenne pepper, salt, and pepper. Bring the mixture to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 20 minutes,
3.Stir frozen corn into the saucepan, and continue to simmer about 5 minutes until heated through. Mix in the black beans and cilantro.

You will love this versatile product! I've bought a book called Quinoa 365: The Everyday Superfood. I highly recommend it. Everything I've tried, I've liked. Also, it's a complete protein so there's no worry about trying to combine beans/rice, beans/veggies, etc.