Spiced Quinoa
Ingredients:
1 cup organic quinoa
1 onion, diced
1&1/2 tbsp of Olive Oil
1/4 teaspoon each of turmeric, ground cumin, ground coriander and ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon of fresh grated ginger root
salt to taste
2 cups of vegetable stock
1/2 fresh green chilli (or 1 tspn salbal oelek)
1/4 cup of roasted pine nuts (or chopped unsalted cashews)
1/4 cup of organic currants (sultanas work well too)
1/2 cup of peas
1/4 cup of fresh coriander
Zee Method:
Rinse the quinoa. Some are pre-rinsed but if yours isn't, soak it in a bowl and scratch at it, as you would sushi rice, to shift its natural coating (saponin). This saponin is the grain's natural defence and apparently protects it from birds and insects when growing. Let the quinoa sit in the water while you prepare the other ingredients, and you'll notice the saponin float to the top of the water. Drain the quinoa from the saponin water using a fine sieve and it's ready to go.
Using a heavy saucepan, gently heat the olive oil and saute the chopped onion for 1 - 2 minutes. Add the fresh ginger, chilli and spices and cook for a further few minutes.
Now add the quinoa, salt and stock and bring to the boil, stirring constantly. Once boiled, put the lid on your saucepan, lower the heat and allow to simmer for 15 minutes or so. When the stock is nearly absorbed, add the peas and then simmer until the stock is fully absorbed, stirring occasionally. Finally, stir through the currants, nuts and most of the fresh coriander and then garnish with the remainder of the coriander. Serve warm or cold as either a main or side dish.
Serves 4.
When I made this dish the other night, I added some finely diched zucchini at the end with the peas, for an added vege boost. Worked well. Also, because I had run out of a few things I made some substitutions, mainly ginger powder in place of root, unsalted cashews in place of pine nuts, sambal oelek in place of the fresh chilli and sultanas in place of currants.
This is a delicious meal, and I'm going to make it again this weekend to take cold, to a barbeque.
*Mods: If I'm not mistaken we need some additional tags: barley and quinoa. ~L
1 cup organic quinoa
1 onion, diced
1&1/2 tbsp of Olive Oil
1/4 teaspoon each of turmeric, ground cumin, ground coriander and ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon of fresh grated ginger root
salt to taste
2 cups of vegetable stock
1/2 fresh green chilli (or 1 tspn salbal oelek)
1/4 cup of roasted pine nuts (or chopped unsalted cashews)
1/4 cup of organic currants (sultanas work well too)
1/2 cup of peas
1/4 cup of fresh coriander
Zee Method:
Rinse the quinoa. Some are pre-rinsed but if yours isn't, soak it in a bowl and scratch at it, as you would sushi rice, to shift its natural coating (saponin). This saponin is the grain's natural defence and apparently protects it from birds and insects when growing. Let the quinoa sit in the water while you prepare the other ingredients, and you'll notice the saponin float to the top of the water. Drain the quinoa from the saponin water using a fine sieve and it's ready to go.
Using a heavy saucepan, gently heat the olive oil and saute the chopped onion for 1 - 2 minutes. Add the fresh ginger, chilli and spices and cook for a further few minutes.
Now add the quinoa, salt and stock and bring to the boil, stirring constantly. Once boiled, put the lid on your saucepan, lower the heat and allow to simmer for 15 minutes or so. When the stock is nearly absorbed, add the peas and then simmer until the stock is fully absorbed, stirring occasionally. Finally, stir through the currants, nuts and most of the fresh coriander and then garnish with the remainder of the coriander. Serve warm or cold as either a main or side dish.
Serves 4.
When I made this dish the other night, I added some finely diched zucchini at the end with the peas, for an added vege boost. Worked well. Also, because I had run out of a few things I made some substitutions, mainly ginger powder in place of root, unsalted cashews in place of pine nuts, sambal oelek in place of the fresh chilli and sultanas in place of currants.
This is a delicious meal, and I'm going to make it again this weekend to take cold, to a barbeque.
*Mods: If I'm not mistaken we need some additional tags: barley and quinoa. ~L