All About QUINOA!

[mamagiff]

I don't know how I missed this thread...I've got quinoa sitting on the shelf and no clue....this will help!

[SweetPoison2]

Just checkin on ya, C! Saw your name!

Good to see you making threads ~ no clue what the hell it is about though!!

[BikerAng]

I made a mock jambalaya last night using quinoa instead of rice. It turned out very good!

[Charski]

Hey Marie! Quinoa is good stuff - you gotta try it!

Ang - yum, that sounds good! Please share your method and recipe!

[MNLisaB]

In my best Newman imitation...



"Jambalaya!!!""

[Mair]

What section of the store should your look for Quinoa?

[Dixie Barkley]

Originally Posted by MNLisaB

Oh Char, just have to thank you for your short rib recipe. I had never, ever made them, thinking they were all bone and no meat, so why bother. I saw some at Sam's Club, took your recipe (tweaked a bit, of course!!) and WOW, do we have a winner here.

This bird seed stuff would also make a great side for those short ribs...insert drool smiley right here.

Char, where is your short rib recipe? We used to have a restaurant fairly close to us that made the best short ribs but as with many other things they have "Gone With the Wind".

[MNLisaB]

Originally Posted by Mair

What section of the store should your look for Quinoa?

In many groceries, you might find this in the "natural" foods section, or where they have the grains.

[stargirl21]

It is sort of pricey at the regular grocery store. If you have a whole foods or natural food store that sells stuff in bulk it is waaaaay cheaper

[lindaokc]

I found it to be outrageous in the health food store, we don't have any "whole foods" here.

[SCOTTSDALEJULIE]

I found mine at Trader Joes, bought 2 boxes.

[BikerAng]

Originally Posted by Charski

Hey Marie! Quinoa is good stuff - you gotta try it!

Ang - yum, that sounds good! Please share your method and recipe!

You bet! It was pretty darn good, DH really liked it.

Quinoa Jambalaya

4-6 servings

1-2 whole large chicken breasts attached to breast bone (I used 2 chicken leg quarters because that's what I had)
4 cups chicken broth (homemade is best because you control the salt/ingredients)
3/4 - 1 pound prawns, shelled and devined (I didn't use prawns, didn't have any but they are a great addition)
4 andouille sausages, cooked and sliced diagonally.

Place the chicken, skin side down, in a 2 quart saute pan. Cover it with 4 cups chicken broth. Bring it to the boil and reduce the heat to low or warm. Simmer it for 15-20 minutes or until the juices run clear when pierced. Turn chicken once during cooking time. Transfer chicken to cutting board to cool. Remove the meat from the bones and cut into 3/4 inch chunks. Set aside until needed.

Poach prawns in the chicken broth until the meat is a glossy opaque white and prawns are pink and curled (3-5 mins). Remove to a side dish and cool. Reserve cooking broth.

3-4 TBS oil
1 cup chopped onion
1 large rib celery, chopped
1 cup chopped green pepper
2 large cloved garlic, minced
1 1/4 cup quinoa, rinsed and drained
1 cup canned tomatoes, chopped (reserve liquid)
1 bay leaf
1/2 TBS fresh thyme (or 1/2 tsp dried)
1/4 - 1/2 tsp cayenne (more or less depending on how hot you like it)
1 tsp cajun seasoning
1/4 tsp pepper
1/2 -1 tsp salt (depends on how salty your broth is)
1/2 cup tomato liquid
1 TBS chopped parsley (garnish, optional)

Heat the oil in a 5 quart saute pan. Add the onions, celery and green pepper and saute until barely tender. Add the garlic and saute briefly. Add the quinoa and saute for a minute or two. Stir in the tomatoes, herbs, spices, salt/pepper.

Combine the chicken cooking broth with the tomato liquid making 2 cups liquid. Add this to the quinoa mixture. Bring it to a boil, stir and cover and reduce heat to a simmer. Cook 15-20 minutes, until quinoa is cooked and liquid has evaporated (I had a bit of cooking liquid remaining so I just simmered it w/o the lid until it evaporated). Add the chicken, prawns and sausage and cook about 5 more minutes until meat is heated through.

[Jennifer Eloff]

Oh, wow, Angie! That sounds terrific! You're such a good cook.

[BikerAng]

Aw, thanks Jennifer! Quite the compliment coming from you!!!

[Charski]

Originally Posted by Dixie Barkley

Char, where is your short rib recipe? We used to have a restaurant fairly close to us that made the best short ribs but as with many other things they have "Gone With the Wind".

Here ya go buddy!

Char's Ovenroasted Beef Shortribs (by request)

[SweetPoison2]

Originally Posted by BikerAng

You bet! It was pretty darn good, DH really liked it.

OMG. It does sound good guys!! Thanks!!

[rottinluv]

I forgot to report back with my results! I love quinoa!!!

I made it like Charski's basic recipe using 1 cup of organic chicken broth, and 1 cup on water.

I made spaghetti and used my MIL's frozen meat sauce for the rest of the family, and just poured the meat sauce over the quinoa for me. It was delicious, and very filling.

I'm having it tonight as a side dish with some chicken. Of course, I'll be salting it, and slathering it in butta!!

I can't wait to try it as a breakfast cereal.

[Heifetzbass]

Hey,

I tried this last week. First time I had Quinoa, but have been jonesing for some risotto. (too much Hell's Kitchen) I made the quinoa according to the directions on the package, but I toasted the quinoa in some butter before I added the stock. (ancient harvest) I used chicken stock, covered and let cook. When the liquid was cooked out I added some parmesean, a little more butter, and some cream. It was very good. Nice and creamy with a good texture. Next time I make it I will add some onions and red wine to it before cooking.

Also made it Sunday just as pilaf. I think I am hooked. No bad side effects with the BS from what I can tell!

Brian

[Charski]

Yay Brian! Glad it's working for you, and that risotto idea is great! Will have to try it!

[ReluctantFoodie]

Hi! I'm not a low-carber, but was directed to this thread by my mom, who is a low-carber, after we discussed the benefits of quinoa. Unfortunately, she can't eat is as its carb level is too high, but she wanted to share this thread and its recipe ideas with me.

Quinoa indeed isn't really a "low carb" food if you're keeping the carb #s very low, however, it is very low on the glycemic index for a grain-like food. Plus, for a vegetarian like me, its complete protein is a boon. As has been pointed out already upthread, it's also a great source of minerals, has an appealing nutty flavor, and has a multitude of uses.

If you buy unwashed quinoa, you need to wash it first to remove the bitter saponins that coat the seeds. Put in a fine mesh sieve and rinse, swishing the seeds with your hand. As was mentioned, toasting really brings out the delicious flavor and aroma of the quinoa. Unwashed quinoa should be stored in the refrigerator to keep it from going rancid.

This pilaf was my first foray into quinoa, from the Savvy Vegetarian website, and it was so good I've made it several times. You may need to make some substitutions in order to lower the carbs. Luckily, it's a flexible pilaf, so you could really add whichever vegetables you like. One cup of quinoa really expands, so this makes a goodly amount. We ate it as a main dish.

1 C quinoa, rinsed and toasted
1 C celery, sliced thin or diced
1/2 C raw cashews, toasted and chopped
1/2 C red bell pepper, diced
1-2 Tbsp olive oil
pinch of crushed garlic or asoefetida (hing)
1 bay leaf
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp ground turmeric
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp salt
1-3/4 C water
1/4 C parsley or cilantro, for garnish
black pepper to taste

Heat oil in a larger saucepan; add asoefetida or garlic, celery, red pepper and cashews and stir-fry until cashews are golden
Add the rest of the spices and stir well for a minute, until the spices are fragrant
Add the quinoa and stir until oil is absorbed
Add the water, and bring to a boil over high heat
Cover, reduce to a simmer, and simmer until water is absorbed, about 15 minutes
Allow to rest off the heat, covered, for 5 minutes
Fish out the bay leaf, add pepper to taste, and garnish with parsley or cilantro
Enjoy!

Asoefetida, called "hing" in Hindi, is a spice you can get at Indian/Asian groceries; it stinks when raw, but when cooked, it develops a lovely mellow aroma and smell that is sort of like garlic.

[Charski]

Thanks for the contribution, Foodie, hope you'll stick around and visit!

Has your Mom tried the quinoa at all? If she's read through this thread, she will see that many folks find it does not affect their BS readings at all - so it IS very low glycemic, even my insulin-resistant hubby can eat half a cup of it (a nice serving) without any spikes in hunger - so although it LOOKS high carb, I think they're the "not easily turned to sugar" type and we don't worry about it. Everyone has to do what works for THEM though!

Your recipe sounds delicious, thanks for posting it!

[Charski]

For breakfast - I took about half a cup of prepared quinoa, and nuked a bit til hot, then added some unsweetened vanilla almond milk, a splash of heavy cream, a heaping teaspoon of almond butter, and a couple packets of Truvia, then nuked it all til the almond butter melted into the mix and it was hot through. YUM, what a delicious hot cereal! Hearty too, we'll see how long it sticks with me this morning!

[ReluctantFoodie]

Thank you for the welcome, Charski! That almond-y recipe you just posted sounds amazing; I'm going to try it. Tonight I'm using quinoa as an accompaniment for a vegetable curry.

My mom's really really strict about carb counts, so I don't think she'd try quinoa, but maybe she might someday!

[Charski]

That almond quinoa was really tasty, AND held me til about 12:30ish, so that's all good for me!

[Charski]

So I ground up 1 cup of quinoa in my Vitamix until it was a floury consistency. It make about 1.25 cups, more or less.

I used a spoon to scoop the flour into a 1 cup measure, not packing or shaking it, then leveled it off and put that in a bowl.

I added 1/2 tsp. baking powder, 1 tsp. Thicken Thin Not/Starch, and a pinch of salt. Stirred it well with the spoon.

Next I drizzled 1 tablespoon of walnut oil over the flour, and combined with my fingers until it was the consistency of cornmeal.

Then I drizzled on water, a little at a time, and combined with my fingers until it would hold together. It took just about 1/4 cup.

I covered it with plastic wrap and let it rest 10 minutes, then checked - it seemed a bit dry, so I added a little more water. All told, it was 1/2 cup less 1 tablespoon.

I lined a baking sheet with nonstick foil, dumped the dough ball onto it, flattened, sprayed with EVOO cooking spray, then put some plastic wrap over it and pressed down on it with another baking sheet to evenly flatten it. Using a pizza cutter, I scored it into cracker shapes, then sprayed a little more EVOO cooking spray on it and lightly sprinkled with coarse salt, and popped into a preheated 400* oven.

I checked it at 10 minutes - the edges were starting to brown. I set the time for 5 more minutes.

I started removing those that were golden brown, letting the others cook.

Well, overall, they're OK. They need to be rolled out thinner. They would probably be REALLY good with some garlic and/or onion powder added in. But for a first effort - I give 'em a B-.

More experimenting will ensue!

[SCOTTSDALEJULIE]

Thanks for your hard work Char. Julie

[Charski]

It's fun, Julie! It's MORE fun when the results are better, but hey, that's how we learn, right?

I saw another recipe online that used COOKED quinoa and eggwhite - may try that one next, it had crossed my mind to do that originally but thought I'd try the "quinoa flour" route first.

[Charski]

I found this online at a quinoa recipes site - it looks good, haven't tried it yet myself!

Peruvian Quinoa Stew

(Reprinted with permission from Moosewood Restaurant Cooks at Home, by theMoosewood Collective, Copyright 1994 by Moosewood, Inc.; Simon &Schuster/Fireside,publishers)

Serves 4
Total time: 35 minutes

½ cup quinoa
1 cup water
2 cups chopped onions
2 garlic cloves, minced or pressed
1 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 celery stalk, chopped
1 carrot, cut on the diagonal into ¼-inch thick slices
1 bell pepper, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 cup cubed zuchinni
2 cups undrained chopped fresh or canned tomatoes
1 cup water or vegetable stock
2 teaspoons ground cumin
½ teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon ground coriander
Pinch of cayenne (or more to taste)
2 teaspoon fresh oregano (OR) 1 teaspoon dried oregano
Salt to taste
Chopped fresh cilantro (optional)
Grated Cheddar (OR) Monterey Jack cheese (optional)
1. Rinse quinoa well with cold water. Use a fine mesh filter or coffee filter. Ifyou're a klutz like me use the fine mesh filter or a lot of quinoa is going towind up in the sink!Quinoa is coated with a natural substance called saponin that protects thegrain by repelling insects and birds. Rinsing the quinoa is important to avoid araw or bitter taste. You can tell if there is saponin by the production of a soapylooking "suds" when the seeds are swished in water.Good news! If you are using Ancient Harvest Quinoa you can skip this step. It'salready rinsed!
2. Place rinsed quinoa and water in pot (covered) and cook covered on medium-low heat for about 15 minutes until soft.
3. While the quinoa is cooking place the onions, garlic and vegetable oil incovered soup pot and saute on medium heat for 5 minutes
4. And celery and carrots to the soup pot and cook an additional 5 minutes,stirring often
5. Add the bell pepper, zucchini, tomatoes, and one cup water or vegetable stockto soup pot. Stir in cumin, chili powder, coriander, cayenne and oregano tosoup pot simmer covered for 10 to 15 minutes until vegetables are tender.
6. Stir in cooked quinoa and salt to taste.
7. Top with grated cheese (and optionally chopped cilantro - See cilantro notebelow)
8. Serve immediately.


Optional Ingredient for Quinoa Vegetarian Stew: Chopped Cilantro. This is my standard cilantro warning.
Exercise caution on this ingredient. There are two kinds of people - those who love cilantro and those who hate cilantro. Nobody is in between. So, if you know you like cilantro go for it! If you don't know whether you like it add it at your own risk. You might break some leaves off of fresh cilantro in the grocery store. Crush it between your thumb and finger and smell it. If it smells good you're probably a cilantro lover. If it smells like old gym shoesyou probably hate it. My advice? Try the quinoa stew without it and see how you like it. Or, since you're adding it at the end as a topping, just try a little and see how it goes.

[vanilla_latte]

I've not tried quinoa, but it sounds alot like couscous. What are the carb counts and wonder why it's so high if it's more like a protein?

I'm tempted to try it although I'm nowhere near goal. But seeing as I've been trying to lose weight for almost 30 years, I might as well try it in small amounts.

Has anyone mixed it in with the mixture known as "Heiney Helper" (I call it Creamy Magic Meat ), the hamburger/rotel/cream cheese dish?

The best thing is it's a quick fix thing, which I adore!

[lighterbeing]

Right before I saw your post I thought it might be good with ground beef. I used to make a casserole, barley casserole. I used barley, ground beef, onions, a can of tomatoes, small can of tomatoe paste, and spices. Italian type. Put it in the oven with grated cheese on top and it was one of my favorite meals in the winter. I think I will try it with Quinoa. I may not lose weight that day but I can do that another day....just as long as I do not gain.