Red Quinoa Recipes
A fast and easy recipe, ideal for any event. It’s a recipe that is not just fantastically really simple to prepare, it tastes even better the day after, so is ideal to prepare in advance for parties or gatherings. Alternatively prepare it to take to work or school!
Cooking Quinoa
Time to learn how to prepare quinoa… To make a Healthy and Easy Quinoa Salads, you need:
75g white or red quinoa, 1 large zucchini (courgette), 1 tablespoon of red wine or balsamic vinegar, splash olive oil, 1 chopped red chili, 150g roughly chopped feta cheese, 100g halved cherry tomatoes, 4 spring onions, finely sliced, several leaves of roughly torn parsley
Easy Quinoa Salad – Method
Boil the quinoa according to guidelines. Drain, rinse under cold water and drain again. Set aside to cool.
Slice the ends off the zucchini then, using a potato peeler, slice into thin strips.
Whisk together the vinegar and two tablespoons of olive oil, season.
Place the other ingredients in a bowl, setting aside a little of the cheese. Splash the dressing liberally over the salad, and crumble the remaining feta cheese on top.
There you have it; a quinoa salad recipe ideal as a starter or snack.
When cooking quinoa, remember it takes less time than other whole grains; around 10-12 minutes should do it. However, also bear in mind that although there is little difference red quinoa tends to take a little longer to cook, so increase cooking time by a couple of minutes. You will know it is cooked when it becomes soft and a tail sprouts from the seed.
IMPORTANT NOTE: If you are going to buy quinoa in bulk (as opposed to pre-rinsed packets) remember to rinse off the saponin before cooking. Otherwise, if you do not wash off the saponin, it can cause an upset stomach.A versatile essential in the kitchen Not only can it be used in place of grain such as rice and similar, it can also be ground into flour to make bread and pasta. Quinoa is also delicious eaten as a side dish.
Whilst almost always known as a grain or cereal, quinoa is not actually either because it is not a member of the grass family. It is actually a species of goosefoot – so called because of the shape of the leaf – grown primarily for its edible seeds. There are several types of quinoa grain available such as the regular white quinoa, red quinoa and black quinoa.
Quinoa can be substituted for the grain in most dishes, therefore preparing meals for those with allergies and/or other sensitivities can be a new .
Quinoa can often be added to dishes as a thickening agent. However, red quinoa is not as effective as a thickening agent as it tends to remain firmer than the white quinoa.
It is very easy to prepare and can be boiled in a similar fashion to rice.
And cooking quinoa in desserts, as well using it in your everyday cooking, is just as really simple and easy. Use quinoa instead of rice for your favourite rice pudding.
So, you just have to agree, quinoa is a great and versatile essential for any kitchen!
So, time for some quinoa cooking
Here is some useful info
Now we can take a look into a few of the more basic facts about quinoa. If you have been living on another planet, then you can be forgiven for never having heard of quinoa! It is everywhere at the moment, but because there can never be too much information about anything, so we take a brief the origins of this versatile seed and cooking quinoa, which are the types of quinoa available and the calories in quinoa.
The origins of quinoa
There are probably a few of you out there who may well be asking ok, but ‘what is quinoa?’ Well, that’s a good question.
The quinoa grain is quite new to the western world, but has been considered a staple part of a nutritional diet by indigenous Incas of the Andes Mountains in South America for more than 5,000 years.
Native Incas considered quinoa to be sacred. They called it the mother grain.
What are quinoa health benefits?
Included in the long list of quinoa nutrition facts is it is known to contain a high amount of protein and is rich in niacin, iron, phosphorus and potassium. Quinoa is high in unsaturated fats and lower in carbohydrates than most grains.