Quinoa Tastes Good

Sara Dickerman goes through this whole (reasonably informative) article about whole grains, which even mentions quinoa, but then she doesn't tell you how to cook it or that it's the best shit EVAR. Please. Millet...how do I put this? Millet don't taste real good. If you're eating millet, you're trying to make a point. "Look at me, I'm a big hippie! It's ancient grains!" Quinoa, on the other hand, is yum-tastic. I'm lying in bed right now nursing a grumpy, teething child, so I can't check the ratio. I think it's 1 1/2 c water to 1 c quinoa? No, OK, 2 to 1, I can use google even in my reduced state. It's a good idea to wash it, as it can retain a bitter coating, but I'm lazy and never bother, and it's always been fine, so... First, cook some onion and/or garlic in a few T olive oil. Then add 1 1/2 t cumin, or whatever, and then the quinoa, and toast for a minute or two. Put in the stock (or water), cook over low heat 17-20 minutes, turn off the heat and let it sit a minute or two, fluff it, and there you go. You could stir in chopped tomato or cilantro at the end, include red bell pepper or chilis at the start, generally let your mood and the contents of the vegetable drawer guide you. The grains are very pretty; they are translucent, and each has a curling tail wrapped around it. They have a lovely texture. Also, the are super good for you. I think it is the only grain which is a complete protein. If you are pressed for time, cook quinoa, mustard greens in olive oil and garlic, and pan-fried pork chops or boneless chicken breast with teriyaki sauce. 30 minutes start to finish, and mad healthiness along the way. They only sell it at this one health food store here in Singapore, so I don't eat it as often as I'd like. Damn, I've got to get some quinoa this week...

Comments

[Jeremy Osner]

One thing you should know about millet is that you can make fantastic bread with it as one of the ingredients. Don't have a recipe at hand right now but the basic idea is, a regular old white bread or sourdough batter with a bit of the flour (less than a quarter of it) replaced by millet meal, which is just coarse ground millet. It makes a really tasty, moist, textury bread. Also it is nice to put a little millet meal in your cornbread for variety.

[Pudentilla]

ditto on the recommendation for millet bread - delicious.

[Tom]

Which health food store? I only know the one on Shenton Way, which isn't all that great...

[dbtm]

Quinoa is indeed yum-tastic. I find it's particularly tasty when accompanied by the following items:
1. some sauteed scallions,
2. some portobello mushrooms sauteed along with them scallions,
3. some cherry tomatoes, roasted separately,
4. aged Gouda cheese (just shave some off with your standard cheese knife).

There's dark quinoa and light quinoa. They're both good but I think the dark is a bit better in this case.

[djw]

Mmmmm, Quinoa. My preferred strategy has always been a few vegetables, but most prominently lightly steamed carrots and broccoli, along with the sauteed onion. Toss with Olive Oil, lemon juice, a little feta and a pinch of cayenne and liberal amounts of paprika.

[djw]

Jeremy, that cornbread idea sounds excellent. I've got to try that.

[Matt Kay]

Quinoa also makes an excellent breakfast food when mixed with little chunks of apple and a sprinkle of cinnamon. Sort of like an Andean oatmeal!

[Saheli]

I actually like to eat Quinoa flakes spicy. Cook 'em in the microwave and then stir in chilli sauce and paprika. Mmmm. Kind of like more substantial mashed potatoes.

Strictly speaking, I don't think it's a grain--i.e. it doesn't grow on a grass, but is a flower seed, like buckwheat. This can be useful if you have days when you're supposed to be religiously fasting from grains.

[Swift Loris]

There are two quinoa cookbooks listed on Amazon. Also, if you want to give quinoa a try with minimal effort, Seeds of Change makes a delectable packaged 100% certified organic French Herb Quinoa Blend pilaf featuring quinoa and millet. It's available at many health food stores, or over the Web from ShopNatural.com, among other sources. Quinoa's been a big favorite of mine for years. Less fussy and more interesting than rice, by me.

[The Bobs]

I love millet and think that quinoa tastes like grass, so I guess we all have our own tastes.

[The Bobs]

Also, quinoa is not a grain.

[Cam]

Quinoa's also good in soups, as long as you're careful not to add so much that you wind up with quinoa slurry.

[teep]

I like cooked quinoa with green beans that have been sauteed until well done (think Indian cooking style) in olive oil and garlic.

Millet is somewhat tastier if you fry the seeds in oil (I use butter) until they pop a bit before cooking them. It still isn't all that high on my list of yummies, but I think it's better than plain.

[belle waring]

ok, I'll try the millet again...and I know quinoa's not a grain, but it's very grain-like

[belle waring]

tom: the store is Brown Rice Paradise, on the 3rd floor of Tanglin Mall. it's quite big and has loads of stuff. there's another OK one sort of behind the mall, on Grange road just before you come to Camden Medical Centre. the store is on the ground floor of a building which also houses a drapes/upholstery place. I think it's called SuperNaturals. they have more organic produce there, and a juice bar, but overall I prefer Brown Rice Paradise. better location.

[julia]

millet risotto is really good, though, so there's that.

[Vicky]

Quinoa is available at Trader Joes.

I grow it and also amaranth, another South American psuedo-grain. I've had better luck growing the amaranth. But another growing season awaits.

[dsquared]

Counterpoint: It's quite the nastiest thing I've ever tasted. It has that astringent-yet-bland quality that I associate with butternut squash, all combined with the texture of really bad couscous. Yek.

[Todd Frye]

Millet is mentioned in Seven Samurai as being what the peasants eat when they run out of rice. When the petitioning farmers are exposed as eating millet, the samurai finally agree to help them.

[ogged]

Almost as bad as butternut squash! As gross as couscous! Must you even eat contrarily?

[Clancy]

If you are pressed for time, cook quinoa, mustard greens in olive oil and garlic, and pan-fried pork chops or boneless chicken breast with teriyaki sauce. 30 minutes start to finish, and mad healthiness along the way.

I am going to cook this very meal tonight, but instead of a chicken breast, I'm going to slow-roast some drumsticks. It'll be my first quinoa tasting ever; I'm excited.

[ben wolfson]

Butternut squash ain't bland, bitch.

[Clancy]

Just finished eating. I used onion and garlic in my quinoa, but I didn't have any cumin, so I used a little curry instead. I didn't have any teriyaki either, so I used the closest thing I had: spicy Szechuan sauce. Like you, Belle, I enjoy the texture of the quinoa; it's kind of like smelt roe. (Visual aid here.)

By the way, I got my quinoa at Whole Foods.

[ben wolfson]

Quinoa in that picture looks like polenta.

[dsquared]

Mate, you're cooking your polenta all wrong if it looks like that.