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| Dry quinoa on the left, cooked on the right |
My sister acquainted me with quinoa last
year. I’d seen it on the shelves of a top end supermarket, but never cooked it
myself. There are different kinds of quinoa, white, red or black are what I’ve
seen and recently a new tricolour product appeared in the supermarket. Quinoa
is sold in the Swiss supermarkets as a bio product, in Estonia one can
also find it in organic or bio food shops but is seems to be more expensive
there.
Quinoa is not really a grain, but seeds of
a leafy green plant. It originates in South America
where people have grown it for a few thousands of years. No wonder because it
has high nutrition value. It can be used in salads or eaten warm as a side or it
may be an ingredient in a main dish. I do wonder how the Incas ate it…
For a healthy lunch here is a very easy quinoa salad for two.
Ingredients:
150g of quinoa
0.5 l water
Half a cucumber cut into small cubes
Half a red paprika/bell pepper cut into
small cubes
5-10 sundried tomatoes cut into thin
stripes
Sauce:
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil or
rape seed oil
Juice of a quarter of a lemon
A pinch of sugar or honey
Salt and pepper
Bring the water to boil and cook the quinoa
until the little tails emerge and the grains are soft for about 15 minutes (check instructions on the pack too). In
the meanwhile cut the vegetables and prepare the sauce by mixing the
ingredients.
When the quinoa is soft, rinse with cold
water and leave to cool. Mix the vegetables and the quinoa and the sauce. Garnish
with chopped parsley or chives. The salad is ready to serve.
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| Quinoa salad |
Variation: add some smoked trout for a more
substantial meal or mix any other ingredients you have at hand (sliced black
olives, capers, scallions, roasted pumpkin, etc, etc).