Quinoa Pulao -- superfood superfast

Sometime around April, the weather around here changes radically. The ground shakes off the expanse of white snow and gets to work.

Green grasses sprout.
Tiny pale green leaves unfurl as if touched by some magic wand.
Flowers blossom. Pollen blows around in the wind to keep the cycle of life going.
I sneeze.
Trees turn a shade of deeper green. The temperature soars.Ceiling fans are switched on. Windows are opened wide.
Evenings stretch longer.The neighborhood kids come calling sharp at 4:30 every afternoon. The girls ride their bikes, play hide and seek, run around playing tags from one backyard to another.

Everything around says "Summer is just around the corner".
Which means I have to start eating healthy. I don't know why this happens. It is not that I have lofty aims to sunbathe in a bikini by the pool or anything.
But with any sign of summer, I start digging in my pantry for that forgotten packet of Quinoa and dusting the Nutribullet to make the first health dripping juice of the season.

Quinoa or Keen-wah is a grain I had no clue of until 2010. I am a rice eating Bong and I don't like any grains other than rice. Not even wheat. Period. So if I have to eat a grain which is not rice, I better get the most advantage out of it. And it better not require more than 30 minutes of my time. Yeah, I am very particular that way.

The first time I tried Quinoa at home was in a salad. It was good if not great and I noticed that the high protein in this grain does quell my hunger for a longer period and read that it has lots of vitamins and nutrients. Now honestly if my Mother were to read this, she would have pooh poohed the whole idea and say that there are plenty of other food with the same benefit and it is a balanced meal that is important and not something which is touted as "superfood". Agreed. No need to buy and eat Qunoa if it is super expensive where you live.

For me what works, is that a dish like Quinoa Pulao makes a nice one pot meal to take to lunch. If you don't get this grain, don't fret, you can do the same with a Daliya Pulao.

Cook Quinoa according to package directions. If there are no direction then cook as follows.

Soak 1 cup of Quinoa in water for 2-3 minutes .

On the stove set to boil a pan with 3 cups of salted water. When the water comes to a boil, drain the quinoa on a strainer and add to the pan. Lower heat to medium and cook for 12-15 minutes. Little thread like thingy will come out from the seeds when they are cooked and the tiny seeds will turn translucent. Once done, drain the Quinoa, put it back in the pan and let it sit for 5 minutes. I also rinsed it in cold water while draining and then fluffed it with a fork.

While Quinoa is cooking do the following
a. cook a cup of frozen vegetables in the microwave
b. chop half an onion
c. mince one clove of garlic. I often buy a jar of minced garlic from the Grocery store. It helps when I don't want to mince them

Now heat Olive Oil in a saute pan or wok

Temper the oil with
1 Bay Leaf/Tejpata
2 small green cardamom

Add the minced garlic and follow suit with the onions. Throw in a few chopped chillies to add the spice factor

Saute until onion is soft

Add the cooked frozen veggies. Sprinkle a little Bhaja Moshla(dry roasted cumin, coriander and dry red chilli powder) and saute for a few minutes. You can use any other masala of your choice too, a little Garam Masala or Biryani Masala works great. Depending on how healthy you want to eat, you can fry the vegetables more or less.

Now Quinoa is cooked and you need to add it to the pan
Add the cooked Quinoa gradually, tossing it with the veggies.

Saute for a about 3-4 minutes. Adjust for salt and some chilli.

Serve it with some boiled eggs if you please



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Grilled Mushroom and Quinoa Salad with Cucumber-Onion

For years I have resisted Quinoa.  And for what reason I do not know. The internet had been alive with it but I refused to budge.

"Quinoa ( /ˈkiːnwɑː/ or /kɨˈnoʊ.ə/, Spanish: quinua, from Quechua: kinwa), a species of goosefoot (Chenopodium), is a grain-like crop grown primarily for its edible seeds.It has a high protein content and it is a good source of dietary fiber and phosphorus and is high in magnesium and iron. Quinoa is also a source of calcium, and thus is useful for vegans and those who are lactose intolrant."

Brown Rice -- Check.
Daliya -- Check.
Flax Seed -- check.
Quinoa -- Ummm...

And then one day I got a frozen box of cooked quinoa from Trader Joe's, the kind which says defrost and cook in microwave for 12.5 minutes. It was a disaster. Really. I don't know how I could have gone wrong with those instructions, there were barely any. But it was so bad that D refused to eat any of it.So there went my Quinoa dream.

Then again one fine day while on vacation in Cape Cod, I spotted a Trader Joe's. Of course I had to go in. More important than disturbing the colony of whales and ogling at them I tell you.Since I couldn't buy anything frozen, I bought a whole packet of uncooked quinoa and carried it all the way back home where it sat in the pantry for almost two months. Until today that is.

Watching the opening ceremony of the London Olympics seemed a befitting time to try a new grain. The opulence of one could mask the other's failure, I assumed.

The idea of a quinoa salad with cucumber came from here also the instruction to cook it right. I also decided to pair the quinoa salad with a grilled mushroom and sweet pepper on the side. The idea of the marinade for the vegetables came from Progna's blog.

This is what went in the marinade:

1/4cup Olive Oil
Juice of half a lime
1 tsp whole black pepper coarsely crushed
3 clove of garlic coarsely pounded
1 tsp Red Chili flakes
2 tsp Brown Sugar
Salt
1/4 tsp or more Lime zest

The baby portabella were rinsed, dried and tossed in the marinade along with some sweet peppers. After an hour soaking up the marinade the vegetables were set on the outside grill to char and cook. Alternately you can also roast them in the oven.

Now comes making the Quinoa Salad:

Meanwhile 1 cup of Quinoa was soaked in water for 5 minutes.

On the stove was set to boil a pan with 3 cups of salted water. When the water comes to a boil, drain the quinoa on a strainer and add to the pan. Lower heat to medium and cook for 12-15 minutes. Little thread like thingy will come out from the seeds when they are cooked and the tiny seeds will turn translucent. Once done, drain the Quinoa, put it back in the pan and let it sit for 5 minutes. I also rinsed it in cold water while draining and then fluffed it with a fork.

Chop cucumber, red onion and green chili and in a bowl toss them with olive oil, salt and lime juice.Add some finely chopped coriander leaves. Gradually add the cooked quinoa to this bowl and toss. Taste and adjust for seasoning as you go.

The Quinoa Salad was darn good by itself  and we had it with the grilled mushroom and sweet pepper.

Faster, Higher, Stronger....the amazing power of the Human Bean. Go Olympics.

Now when I had started this post I thought I would send it to Jaya's "Healthy Food--Whole Grain" event. But Quinoa is technically a seed and not a grain so I am not sure if it deserves an entry.