What's Cookin' Wednesday

Quinoa!

Even though George pronounces it "kih-no-ee," it's pronounced Keen -wah. We discovered it while eating at one of our favorite restaurants in Champaign, Radio Maria.

Quinoa is a grain native to South America and has been cultivated for more than 5,000 years. It has been called a "super grain" because it's protein content is 22% for one cup (compared to 14% for wheat and 7.5% for brown rice), and because it has an adequate quantity of lysine (an amino acid), which most grains lack. That makes it a source of complete protein, the issue many refer to when expressing concern about being vegetarian. It's also higher in other nutrients and minerals than other grains. Here's what it looks like growing, harvested raw, and cooked:



The nutrition aspects of quinoa are important to us but even more important is the ease of preparation and how it tastes. Quinoa is very versatile, is as easy to cook as rice, and tastes really good. It's also becoming more easily found at the regular grocery store and not just at the health food store. I saw it Mierer the last time I shopped there.

Here is one of our favorite recipes for preparing quinoa:

Quinoa and Black Beans

INGREDIENTS

• 1 teaspoon vegetable oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
• 3/4 cup uncooked quinoa
• 1 1/2 cups vegetable broth
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 cup frozen corn kernels
• 2 (15 ounce) cans black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro

DIRECTIONS

1. Heat the oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Stir in the onion and garlic, and saute until lightly browned.
2. Mix quinoa into the saucepan and cover with vegetable broth. Season with cumin, cayenne pepper, salt, and pepper. Bring the mixture to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 20 minutes,
3. Stir frozen corn into the saucepan, and continue to simmer about 5 minutes until heated through. Mix in the black beans and cilantro.