Can you believe it’s been an entire month since the last RECIPE’D gratis? I can’t. Time is flying in quarantine but no matter what, we’ve still got to eat. As the world slowly starts opening back up, it pays to have a few quick and easy recipes in your back pocket. These three recipes are just what you need.
I’ve been having a love affair with quinoa for the last few months. Mainly because it is quick, easy to cook and almost foolproof. Quinoa is a seed that is a complete protein and is high in carbohydrates. It cooks up similar to rice or couscous and takes on the flavor of whatever you cook it in. It cooks up like rice, but in half the time. So, if you are looking for a quick lunch or dinner in the middle or at the end of a hectic day ,as I usually am, quinoa is literally a life saver.
So here are three tasty, quinoa-based recipes that will take you through breakfast, lunch and dinner…
Savory Quinoa Breakfast Porridge
I am not, I repeat, not a breakfast fan. I am not, I repeat, not a porridge fan. OOOOOH, but I love this savory quinoa breakfast porridge. It’s quinoa in a peanut/sunflower sauce topped with crunchy and toasty bits. It’s easy, not mushy, delicious and customizable. I eat this three to four days a week and I NEVER get sick of it! In fact, I miss it on days that I don’t have it. Its unctuous and moreish.
Boil your quinoa or use leftover quinoa from the fridge. Who has leftover quinoa just sitting in the fridge? *raises hand slowly, and guiltily…” me, she her! If you don’t, no sweat.
If you are having breakfast after a workout or after getting the kids ready for the day, before you start your day, quickly rinse your quinoa, drop it in a pot with some hot water. Let boil covered for 13 minutes, turn off and let it steam for another 2-5 minutes. Set a timer. If this seems like too much for your morning routine, boil it the night before and stick it in the fridge.
Once you’ve gotten the kids together or finished your workout, your warm or room temperature quinoa should be ready to go.
Grab a bowl.
Add 2-3 generous splashes of soy sauce/tamari/liquid aminos
Add 2-3 tablespoons of unsweetened peanut butter (if all you’ve got is the regular sweetened peanut butter, use it and skip the agave) USE Sunflower butter if you are allergic to nuts.
Add a swig of agave/ maple syrup/ honey (if you aren’t vegan)
Add red chili flakes, garlic powder, or chili garlic paste to taste
Add enough water to get to a sauce consistency that you like. I like my sauce on the thicker side and about a 1/4 cup of water works from me.
Whisk everything together and warm your sauce in the microwave or on the stove top for approximately one minute.
Add your room temp or warm quinoa to your sauce and mix well.
Top with chia and ground flax seeds for your omega 3’s and a slight pop as well as mixed nuts and seeds of your choosing. I LOVE a mix of peanuts, almonds, sunflower and pumpkin seeds that I buy prepackaged. Toasted sesame seeds would also be great on this, toasted coconut or coconut bacon crumples would be equally amazing. If you aren’t vegetarian or vegan, you can even go balls to the walls and crumble up some crispy bacon on top.
Quinoa Jambalaya
Okay, so in the interest of full transparency, I literally came up with this recipe last night. It was late evening, we were all hungry and our weekly market run was 12 hours away. So we had canned diced tomatoes, quinoa, some suffering sweet peppers, a lone onion and two decent garlic cloves. Lest we forget, the vegetable scraps I save to make homemade veggie stock.
So what could I make with these sparse ingredients that was tasty and appealing? Aha! Jambalaya. Who can resist a delicious melee of flavor? Nobody in this house!
I gathered my ingredients:
1 can diced tomatoes
1-1 1/2 cup of quinoa (I used whatever was left in the half bag that I had)
2 medium sized sweet (bell) peppers diced
1 small red onion (that’s all I had, use whichever onion you’ve got) diced
1 stalk of celery finely diced
Homemade Cajun seasoning ( your fave salt-free or low sodium seasoning blend, garlic powder, onion powder, paprika (I subbed with cayenne b/c that’s what I had and I don’t mind heat), black pepper, and a pinch of salt.
1 teaspoon of Trini Green seasoning (scallion, pimento, garlic, culantro—NOT cilantro), and celery leaves blended up)
3-4 chopped up broccoli stems (I rescued from my veg scraps bag in the freezer) OR meat or meat alternative of your choosing. I marinated my broccoli stems in a marinade that is popularly used for coconut bacon and cooked them down in the marinade over a medium heat before adding to my vegan jambalaya. You want to use precooked meats if you are adding at the end like me. If not be sure to brown your meat after you saute the peppers and onion before adding your quinoa.
Prep your veg before you start.
I dropped my peppers, onions and garlic in the food processor and pulsed twice until I had a small dice on them.
Get a large pot. I used a stock pot that I’ve had since Adam was a baby boy.
Put it on a low heat.
Add your favorite high heat cooking oil. I used soybean oil. If you use olive oil try to moderate your heat accordingly as so not to burn it because that flavor isn’t pleasant.
To your oil, add your diced veg and a healthy helping of your Cajun seasoning and a pinch of sugar. Saute until your onions are translucent.
Add half of your can of diced tomatoes. Cook down until the tomatoes no longer taste like they emerged from a can.
Add your rinsed quinoa and mix thoroughly.
Take the other half of your tomatoes and blend them up with a bit of water (or stock) and Cajun seasoning.
Pour that liquid over your quinoa and cover for 15 minutes. Checking periodically to adjust the liquid levels and seasoning to taste.
While that cooks, if you are adding broccoli stem coins as I did, make a quick marinade of soy sauce/tamari/liquid aminos, five spice powder or paprika (again, I used what I had and I love the meatiness of five spice powder), a healthy splash of agave/honey/maple syrup, and a tiny dash of liquid smoke, it’s powerful!
Once your marinade is done, peel and chop your broccoli stems into sizeable pieces because you want it to replicate the size or girth of sausage. Let them sit in the marinade for 5-10 minutes. Then toss the entire mixture in a pan on a medium heat until the stems have absorbed all or most of the marinade.
Add the stems to your quinoa and Voila! your Quinoa Jambalaya is complete. Remember, if you are adding vegan or regular sausages or chicken, you need to brown them down in the pot with the sauteed veg BEFORE adding your quinoa. This will allow them to cook all the way through with your Jambalaya. Nothing like raw or under cooked meat/ meat subs to ruin a great meal.
Caribbean Quinoa and Peas
This might be the easiest quinoa meal, you’ll come across. You’re welcome in advance. This can be a side dish to stewed veggies or meat, I like a lil Trini stewed cauliflower, personally, or a main dish with a side of green salad or coleslaw. It’s up to you and your taste buds!
Gather your ingredients:
1-2 cups of quinoa
1-2 cans of pigeon peas (I like the brown ones, if you like green, go for it)
1 pot spoon of brown sugar.
1 tablespoon of Trini Green Seasoning (scallion, pimento, garlic, culantro (NOT cilantro), and celery leaves blended up)
4 large cloves of garlic
Nutmeg (fresh or ground)
1-2 cups of coconut milk
pepper sauce or hot sauce (optional)
1 hot/mild pepper diced
As usual you want to rinse your quinoa. You don’t have to wash it like it’s laundry, but a simple rinse to get rid of anything unsavory. There usually isn’t much in my rinse water.
Drain and rinse your peas as well.
Get a large pot.
Add one large pot spoon of brown sugar to the pot with a splash of oil. Allow the sugar to brown while constantly stirring (with a wooden spoon/utensil) until you have a nice dark brown color and it starts to froth up.
Add a splash of warm water to keep the sugar from seizing up.
Add your garlic cloves and green seasoning to the pot. You can also add your diced pepper now.
Saute until the aroma of the seasonings are permeating the space.
Add your quinoa to the pot and toast it thoroughly in the browning gravy.
Cover your quinoa with a cup of coconut milk.
Let it cook until the quinoa is half way done (8-10 minutes in).
Season your peas with a little a green seasoning, garlic powder and your fave salt-free blend and add to the pot.
Mix the peas properly and add more coconut milk, if the liquid is no longer covering the quinoa and it shouldn’t be.
Grate in a little bit of nutmeg or add a 1/2 teaspoon of ground nutmeg.
Let cook until the quinoa is cooked through, adjusting liquid and seasoning to taste.
You know your quinoa is cooked through when it is fluffy. Your peas should be soft, but not mushy unless that’s what you like.
Add a splash of pepper or hot sauce and mix thoroughly if you like heat.
Tah dah! Your done.
Cook Up A Win
These quick quinoa dishes will have you eating good in little time with little effort. That’s always a win. Make them and let me know which one is your favorite!
In fact, if you:
follow us on Instagram @RECIPED_sub
make one of the recipes above,
post a pic to Instagram and tag @RECIPED_sub
you’ll be entered to win a free one year subscription to RECIPE’D premiere. That’s one year of weekly recipes, podcast episodes, and exclusive recipe’d content for FREE! The first issue will be out on June 1st. Be among the first to experience the magic of it all and for FREE!
I hope you and your family eat until your bellies bust, and your tables are filled with love and laughter.
Until we cook together again, stay safe.
XOXO,
Mel
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