I first heard of quinoa in 2010 while working with Channel 9 nutritionist Dr Joanna McMillan. Always with a finger on the pulse, she referred to it as being a ‘star food’. At the time I learnt that quinoa was a protein packed carbohydrate that was also gluten free and low GI! I had to try it.
These little seeds took me a while to warm to, but I played around with them and became hooked. Not long after, everyone was talking about quinoa – or at least mispronouncing it! I’ll help you, it’s pronounced ‘keen-wah’.
It’s a versatile little seed, just Google it and you’ll find recipes for all sorts of dishes; quinoa porridge, quinoa meatballs, quinoa salads…
Here’s one of my recipes that uses this ‘star food’. Fabulous for a summer BBQ, or as an easy accompaniment at home alongside some steak or salmon. Try it out!
Orange Quinoa Salad Recipe
WHAT YOU NEED:
3/4 cup of quinoa
1.5 cups of chicken or vegetable stock
1 orange
1/2 a lime
1 red capsicum diced finely
2 cups of salad greens (chopped roughly)
2 carrots grated
1 tbs dried cranberries
1 tbs almonds thinly sliced
WHAT YOU DO:
1. Rinse the quinoa well before starting. If not it can taste a little bitter!
2. Pour the quinoa into a deep pan and lightly toast over a low heat until you hear the seed ‘pop’. Swirl the seeds in the pan to ensure they don’t burn.
3. Pour the stock into the pan and let the quinoa simmer for about half an hour, or until it becomes a translucent and the seed ‘tails’ appear. Transfer to a salad bowl and allow the quinoa to cool.
4. Dice capsicum, grate carrots and juice the orange and lime. Stir the carrot, capsicum and ‘juice’ into the quinoa and let it chill in the refrigerator.
5. Whilst waiting for the quinoa to chill and soak up some of the juice, I recommend cooking a piece of salmon to serve alongside the salad.
6. Before serving, slice up some salad greens and stir through. Garnish with some plump dried cranberries and thinly sliced almonds.
Eat well, be well…
Lisa Donaldson APD
www.FEEDinc.net
