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Dining on the "mother grain" By Kady Guyton
Quinoa (pronounced "keen-wa" and a very useful Scrabble word) has been popping up on my radar of late. This humble South American grain has been having a bit of a renaissance lately that is worth checking out. Incas referred to quinoa as "The mother of all grains" and ate it, along with potatoes and corn in all parts of their diet. An undemanding plant, it grows well in high altitudes and harsh soils. Quinoa, along with soy, is considered one of the rare "super foods": a single food that can supply a person with everything they need to be healthy. It's much higher in protein than any other grain, cooks up easily and lends itself to all manner of dishes. It's also gluten-free and easy to digest. The glycemic index is lower than rice, making it a good choice for diabetics and others with blood sugar issues. Because of these characteristics, NASA has included quinoa on the list of possible foods for long-duration manned space flight. Definitely a step up from Tang and dried ice cream. The taste is slightly nutty and mild, making it a good alternative to rice or couscous. Unprocessed quinoa can have a bitter, slightly soapy taste due to a naturally occurring layer called saponin. The saponins are easily removed by rinsing in a few changes of water. Quinoa that is sold pre-packaged or already processed has had the bitter layer removed. Cooking the stuff is much like cooking rice and a rice cooker can be used to do the job. Use twice as much liquid (water or broth) as grains and keep covered. When fully cooked, the grains will be tender and the spore will be showing. The spore is a lovely white curly thread that pops out as the grains expand. When hunting up recipes, I was amazed by the variety of ways quinoa could be used: as a breakfast cereal, mixed with brown rice, in risotto, ground into a flour and used for bread. I opted to make a salad, modifying a recipe I already had in hand. Quinoa can be found locally in two different varieties: red and white. Nutritionally and flavor-wise they are identical, so decide which one looks more appealing and go that way. I used red for my dish, but in the future I'll probably give the white a try. The salad included turmeric, which gives everything a vivid gold color. That effect was sort of lost in the red grains although the flavor came through very nicely. Hunt up a pound or two of quinoa and see what you can do with it. Red Quinoa and Curry Salad 1 cup quinoa Bring the water to a boil and add quinoa. Cover and simmer 10-15 minutes until all the water is absorbed and grains are tender. Transfer to serving bowl. In a small bowl, combine the yogurt, olive oil, vinegar, curry, turmeric, salt and pepper. Pour over the quinoa and mix well. Add remaining ingredients and stir again. Serve at room temperature. |
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