So what was my culinary challenge this time? Cooking for a friend who has difficulty with gluten and dairy, amongst other things. Fortunately, the solution was simple and came from one of my favorite cookbooks of all time; Mark Bittman's How to cook everything. And what was that solution, you may be asking? Why, quinoa pilaf, of course!
Quinoa (pronounced "keen wah") is amongst the most delicious and nutritious of grains out there. It does not have any gluten in it and has more protein than a lot of other grains. It is so nutritious that NASA scientists are experimenting with growing it in their "Controlled ecological life support system." Check it out at http://www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/proceedings1996/v3-632.html .
I also happen to love quinoa. I was first introduced to it by my fiance, then boyfriend, Scott. We would use it a lot in our stir fries as an alternative to rice or cous cous. I quite enjoyed it from the get go. I always thought it kind of tasted like a rice/cous cous combo and yet had a unique taste all of its own. The only difficult part of working with it is the need to wash it ahead of time. The seed (for that is what you eat) is covered with saponins (soapy chemicals) and so would taste quite bitter without washing. It is a bit difficult to thoroughly wash something that is not much larger than a grain of sand, but we have found a way. I know friends who don't wash it at all and say that they do not notice a difference.
Anyways, onto the recipe:
QUINOA "PILAF"
Serves: 4
Ingredients:
2 tbsp. peanut or olive oil
1/2 cup chopped onion or leek
1 cup quinoa, rinsed in several changes of water
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 3/4 cup chicken, beef or vegetable stock, or water, warmed
1) Place the oil in a medium-to-large, deep skillet and turn heat to medium. A minute later, add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion softens, about 5 minutes.
2) Add the quinoa and cook, stirring, for a good 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, then add the liquid all at once.
3) Cover and cook until the quinoa is quite tender, about 15 minutes. If all the liquid has been absorbed and the quinoa is not tender, add 1/4 cup water and continue to cook until tender. If any liquid remains, remove the lid and raise the heat a bit; cook, stirring, until the liquid evaporates.
Quinoa "Pilaf" |
Thanks for making this Katie, it was really good. I'm glad to have the recipe now and will be making this for sure. I know I'm not the only one who liked and appreciated it at the party, I have several friends who are on similar diets who were stoked to have it there. Great choice. YUM!
ReplyDeleteI am so glad that you enjoyed it, Keri! As I was saying in the blog, it was a fun (and easy) challenge finding something you could eat. I'll keep a look out for other similar recipes!
ReplyDeleteI'm glad that others enjoyed it, too!