Adventures in quinoa

I've heard some good things about quinoa lately and have been wanting to try it. I finally found some in my grocery store, and found a recipe that included tomatoes, as I have eleventy thousand tomatoes my parents gave to me out of their garden. I modified the recipe to include chicken and zucchini, which I happened to have in the house.

2 t grated lime zest
2 T fresh lime juice
2 T unsalted butter, melted and cooled (I used regular salted butter)
1 T vegetable oil (I used olive oil)
1 t sugar
1 cup quinoa
1 (14- to 15-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
2 medium tomatoes, diced
4 scallions, chopped
1/4 C chopped fresh cilantro
chicken
zucchini

The original recipe called for cooking the quinoa for a time and then steaming it. I cannot be arsed to do that so I just cooked it according to package directions, which was just like cooking rice: quinoa and water, simmer, done.

Whisk together lime zest, lime juice, butter, oil, sugar and some salt and pepper.

Cook chicken in a pan, add zucchini and cook that too. Rinse and drain black beans, add to pan. Add cooked quinoa, tomatoes and scallions. Add lime juice mixture, stir. Yum.

I just realized I totally forgot to add the cilantro. Oh well, it was still very good anyway.


In conclusion, I didn't happen to notice a distinctive flavor from the quinoa. But it is supposed to be Super Good for you, so it will be a great thing to add to dishes. I am thinking of adding it to my stir frys instead of rice. I don't think there is so much nutritional value to rice so this would be a nice substitution.

What else should I try with quinoa? According to my curly hair care book, it's supposed to be a great scalp exfoliator. But at $8 a package, I don't think I'll be rubbing it in my hair.