Quinoa – The Unrecognized Superfood

It has a funny name, but it’s nutritional value is not a joke!

Honestly, we did not know about quinoa until very recently, and chances are it hasn’t yet gotten on your shopping list either. Check it out; in fact it is so nutritious that at one point even NASA looked at it for long duration space flight missions!

Here are a few interesting facts about quinoa, tips for cooking and a few simple recipes.

It looks like a grain but it is not

Quinoa (pronounced as keen-wa or kin-wa) sold in stores is actually a seed of the plant, which is closely related to plant species such as beets, spinach and tumbleweeds. According to the wikipedia entry on quinoa, it is a pseudocereal rather than a true cereal, or grain, as it is not a grass. Rice, wheat, barely, maize, oats are examples of cereals. Usually it is pale yellow in color, but some of the species can be of different colors. For example, recently we got red quinoa:

Check out this article for more details on the history of quinoa.

It is super easy to cook

We cook it almost exactly the same way we cook basmati rice.

Mix 2 parts water to 1 part quinoa in a large saucepan. Add a little olive oil and stir well to mix. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Lower heat and cover tightly. Let it simmer for about 15-20 minutes or until all water is absorbed and quinoa is soft. When cooked, the grain appears soft and translucent. The germ ring is visible along the outside edge of the grain as seen in the picture below:

It is important to wash the quinoa thoroughly with water before cooking otherwise you will get a slightly bitter after-taste. In its natural form quinoa has a coating of saponin, a bitter tasting chemical, which is usually washed off during processing. Still, it may contain a small amount when you buy it in stores. You can easily wash it off, or soak it in water for an hour or so before cooking. Sometimes, we use chicken broth to cook with instead of water. Or make a recipe with vegetables or chicken after cooking separately. Here are links to two of our recent simple recipes you can try -

Chicken with quinoa

Grilled chicken with quinoa and salad

Here are some more quinoa recipes from the Quinoa Corporation. We bought their Ancient Harvest brand of organic quinoa from Wholefoods.

It has excellent nutritional value

According to the Quinoa Corporation, here are a few nutritional facts about quinoa:

• It is 35 on glycemic index, which is quite low. Low glycemic index foods are good for you because they do not cause the blood glucose levels to rise rapidly after they are eaten. That means your body is not working overtime to produce insulin after you eat.
• It is alkaline (meaning not acidic but basic), which is good for maintaining the acid balance in your digestive system.
• It is an excellent source of carbohydrates and dietary fiber. It is also a good source of protein.
• It has a lot of vitamins and minerals like iron and zinc.
• It is gluten-free.

Here is a nutritional facts label from Wikipedia:

You can find it in Whole Foods or other specialty health stores

We usually buy quinoa from our local Whole Foods market. Check out your local area or look for a specialty store selling natural or organic health foods. You can also buy in bulk from the Quinoa Corporation.

Go ahead, give quinoa a try! And feel free to share a recipe if you like it.

©2009 Littlestomaks.com

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Tagged as: Glycemic Index, healthy eating, Helpful Tips, Organic, Quinoa, Recipes