Many quinoa recipes use quinoa that has already been been cooked and prepared before including in a recipe. Cooking quinoa twice is very common and most recipes will require you to do this preparation stage. When you have prepared the quinoa in this way it is ready to be put into all sorts of dishes replacing rice and cous cous as a base for meals. You can also cool the quinoa for half an hour and put it in salads. It is simply a matter of mixing in some chopped salad vegetables such as sweet peppers, tomatoes and celery.
Step 1
Rinse the quinoa in a fine seive with cold water. Do this a second time to make sure the saponin coating is completely removed. When quinoa is unprocessed you need to rinse it completely in this way to be sure of getting the best results.
Step 2
Measure out one cup of quinoa to two cups of water into a saucepan.
Step 3
Bring the mixture to the boil, stirring gently to ensure it does not stick to the pan. When it has come to the boil you turn the gas down and let it simmer for between ten and fifteen minutes. If yuou want it crunchy then ten minutes will be enough – if you want it soft and fluffy then leave it to cook for longer. By the end of the cooking the water will have been absorbed by the quinoa. The expanded quinoa will be double the original size when it is cooked. Stop the cooking after it is cooked.
Step 4
Your quinoa is now ready to serve as a substitute for rice with curry and other dishes. You can also include it as a part of one of your regular meals. Quinoa generally blends in with the flavours of the foods that you cook it with. The crunchiness and frimness of this grain makes a meal satisfying and filling.
It is also ready to include in the recipes that are in the quinoa recipes book.