Say allillanchu (hello!) to quinoa, a new food friend.
Her name is pronounced KEEN-wah and she’s from South America where she’s been cultivated for 5000 years. The ancient Incas called her chesiya mama, mother grain.
Fact is, quinoa’s not a grain at all but the fruit of a plant related to beets, chard and spinach. Still, she’s prepared and eaten like a grain.
She cooks fast, twice as fast as rice. She’s lighter and fluffier than couscous and tastes, subtly, like toasted nuts.
She’s packed with protein, a complete protein like meat’s. This means that quinoa is one of the healthiest grains around, some say, the super-grain of the future.
Long before Whole Foods and the explosion of international products on the Internet and supermarket shelves, I cooked quinoa off and on. But it was hard to find and then only on dusty shelves in the odd corner store where turnover was slow. Me, I’m glad to be re-introduced to the contemporary product, now raised in North as well as South America.
Wash your hands well with soap after touching even relatively mild jalapeño peppers. You may not feel the burn on your fingers right away. But later, if you accidentally touch your eyes or lips, watch out!
QUINOA & BLACK BEAN SALAD
Time to table: 60 minutes
Makes 8 cups
- 3 cups water
- 1-1/2 cups quinoa
- 2 teaspoons table salt
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
- Zest & juice from 3 limes (about 5 tablespoons juice)
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1-1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
- 15 ounces canned black beans, rinsed and drained
- 1-1/2 cups frozen corn (no need to thaw or cook)
- 1 red bell pepper, chopped
- 1/2 red onion, chopped
- 2 jalapeño peppers, minced (see ALANNA’s TIPS)
- 2 cups cilantro (about 1 bunch), chopped
Bring water to boil in a medium saucepan over medium high. Rinse quinoa well under cold running water. Add salt and quinoa to water, return to boil. Reduce heat to medium, cover and cook until liquid is absorbed, about 15 minutes. Transfer to colander to drain and cool slightly.
Meanwhile, combine remaining ingredients in a large bowl. Add quinoa. Taste and add salt if needed. Let cool at least 30 minutes. Serve at room temperature.
More Hearty Salads
• June 2007 | This year, I sliced fresh sweet corn straight into the bowl - luscious, and so sweet and tender, no need to cook. I also was short on cilantro and so used mostly fresh dill: oooh, a new favorite for this truly delicious salad. Oh! Almost forgot: leave out the quinoa entirely for a really good bean salad.
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