Yes, I finally bought quinoa! Everyone is talking about it these days. I felt like I was behind not knowing about it. For those of you who don’t know (like me last week), quinoa is a seed providing protein, carbohydrate, fibre, vitamins and minerals. It is a good protein alternative for vegetarian and vegan people. It can be used in salads and other dishes, such as couscous, making it a nutrient-rich alternative for people with gluten intolerance as well. What a discovery, right?
So I made a quinoa salad with tomatoes, cucumber and feta cheese.
Verdict: Wow! Maybe I’m just a huge cheese fan but honestly, feta cheese, quinoa, tomatoes and olive oil is an amazing combination! Interesting texture, a bit soft but light as well. The taste of the seed on its own is rather bland, which means it is good news for adapting recipes. I think you can make it any way you like. Next I’m going to try a couple of recipes I saw on others blogs. One was a quinoa version of chilli con carne and the other had roasted sweet potatoes and goat cheese. I like the sound of it. Meanwhile, starting with a salad as a first ever quinoa experience is good to get an idea of what quinoa is like, tastes like. I think if you know an ingredient well, you are more likely to cook it well and make tasty recipes out of it.
This salad makes a delicious healthy and light lunch. I can also picture it on a summer night, dinning in the garden or at a picnic.
How to make the salad:
Simply boil the quinoa following the instructions on the packet, slice the tomatoes and cucumber. Add all the ingredients and serve.
Ingredients:
- A handful of quinoa
- 5 cherry tomatoes
- 5 slices of cucumber
- 1cm wide slice of feta cheese
- a drizzle of olive oil
- a squeeze of lemon
- salt and pepper
Quinoa nutritional information: per cooked 100g
- calories: 120
- protein: 4.4
- carbohydrate: 21.3
- sugar: 0.6
- fat: 1.9
- fibre: 2.8
- also contains vitamins B1, B2, B6, Folate, calcium, iron, phosphorus, magnesium and zinc (source: Wikipedia)
sounds lovely. i’m going to try that salad recipe soon.