Quinoa

Quinoa: the first time I saw this word I thought, "Huh?"  This meant nothing to me a few years back, despite the fact that I had been a devoted vegetarian for about a decade.  I wasn't even sure how to pronounce the name! However, in recent years this wee seed has become a popular "fad" food item among natural foodies and has thus been imported to many grocery store chains.  It is possible now to walk into your local grocery store and buy this seed in the bulk goods section.  So what is quinoa?  Why is it popular among health foodies and vegetarians?  Well lets take a closer look at this previously little known seed...

  

Quinoa (keen-wa) is a seed that hails from South America.  The seed is often referred to as a "grain" however this is incorrect as the part of the plant that one actually consumes is technically the seeds.  Quinoa is related to crops such as spinach and beetroot. The seed comes in white, red and black varieties. Pictured above you can see two of the varieties: red and white. Quinoa is a very high protein seed, a.k.a. it contains all essential amino acids.  The human body requires certain amino acids to function at peak efficiency, 9 of these cannot be synthesized by our bodies and are considered "essential" so they must be consumed through our diet.  Usually we get the 9 amino acids from meat and dairy products, however for vegans and vegetarians this is not always possible.  This is where a super seed like quinoa comes in, it can supply needed amino acids for our bodies to use and thus is a healthy vegan method for obtaining these essential amino acids.* 

Quinoa is especially rare in that is contains all 9 essential amino acids, most other plant sources of protein do not contain our required amino acids for the day and thus it makes getting the essential protein for our bodies that much harder for a vegan/vegetarian.  Meat has always been known as a great source of protein because it has ample supplies of the 9 essential amino acids.* Yet with knowledge comes power and knowing that it is possible to get your necessary proteins from plant sources you are empowered to change your diet in a way that might suit you better.

Cook quinoa just as you would rice (1 cup of dried, washed quinoa to 1-1/2 cups of water. Simmer on low heat for 15 minutes.) Before it is cooked quinoa looks just like a seed, however when it has finished cooking it resembles a sprouted seed. You can actually see the little sprout innards curling out of the seed, creating a fluffy pile of delicious quinoa:

 

This little seed always has a place in my cupboard. I love adding it to "Buddha Bowls" instead of rice, add it to veggie burgers, put it into stuffed peppers... Really the possibilities are endless, so have fun with it! The brown type tastes a bit earthier, nuttier in flavour...While the white is much blander, I would equate it to brown and white rice in taste. (But heartier and crunchier). 

Cheers!