Quinoa—the supergrain of the Incas, Chef Jill Houk Explains

Wednesday, 10/29
Quinoa—the SuperGrain of the Incas, Chef Jill Houk Explains

Our favorite chef, Jill Houk of Centered Chef Food Studios returns to the program to discuss quinoa—the supergrain of the Incas. In addition to being rich in fiber and folate, quinoa is a vegan complete protein, which is essential for anyone reducing or eliminating meat from their diets. We’ve got five quinoa recipes that cover the gamut from breakfast, lunch, dinner and dessert. Yum!


Here are the recipes that Chef Jill shared with us on TRB.


Breakfast: Fruit Tabbouleh
Serving Size : 6

Ingredients

1 cup quinoa -- rinsed thoroughly.
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup water
1 cup apricot nectar -- alternately, use apple juice, pear nectar or omit and use an equal volume of water
2 tablespoons honey
3/4 cup blueberries
3/4 cup strawberries -- hulled and quartered
3/4 cup cantaloupe -- diced small
3/4 cup green grapes -- halved
3/4 cup red grapes -- halved
4 tablespoons mint -- finely chopped
3 tablespoons olive oil
4 tablespoons lemon juice

Method

Bring the water and apricot nectar to a boil and season with salt. Stir in the honey until it dissolves, followed by the quinoa, remove from the stove and cover the pot. Allow the quinoa to steep until tender, approximately 8 minutes. Fluff gently with a fork and turn out to a separate bowl. Allow to cool completely.

Distribute the fruit over the quinoa. Mix the olive oil, lemon juice and mint togther and pour evenly over the fruit and quinoa. Gently toss everything together with a fork until well-mixed. Season to taste with salt and additional honey, if desired.

Per Serving: 258 calories, 9g fat (28.9% calories from fat), 5g protein, 44g carbohydrate, 4g fiber

Quinoa Hot Breakfast Cereal
Serving Size : 6

Ingredients

1 cup quinoa -- rinsed
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups water
2 tablespoons honey
1/4 cup soy milk -- or regular milk, if desired
1/2 cup golden raisins
1 teaspoon cinnamon
3 tablespoons brown sugar
3/4 cup walnuts -- toasted
3/4 cup strawberries -- hulled and quartered

Method

Bring the water to a boil and season with salt. Stir in the honey until it dissolves, followed by the quinoa. Cover the pot and turn the burner to low. Allow the quinoa to steep until tender, approximately 8 minutes.

Fluff gently with a fork and add the soy milk, brown sugar, cinnamon and raisins. Allow to cook gently until the mixture thickens slightly. Portion into serving bowls and top with walnuts, strawberries and additional honey, if desired.

Per Serving: 291 calories, 11g fat (31.6% calories from fat), 8g protein, 44g carbohydrate, 4g fiber


Quinoa Pudding
Serving Size : 8

Ingredients

1 cup quinoa -- rinsed
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups water
1 1/2 cups almond milk -- or regular lowfat milk, if desired
1 1/2 cups lite coconut milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup craisins
1 cinnamon stick
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
Raspberry Coulis
4 ounces raspberries
3 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon lemon juice

Method

For raspberry coulis: blend all ingredients until smooth. Strain through a fine-mesh strainer.
Bring the water to a boil and season with salt. Stir in the quinoa, remove from the stove and cover the pot. Allow the quinoa to steep until tender, approximately 8 minutes. Fluff gently with a fork.

Separately, in a small sauce pot, combine the almond milk (or substitute regular milk), coconut milk, vanilla, sugar, craisins, cinnamon stick and nutmeg and bring to a boil. Add the cooked quinoa and cook, uncovered, over medium-low heat until the mixture thickens and is the texture of rice pudding. Remove the cinnamon stick. Serve warm or chilled with a drizzle of raspberry coulis.

Per Serving: 208 calories, 1g fat (5.8% calories from fat), 3g protein, 47g carbohydrate, 3g fiber


Wild Mushroom and Saffron Quinoa Pilaf with Chicken and Green Beans
Serving Size : 4

Ingredients

4 ounces green beans -- ends snipped, cut into 1" pieces
1 tablespoon olive oil
24 ounces boneless skinless chicken breast
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 ounces onions -- chopped
8 ounces mushrooms -- cremini, shiitake, oyster, chopped
1 teaspoon garlic -- finely chopped
1 cup quinoa -- rinsed
1/4 cup white wine
2 cups chicken broth
pinch saffron
salt -- to taste

Method

Pre-heat the oven to 375 degrees. Season the chicken on both sides with salt and pepper. Heat a large skillet over medium-high. Add the oil and swilrl to coat the pan. When the oil shimmers, add the chicken and sear on both sides until richly browned (do not crowd the pan, work in batches if necessary). Make sure the browned bits on the pan do not burn. Remove the chicken to a foil-covered pan and place in the oven to finish cooking (the chicken will have no traces of pink and will register 161 degrees on an instant-read thermometer). When done, remove the chicken from the oven and keep warm until ready to serve.

In a small pot, bring the chicken broth to a simmer and add a pinch of saffron. In the same skillet you used to saute the chicken, add the second-listed oil to the pan. Add the onions and a pinch of salt and cook over medium-high heat, scraping up the brown bits. When the onions begin to soften, add the mushrooms and cook until the release most of their moisture. Add the garlic and quinoa and cook for a minute, just until the garlic is fragrant. Add the wine and stir up any browned bits. When the wine has reduced by half, add the chicken stock and reserved green beans, stir once and cover. Turn the burner to low and cook until the quinoa is tender, approximately 8 minutes.

At the same time the quinoa is cooking, fill a medium saucepan with water and bring to a vigourous boil. Season with salt and add the green beans. Cook, uncovered, until the green beans are crisp-tender, 3-4 minutes. Drain the green beans .

To serve, place the quinoa pilaf and green beans on a plate then top with chicken, spooning any remaining juices on top.

Per Serving: 462 calories, 12g fat (24.6% calories from fat), 49g protein, 35g carbohydrate, 4g fiber


Quinoa and Spinach Enchiladas with Tomatillo Salsa
Serving Size : 4

Ingredients

1 cup quinoa -- rinsed
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups water
1 tablespoon olive oil
8 ounces onions -- chopped
1 teaspoon garlic -- chopped
12 ounces spinach -- chopped
12 ounces canned black beans -- rinsed
8 each corn tortilla
1 cup tomatillo salsa
2 ounces queso fresco -- diced small
2 tablespoons cilantro -- chopped
4 tablespoons plain low-fat yogurt

Method

Bring the water to a boil and season with salt. Stir in the quinoa, remove from the stove and cover the pot. Allow the quinoa to steep until tender, approximately 8 minutes. Fluff gently with a fork.

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium. Add the onions and a pinch of salt and saute until the onions begin to turn translucent. Add the garlic and cook for a minute, until it is fragrant. Add the spinach and continue to cook until the spinach has wilted and given up most of its moisture. Stir in the black beans and quinoa and continue to heat through and allow for everything to combine. Remove from the heat.

Pre-heat the oven to 375 degrees. Heat a dry non-stick skillet over medium heat. Add the corn tortillas and heat through just to make them pliable. Cover the bottom of a small roasting pan with a thin layer of salsa. Working one at a time, add a small layer of filling to the center of a tortilla. Roll up tightly and place seam-side down into the pan. As you work, nestle the filled tortilla next to each other. When you have filled all of them, spread a generous amount of salsa over all of the filled tortillas.

Bake the enchiladas until everything has heated through and the salsa thickens, approximately 20 minutes. Serve with crumbled queso fresco, chopped cilantro and plain low-fat yogurt or sour cream.

Per Serving: 444 calories, 10g fat (18.9% calories from fat), 19g protein, 74g carbohydrate, 13g fiber