Quinoa...what? What is that? How do you pronounce it? Well, this is one of our new favorite things, so I have done a little research.

First off, so we know how to pronounce it when we are reading this, its "KEEN-wah." I didn't always pronounce it right, I mean, when you look at it, it doesn't look like "KEEN-wah" it looks like "kwuh-NO-uh."

OK, so now we have the pronunciation down...What is it? I would venture to say it's a superfood myself, but I actually haven't seen that word in the articles I've read. How about a nutritional powerhouse? I did read that somewhere. (I have copied and pasted some of this from various websites, referenced below) Quinoa is native to the Andes Mountains of Bolivia, Chile, and Peru. This crop has been called 41 vegetable caviar. Quinua means "mother grain" in the Inca language. Quinoa has become highly appreciated for its nutritional value, as its protein content is very high. Unlike wheat or rice (which are low in lysine), quinoa contains a balanced set of essential amino acids for humans, making it an unusually complete protein source. It is a good source of dietary fiber and phosphorus and is high in magnesium and iron. Quinoa is gluten free and considered easy to digest. There is tons more information on the internet on various sites, but this was just a quick little breakdown.

OK - so.....what do you do with it? Cook it! (ha ha) One of the most common ways to use this grain is to cook it, like rice. It can be eaten by itself or mixed with a variety of foods. One of the products I get is a quick little package that you throw into the microwave for 90 seconds. This is so easy and so good. It is a red quinoa with whole grain brown rice and seasonings. The photo at the top is the package I buy at the store. I buy it at Kroger and honestly haven't looked for it anywhere else. I have also bought a box of quinoa and cooked it in a pot just like rice. There are tons of recipes on the internet for using quinoa and I can not wait to try a few. Last night I used two packages of the quinoa and rice, mixed it with 2 boiled chicken breasts that were cut into bite size pieces and I sauteed some onion and celery in butter, and steamed some broccoli. Mixed it all together, added some salt and pepper and Viola! Adding in the chicken was probably more protein then we needed in one dish, but chicken, broccoli and rice is an old favorite recipe, so I was just redoing it. We also make the packages and eat as a side dish.

So, Just On A Whim...I have decided to blog about this today. I hope that maybe it will prompt you to try something new. I recommend this package of quinoa and brown rice to start with because it is packed with SO MUCH flavor, you can't help buy love it. Then, you can experiment with the plain in your own recipes that you would normally use rice in. I have used this in veggie soup as well. YUM.

Before I close - here is the nutritional value of quinoa. Everything you need all in one little seed.

(if you are watching your carbs - well - I don't know what to tell you. This stuff is so good for you, no matter what)
Quinoa, uncooked
Nutritional value per 100 g (3.5 oz)
Energy
1,539 kJ (368 kcal)
Carbohydrates
64 g
Starch
52 g
Dietary fibre
7 g
Fat
6 g
polyunsaturated
3.3 g
Protein
14 g
Water
13
Thiamine (Vit. B1)
0.36 mg (28%)
Riboflavin (Vit. B2)
0.32 mg (21%)
Vitamin B6
0.5 mg (38%)
Folate (Vit. B9)
184 μg (46%)
Vitamin E
2.4 mg (16%)
Iron
4.6 mg (37%)
Magnesium
197 mg (53%)
Phosphorus
457 mg (65%)
Zinc
3.1 mg (31%)
Percentages are relative to US recommendations for adults.Source: USDA Nutrient database

Informational Sources

http://www.hort.purdue.edu/NEWCROP/AFCM/quinoa.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quinoa