Quinoa Pulao ~ Spinach quinoa

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The newest healthy ingredient in my kitchen is avocado oil. Have any of you used it yet ?  I found it in a local health food store at first and purchased it, then noticed even my regular grocery has begun to stock this oil. Since this oil is extracted from the fruit, it has the same heart healthy benefits and the ability to lower blood pressure etc. Also it is one of the oils that has high heat capacity, the label on the bottle claims 500 deg F making it ideal for cooking. And the last part, it has a very subtle taste that makes it easy to use in a variety of recipes without interfering with the taste of the final dish. I have been using it regularly in my cooking and baking these days and am loving it so far :) 

Another healthy ingredient that has always been an essential part of my kitchen is quinoa. These days I have begun to use it much more often than I did in the past. Every week at least once if not more times, I end up using this grain like seed in some dish or the other.  Recently I tried a variation of pulao with a combination of quinoa and spinach that quickly became a favorite of ours. It's quick, easy and flavorful. It also packs well in the the lunchbox :)

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Ingredients and method to make spinach quinoa

1 and 1/2 cups quinoa

1 onion cut fine (pyaaz)

1 large tomato cut fine = 1 cup of cut pieces ( tamatar)

2 cups packed spinach leaves ( palak)

1 large carrot cut into small pieces (gajar)

1 cup baby Lima beans (cooked until soft ) ( optional)

2 Tbsp oil

1 tsp cumin seeds (jeera)

2 Thai or Indian variety green chilies cut fine or to taste ( hara mirch)

1 tsp garlic ginger paste ( adrak/ lehsun)

Salt to taste (namak)

3/4 tsp red chili powder ( or to taste) ( lal mirch)

3/4 tsp garam masala ( or to taste)
To make your own garam masala check out this post

Rinse quinoa thoroughly in cold water and drain. Place in a heavy bottomed pan with 3 cups of water and cook until soft. Keep this quinoa aside.

Prep the vegetables and keep aside. If you are using baby lima beans, cook in a little water until soft and keep aside.

Heat oil in a large heavy bottomed pan, add cumin seeds, when the seeds sizzle, add green chilies and stir once or twice. Then add ginger garlic paste and stir a few times. Add onion and saute until onions are translucent.

Add tomatoes and cook until tomatoes are soft and mushy. Add carrots and Lima beans is using, salt to taste, garam masala and chili powder and stir a few times. Sprinkle a little water and close with a lid and cook on low for just a few minutes until the carrots soften.

Add spinach and stir a little until the spinach wilts. Add cooked quinoa, and mix gently and allow to heat on low or medium low for a minute or so.

Remove from heat and serve hot with curry of choice or some raita and chips. 

Serves approx 3

If you are looking for quinoa recipes here are a few more,

Quinoa Khichdi ~ Peanut flavored quinoa

Quinoa mung dosai ~ Savory crepes

Lemon Vegetable Quinoa

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Lemon vegetable quinoa

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About once a week if not more often, I try and include quinoa in our diet.  One of the traditional rice dishes that was often made in our home when we were growing up is lemon rice or limbu saadam as it is known in Tamil. Lemon rice is simply seasoned with mustard seeds, chick pea lentil and curry leaves with a delicious lemon flavor, I hope to post that recipe in this space some time soon.

In the meanwhile, inspired by lemon rice, I made this version of quinoa with some vegetables. This easy and nutritious recipes has quickly become a favorite in our home. It works very well for weeknight dinners, and leftovers pack well in the lunch box too :)  Pair this with some raita (yogurt based salad ) or even some curry to make a filling meal.

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Ingredients and method to make lemon vegetable quinoa

1 and 1/2 cups quinoa

2 carrots cut into small pieces ( gajar) (1 cup of cut pieces)

1 red bell pepper / capsicum deseeded and cut into small pieces (capsicum/ Simla mirch) (1 cup of cut pieces) (see notes)

Salt to taste (namak)

1/4 tsp turmeric powder ( haldi) 

2 Tbsp oil

1 tsp mustard seeds ( rai / kadagu)

1 tsp chick pea lentil (chana dhal / kadalai parappu)

3 dry red chilies broken into small pieces ( or to taste) (lal mirch)

2 Thai or Indian variety green chilies cut fine ( or to taste) ( hara mirch)

8 to 10 large curry leaves  torn into small pieces (kadi patha)

3 Tbsp finely cut cilantro for garnish ( coriander leaves / hara dhania)
juice of half a lemon (or to taste) 

Rinse quinoa thoroughly in cold water and drain. Place in a heavy bottomed pan with 3 cups of water and cook until soft. Keep this quinoa aside.

Heat oil in the same pan, add mustard seeds to it. When the seeds splutter, add chick pea lentil/ chana dhal and stir until it begins to redden. Add red chilies, green chilies and torn curry leaves and stir a few times.

Add carrots, bell pepper , turmeric powder and  salt to taste. Stir a few times. Sprinkle a little water if required, cover with a lid and cook until the veggies are tender crisp.

Add cooked quinoa, mix well, adjust salt to taste if needed and allow to heat for a few minutes until flavors mingle.Add juice of half a lemon or according to taste and mix well. Garnish with finely chopped cilantro.

Serve hot with any curry on the side , or some raita. 

Serves approx 2 to 3 

Notes:

The vegetables above can be substituted with 2 cups of any combination of vegetables like green peas/ matar, cauliflower/ Gobi,  green beans, carrots, capsicum, etc.

If you are looking for Quinoa recipes, here are a few more

Quinoa Khichdi ~ Peanut flavored quinoa

Quinoa mung dosai ~ Savory crepes

Quinoa Cashew Kheer ~ Indian pudding

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Dudhi/ Lauki sabzi ~ Bottlegourd in peanut gravy curry ~ With Stepwise Pictures

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Here's the thing I like most about bottle gourd/ calabash or lauki/ dudhi , it is a great veggie to consume when counting calories. This gourd has one of the lowest calorie counts,  100 gms of the vegetable only has about 14 calories or so. It is one of those veggies that contains mostly water, yet it is also rich in vitamins and minerals. This vegetable is also said to be heart healthy,  benefits in weight loss and is supposed to be good for aiding digestion.

If all the above reasons aren't enough, here is one more reason to like dudhi....it's very versatile. It works well in a good range of recipes. Usually I make this kootu with it if I am planning for a south Indian menu or if I am planning to make dudhi to go with phulka I make a curry that is somewhat similar to this curry. But recently I wanted some kind of "different" curry to make with dudhi, but was not in the mood for something elaborate like kofta. So I decided to make a curry with a gravy that is similar to the one I used in this capsicum/ bell pepper masala.  We loved this curry, it was rich, creamy and tasted amazing with phulkas. It is really quick and easy to make too, so that's an added bonus. So if you have dudhi on your menu this week or weekend, give this recipe a try and enjoy it with some phulkas/  flat bread or even plain steamed rice:)

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Ingredients and Method to make Dudhi/ Lauki sabzi
5 and 1/2 cups Bottlegourd pieces of about 3/4 inch each (lauki/ dudhi/ sorakkai) (about 2 small bottlegourds)
2 medium tomatoes cut fine (tamatar/ thakkali)
1 Tbsp oil
3/4 tsp cumin seeds (jeera/ jeeragam)
1/4 tsp turmeric powder (haldi/ manjal podi)
1/4 tsp red chili powder (optional, or to taste) (lal mirch/ thani molaga podi) 
salt to taste

Garnish
2 Tbsp finely cut cilantro (coriander leaves/ hara dhania/ kothamalli)

For the masala ( dry roast each ingredient separately and grind into smooth paste)
3 Tbsp raw peanuts (groundnuts/mungphali/verkadalai)
1 Tbsp sesame seeds (til/ ellu)
1/2 Tbsp coriander seeds (dhania)
3 dry red chilies (or to taste) (lal mirch/ molagai vathal)
3 Tbsp grated coconut (nariyal/ thengai poo)

Peel and cut bottle gourd into 3/4 inch pieces and keep aside. Prep all other veggies and keep aside.

Dry roast each of the items mentioned under masala separately and keep aside to cool. The peanuts until light pinkish, sesame seeds until it splutters a little, coriander seeds until aromatic, red chilies for just a few seconds until it is warm and coconut until it turns lightly creamy golden. Coriander seeds and red chilies can be roasted together. Cool to room temperature and grind together with a little water until it is a smooth paste.

Heat oil in a heavy bottomed pan, add cumin seeds. When the seeds splutter, add tomatoes and stir until tomatoes are cooked and soft.

Add turmeric powder and stir a couple of times. Add bottle gourd pieces, salt to taste, chili powder if using and a little water and allow the bottle gourd to cook until it is soft but retains its shape.

Add masala paste, water as needed to achieve required consistency and simmer for a few minutes until the flavones mingle. Garnish with cilantro.

Remove from heat and serve hot with phulkas/ rotis/ chapathis/ Indian flat bread. 

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Quinoa Pulao ~ Cilantro Flavored Quinoa ~ With Stepwise Pictures

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For a while now I have been wanting to try making some kind of pulao with quinoa. Finally a few weeks back,  I decided I had to stop thinking about it and actually make it. At first I was leaning towards making something similar to the traditional pulao or a vegetable pulao with some basic spices. But a quick glance at at my refrigerator showed me that I had a lot of cilantro on hand and the idea of making a masala paste with cilantro was very appealing.

I made this masala similarly to the one I used before in my hara/green masala ka pulao that I used to make with rice. I just varied the ingredients a tad bit to make it work better with quinoa. The result was a flavorlul and satisfying pulao that had us going back for seconds. I have already made this a few more times in the last few weeks and surprisingly I have never felt the need to tweak this recipe even a little, we like the pulao so much just this way :) This is so quick and easy to make too that I find it a great option for weeknight dinners, when I want something quick, nutritious and easy to put together. The fringe benefit is that it packs well in the lunch box too :)

If you are looking for quinoa recipes, check out some of the other quinoa recipes in this space...

Quinoa mung dosa ~ Dhal dosa ~ Savory Indian crepes
Quinoa Khichdi ~ Peanut flavored quinoa
Quinoa oat adai ~ Dhal dosa  

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Ingredients and Method to make cilantro flavored quinoa pulao
1 and 1/2 cups Quinoa
2 cloves (lavang)
1 inch cinnamon stick (dalchini/ pattai)
3 green cardamoms (elaichi/elakkai)
1 onion cut fine (pyaaz/vengayam)
5 to 6 baby carrots or 1 large carrot cut fine (gajar)
1 red bell pepper deseeded and cut into 1/2 inch pieces (capsicum/simla mirch/kodamolagai)
1 green bell pepper deseeded and cut into 1/2 inch pieces (capsicum/ simla mirch/kodamolagai)
(or 3 cups of any vegetables like cauliflower, green peas, capsicum, carrots, beans, etc)
salt to taste
1 Tbsp oil 

Masala paste/ Grind together
1 cup chopped cilantro (coriander leaves/hara dhania/kothamalli)
2 dry red chilies (or to taste) (lal mirch/ molagai vathal)
3 Thai or Indian variety green chilies (or to taste) (hara mirch/ pachai molagai)
2 cloves of garlic (lehsun/ poondu)
1 tsp grated ginger (adrak/inji)

Rinse quinoa thoroughly in cold water. Allow to drain. Place in a heavy bottomed pan with 3 cups of water and cook until soft on medium heat. Keep aside.

Grind the ingredients mentioned under masala paste in a mixer/ blender adding just a tbsp or two as required to make a smooth paste.

Heat oil in a large heavy bottomed pan. Add cloves, cardamom and cinnamon to it and stir until the cardamom starts to change color slightly. Add onion and saute until it turns translucent.

Add the vegetables and stir until the vegetables are cooked and tender crisp. Add a few spoons of water if required for the veggies to cook. Add ground paste and stir until it loses its moisture and begins to dry a little.

Add quinoa, salt to taste and mix well.

Remove from heat and serve hot with plain yogurt and pickle, curry of choice or raita/ thayir pachadi

Serves approx 2 to 3.

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Quinoa Khichdi ~ Peanut Flavored Quinoa ~ With Stepwise Pictures

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This sabudana/ sago pearls khichdi is something I make about once a month, usually for weekend breakfast. The last few times I made it,  it struck me that it would be awesome if I could make something similar with quinoa. I have already mentioned in the past how super healthy quinoa is, so I will not get into that again. But the idea of using quinoa in a familiar khichdi type preparation was both exciting and tad bit intimidating. The latter because the khichdi I mentioned earlier is a favorite of ours and I was afraid that the quinoa version would not measure up.

In any case, one day when I was looking to make something quick and nutritious, I decided to make a version of khichdi with quinoa. Along with peanut powder, I also added some shredded coconut to it as well for additional flavor and used both green and red chilies for some heat. Much to my surprise it turned out delicious. I have made it quite a few times now and even R who usually likes his quinoa disguised in dosas keeps asking me to make this version of khichdi more often :)

If you are looking for recipes with quinoa, check out some of the other quinoa recipes in this space,
Quinoa dosa ~ Multi grain savory crepes with quinoa
Quinoa oat adai ~ Dhal dosa
Quinoa Uthappam
Quinoa Kheer ~ Indian pudding

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Ingredients and Method to make Quinoa Khichdi
1 and 1/2 cups of quinoa
3/4 cups raw or roasted peanuts
salt to taste

Seasoning
1 and 1/2 Tbsp oil
4 Thai or Indian variety green chilies cut fine (or to taste) (hari mirch/pachai molagai)
2 dry red chilies or to taste torn into small pieces (lal mirch/ molagai vathal)
3/4 tsp mustard seeds (rai/ sarson/kadagu)
3/4 tsp cumin seeds (jeera/ jeeragam)
1/2 tsp finely grated ginger (optional) (adrak/inji)

Garnish
1/4 to 1/2 cup freshly grated coconut (see notes)
3 to 4 tbsp finely chopped cilantro (coriander leaves/hara dhania/kothamalli)

Roast raw peanuts on the stove top, or in the microwave until roasted. If you have roasted peanuts skip this step. Powder the peanuts coarsely in a mixer/blender/ food processor using short bursts of power and keep aside.

Place quinoa in a sieve or a fine meshed colander and rinse thoroughly in cold water. Allow to drain. Place the quinoa in a heavy bottomed pan and fill with 3 cups of water and cook until quinoa is cooked. The packet I purchase recommends 1 and 1/2 cups of water for 1 cup of quinoa but I prefer 2 cups of water to 1 cup of quinoa, I feel it cooks better this way.

In a separate small pan, heat oil, add mustard seeds. When the seeds splutter, add cumin seeds, when the cumin seeds sizzle add both green and red chili  and grated ginger if using, stir once or twice and pour the entire seasoning on the cooked quinoa. Mix well.Add coarsely powdered peanuts, salt to taste and mix well.

Finally garnish with grated coconut and cilantro and serve hot just by itself or with some ketchup/ or chutney of choice or some yogurt/ pickle or raita.

Serves approx 2 to 3

Notes
You can use grated frozen coconut instead of fresh,just thaw the coconut to room temperature. For this quantity you can use 1/4 cup or 1/2 cup according to your taste, it tastes good both ways, I prefer a little more coconut because it gives additional flavor.

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