As I began exploring alternatives to white rice a few years ago, I started experimenting with quinoa. I honestly found its texture hard to get used to. The easier fix for me was to add it to idli or dosa batter so it simply blends in, and I wouldn’t be able to tell the difference. That did not really solve my problem. I still had a lot of other rice dishes that needed replacing, so I went about perfecting the right quinoa texture.
How to cook Quinoa
There are several ways of skinning the cat, so to speak. You can cook quinoa in an open pan on stove top, in a rice cooker or an Instant Pot (IP). If your cooking in a pan, you will need to add 2 cups of filtered water (for 1 cup quinoa), a teaspoon olive/avocado/coconut oil and cook until done. Check out our recipe Summery Quinoa Salad, on how to cook quinoa in a pan on stove top. In case of Instant Pot (IP) or rice cooker, I use a pot-in-pot method and add 1 and a quarter cups of water for 1 cup of quinoa. All these methods work well. Once you have done this a few times, you’ll get a hang of it.
Jeera Quinoa
One of my all-time favorites is Jeera (Cumin) Rice. I like it because it is so simple to cook, minimal ingredients, and pairs very well with almost any curry or dal. I decided that if I should bring quinoa on board, this should be the first recipe I should substitute rice with. I tried this recipe both in in a rice cooker as well as IP and it turned out great! Of course, I still have Jeera Rice on occasion, especially when I have friends over for dinner. Jeera Quinoa goes great with Chana Masala, Rajma Masala, Dal Makhni or Delicious Dal Tadka.
Check out some of our delicious quinoa and one-pot meal recipes:
- Jeera Quinoa
- Summery Quinoa Salad
- Brown Rice Vegetable Pulao
- Egg Tomato Spicy Rice
- Savory Brown Rice Pongal
- Vegetable Multigrain Khichdi
- Brown Rice Khichdi
- Mexican Rice
Quinoa (pronounced keen-wah) is one of the most protein-rich foods we can eat and contains almost twice as much fiber as most other grains- it is also gluten free and packs a host of other vitamins. This dish takes very little oil and is mostly steamed- it is overall a wholesome and delicious recipe that is low in calories and high in protein and fiber.
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Jeera Quinoa
Ingredients
- 1/2 Cup Quinoa - White or tri-colored
- 1 Teaspoon Cumin Seeds - Whole
- 1/2 Chili Dry Red Chili - Small
- 1 Tablespoon Onion - Fine Cut
- 1/4 Teaspoon Sea Salt - To taste
- 1 Teaspoon Coconut Oil - Extra Virgin
Instructions
- Place quinoa in a mesh strainer and run cold water through it, while rubbing the seeds with your fingers. This will help remove the bitter saponin coating on its outer hull. Set all other ingredients aside in separate bowls
- To a heavy-bottom vessel, add coconut oil and heat on medium. Splutter cumin seeds, add onions and red chili and saute until onions turn translucent.
- Add washed/rinsed quinoa and salt and stir to mix well. Gently stir the quinoa for 3-4 minutes until very mildly roasted.
- Transfer the contents to a bowl . For 1/2 cup quinoa add 3/4th cup of water. Set the bowl in a rice cooker (add 1.5 cups of water to the rice cooker before you set the bowl in it) and set to cook position. Once it is cooked the rice cooker automatically turns to 'keep warm'mode .
- If you have been cooking in an Instant Pot pan, just add water straight to the pan (same proportion of 3/4th cup water for 1/2 cup quinoa) . Set to 'rice' mode (which is a 12 minute cook cycle), out the lid on and set to low pressure.
- Once it's cooked , fluff it with a fork and serve with Chana Masala or Dal Makhni.
