Tiffin Carrier Antic/que's!: Quinoa Pulao

Lunch Box Dilemma in the morning led me to finally opening the packet of Quinoa. As with all foods outside the 'west', once the the 'west' 'discovers' it, it gets elevated to the exclusive, organic, highly expensive culinary boutiques all over the discoverer-geography: ancient-sacred -food-modern-super-food??!!!

It cooks like rice, has a very nutty texture, with a small bite while being very light! It could be cooked with the rice/biryani and pulao recipes or then with the Upma recipes. Decided to take the rice recipe for this one. The product I had, did not need rinsing, so toasted it directly.

Ingredients

Quinoa: 1cup

Water: 2 cups

Finely chopped red onions: 1/2 cup
Finely diced orange bell peppers: 3 tbsps
Green Chilli: 1

Cloves: 2-3

Green cardamom: 1

Indian Cinnamon: 1 small piece

Black Pepper corns: a few

Black Pepper powder: 1/4 tsp or more

Turmeric: 1/4 tsp

Touch of Garlic

Ghee or Olive Oil: about 2 tbsps

Cumin seeds: less than 1/4 tsp

Aniseed: less than 1/4 tsp

Dried Red Chilli: 1

Curry Leaves: a few

Fresh Coriander for garnish.

Method

Toast the Quinoa in a little bit of ghee on medium heat, stirring constantly until they start popping.

Heat the ghee and do a tempering with Cumin, Aniseed, Dried red chilli, curry leaves, cloves, black pepper corns, cardamom and cinnamon.

Add the onions and garlic and saute until soft,

Add turmeric and black pepper powder and salt,

Saute for a few minutes,

Add 2 cups of hot water, check for salt and bring to simmer,

Add the toasted Quinoa and bring to gentle simmer.

Cover and cook for 15 minutes until the grains puff up and strings appear from the seeds, stirring every now and then. it cna easily turn into mush!

Garnish with fresh coriander.

Alternate methods: Any Pulao/ Pilaf/ Pulav recipe can be subsituted with Quinoa. A healthy saute of vegetables like carrots, green peas, bell peppers and any finely diced vegetable would be good additions.