The Sydney Morning Herald logo
Advertisement

Think you hate quinoa? This easy trick will make it taste delicious

The secret to tasty, fluffy quinoa is all in the cooking – here’s how to do it.

Jill Dupleix
Jill Dupleix

Quinoa is light, nutty, softly chewy, and a complete source of plant protein; providing all the essential amino acids needed by your body. Grown high in the Andes for more than 3000 years, the “golden grain” was a staple food of the Incas – and the Incas knew their stuff.

Pronounced keen-wah, it looks and tastes like a grain, but it’s actually a seed. If you’ve ever cooked it and hated it, you can blame saponin, the naturally bitter plant-derived chemical coating. (Saponin also protects the plant from birds and insects, which makes the use of pesticides unnecessary.)

Illustration: Simon Letch
Illustration: Simon Letch

Easy fix: put the quinoa in a bowl, cover with cold water and rub it in your hands, then drain and rinse well under cold running water.

The secret to cooking quinoa is to use less water than you might expect: one part quinoa to 1.75 (or 1¾) parts water or stock. It doesn’t sound like much, but cooked by the absorption method, it will produce the tender, swollen, translucent grains you want.

Advertisement

Here’s how

For four people, rinse 200 grams of quinoa thoroughly in cold water, and drain. Place in a heavy-based pan with 350 millilitres cold water and a hefty pinch of sea salt and bring to the boil. Reduce heat, cover and gently simmer for 15 minutes until the tiny white tails (the germ of the seed) have popped out. Turn off the heat and leave for 10 minutes to steam, then fluff up the grains with a fork.

Tip: If serving as a salad, spread out the cooked quinoa on a tray and leave to cool.

Do this with it

Use as a substitute for rice, couscous or freekeh. Throw a handful of uncooked quinoa into your porridge oats, and simmer for 15 minutes. Add cooked quinoa to cakes, seed breads, green bowls, and ancient grain salads (especially paired with avocado in a lemony dressing).

Advertisement

And this: Bake it. Toss a handful of cooked quinoa in a little olive oil and sea salt, spread on a tray lined with baking paper, and bake for 15 minutes at 180C for a crunchy, seedy garnish.

Don’t do this with it: Toast raw quinoa in a hot, dry pan before adding the water. It then takes forever to cook and all the cute little tails fall off – boo.

Need to know

Quinoa is completely gluten-free. White quinoa is the creamiest and fluffiest, while black and red quinoa take a little longer to cook and remain firmer, but all are generally interchangeable. And yes, you can freeze leftover cooked quinoa.

Where to find

Advertisement

Next to the couscous in major supermarkets and food stores. Seek out Australian growers under the Kindred Organics, Mount Zero and Honest To Goodness brands.

The best recipes from Australia's leading chefs straight to your inbox.

Sign up
Jill DupleixJill Dupleix is a Good Food contributor and reviewer who writes the Know-How column.

From our partners

Advertisement
Advertisement