As faithful readers of Eco to the People have noticed, posting has been very light over the past several months due to personal drama behind the scenes. My mother died, my sister became a mother and, all in all, it has been a roller coaster ride of emotion. Combine that with germy airplane rides, takeout food and a lack of sleep and I have been a bit of a mess.

After months of upheaval I am in the process of healing my mind and body. I am lightening up my workload and trying to get regular exercise. One of the best places to start, for me, is with food. I find that eating whole, organic foods makes me feel restored almost immediately and upon my return to San Francisco this spring I did a two week cleanse to jump start my “recovery.”

(You can read about it here, and here and here.)

I also met with my friend Joshua Clever, a natural foods chef who has committed to help me (and you vis-a-vis me) learn more about healing through food. My first lesson with Joshua: How to cook quinoa and incorporate it into my meals.

Quinoa is one of those “perfect” foods, in that it combines a bevy of vitamins with a big punch of protein. Depending on the variety of quinoa you use (red, black or white) the grain is 12-18 percent pure protein. It is also a good source of dietary fiber and phosphorus and is high in magnesium and iron. Quinoa is gluten-free and considered easy to digest.

It is no wonder then that the Incas held quinoa up as a sacred crop, calling it the “chisaya mama” or the “mother of all grains.”

My first few attempts with quinoa were pretty pathetic. Twice I made what I thought would be a delicious lentil/quinoa combination only to create a 10-pound grey blob that tasted like paste.

I was not impressed by quinoa until Joshua taught me to make it the right way. I own a rice cooker, which makes it perfectly, but I have also tried it on the stove and it comes out just as nicely. The key is the right quinoa-water ratio – one part quinoa to two parts water – and then to let it do it’s thing. I was stirring it and checking it, which in the end created a porridge-like consistency rather than a fluffy, nutty one.

For quinoa newbies, I have found the red to be the easiest to work with. It is sturdier and I have had more success with it than with the white variety, which can get mushy.

So far I have perfected one quinoa recipe that I’d like to share. This is made with quinoa from the bulk bin of my local health food store. If you don’t have a store that sells quinoa in bulk, Trader Joe’s makes a decent red quinoa in a box.

To save time, I prepare a cup or two of quinoa and then store it in a sealed container in the fridge for up to a week. Just add a little water to to a pan and gently steam the amount you plan to eat until it is warm. Or eat it cold.

Quinoa Taco Bowl

This is nutritious and a great way to reuse leftover beans and/ or chicken. The chicken and cheese can be left out if you’d like to make this a vegan dish. This will serve 2 people.

Ingredients:

2 Roma tomatoes, diced

1 large onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, diced

2 cups cooked (or canned) black beans

leftover chicken, shredded (optional)

lime juice

salt and pepper

1 cup cooked quinoa

1/2 avocado, sliced

shredded cheese (optional)

picante sauce (optional)

Instructions:

Sautee onion for a minute or two, then add tomato and garlic. Sautee until soft and fragrant. Add in black beans and chicken and heat through. Squeeze the juice of 1/2 a lime (or to taste) over the pan and srpinkle with salt and pepper to taste.

Meanwhile, put quinoa and water in a covered pan and simmer on low heat until warm. Stir occasionally so that the bottom doesn’t burn.

When everything is hot, put quinoa in a bowl and top with the chicken/bean mixture. Top with avocado and cheese and sprinkle with picante sauce. (I like Valentina.)

Enjoy!

Tags: bulk bins, cooking, gluten-free, healing foods, protein, quinoa

This entry was posted on Thursday, June 24th, 2010 at 10:37 am and is filed under food, recipes. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.