Quinoa | I Can Cook That

Sausage and Peppers Quinoa Skillet

One of my favorite quick dinner options is Sausage, Pepper, and Onion Sandwiches. I thought it might be nice to lighten it up a bit and make it into a one skillet (ok, one skillet plus a small pot) recipe. The result is this yummy recipe for Sausage and Peppers Quinoa Skillet.

This recipe for Sausage and Peppers Quinoa Skillet is made with sliced bratwurst, a bunch of colorful bell peppers, sautéed onions and quinoa and makes for a hearty and healthy dinner that can be made in less than 30 minutes!

Ingredients:

1 cup rinsed quinoa
2 cups chicken broth
2 tablespoons olive oil
12 oz. bratwurst, sliced into coins
1 yellow bell pepper, sliced
1 red bell pepper, sliced
1 orange bell pepper, sliced
1 large onion, sliced
3 garlic cloves, minced
salt and pepper, to taste
1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
fresh parsley, chopped, for garnish

Kitchen items used:

Continue reading Sausage and Peppers Quinoa Skillet

Quinoa Con Pollo

Note: I was sent a Flying Fish Can Variety Pack in order to write this post. Opinions are mine alone.

There are some recipes that almost instantly become a go-to comfort food. One of those recipes for me is arroz con pollo. It has a ton of flavor, an assortment of different vegetables, and is wonderfully filling. Plus, it can be made ahead of time and reheated. What more could you ask for?

My husband has recently taken a liking to quinoa, so I thought making a quinoa version of arroz con pollo, or Quinoa con Pollo, would be an awesome spin. Flying Fish’s Can Variety Pack features five different beers including their OnShore Lager. One sip, and I knew it would be the perfect ingredient in (and accompaniment to) my quinoa spin!

If you follow me on Instagram, you have probably seen a couple of posts / stories about the variety pack. The outdoor themed variety pack truly has something for everyone, including two IPAs (Hopfish and Outside IPA), a Pale Ale (XPA), a Session Sour (Salt and Sea), and a Lager (Onshore Lager). The Hopfish is awesome with spicy food, and the outside IPA has been my go-to when I’m relaxing in my hammock, or hanging out with friends on my roof deck. The XPA is Flying Fish’s original beer, and continues to be a staple for a reason; it goes great with everything! The Salt and Sea was the perfect complement to our friend’s crab feast and barbecue. And the Onshore Lager has a crisp, clean finish making it perfect for both cooking with and drinking.

So let me show off that lager!

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons unsalted butter (or olive oil to make dairy free)
6 boneless skinless chicken thighs (about 2 lbs)
1 medium onion, chopped
6 garlic cloves, minced
2 bell peppers, sliced
2 teaspoons onion powder
2 teaspoons garlic powder
2 teaspoons dried oregano
2 teaspoons dried parsley
1 teaspoon sweet paprika
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
1 teaspoon ground cumin
2 1/2 cups chicken broth
1 (12 oz) can lager (I used Flying Fish Onshore Lager)
3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce (omit to make gluten free)
2 cups dried quinoa
1 cup frozen peas
10 oz frozen cut green beans
1 cup ketchup
Black olives, to taste

Continue reading Quinoa Con Pollo

Warm Salmon Salad

I’m not going to lie, the idea of a salad in the winter is not exactly appealing to me. I prefer warm food when it’s cold out, so hooray for this Warm Salmon Salad!

So when I saw this recipe for a Supercharged Salmon Salad, I was pretty pumped.

The original recipe used raw kale and shaved Brussels sprouts to make a cold salad, but it can easily be adapted to be a warm, comforting dish.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup water
1/4 cup uncooked quinoa, rinsed and drained
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, divided
2 (6-oz.) wild salmon fillet
Cooking spray
1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 cups roughly chopped lacinato kale
3 ounces shredded Brussels sprouts (about 1 cup)
1/3 cup steamed and peeled beets (you can buy precooked beets)
1 tablespoon tahini (sesame seed paste), well stirred
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon warm water

Continue reading Warm Salmon Salad

Apple-Cinnamon Breakfast Quinoa

I know, I know. You probably read the title and thought to yourself there is no way quinoa can be a tasty breakfast. But hear me out. Quinoa, although a great grain to use as a dinner side, can also hold its own as a sweeter breakfast meal. I actually originally made this recipe so that vegan friends who were visiting for the weekend had a breakfast option. (Vegans have a tough time when it comes to breakfast! Oatmeal, quinoa, fruit. I think that’s about it…) Anyways, I wasn’t expecting much. But it was so tasty I made a batch for my breakfasts all week. That’s right, it even reheats nicely!

I found this recipe on Budget Bytes and made some minor changes. Check out her original recipe here.

Ingredients:

1 cup quinoa
1 1/2 cups apple cider
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon allspice
1 medium apple (I used Fuji)
1/2 cup dried fruit/nut mixture

Continue reading Apple-Cinnamon Breakfast Quinoa

Quinoa Chicken Curry

I’m excited to share with you this recipe for Quinoa Chicken Curry, but before I do, I wanted to share a bit about quinoa.

Although quinoa seems to be a bit of a “new” super food, it has actually been around for thousands of years and was considered one of the most important crops of the Incas. This grain-like seed is really easy to cook (you cook it like rice) but is chock full of nutritional benefits. Quinoa’s high protein content makes it a great choice for vegans and vegetarians. It is also a complete protein which means it contains all the essential amino acids. Quinoa is also rich in vitamins and minerals, including magnesium, phosphorous, zinc, iron, potassium, calcium, vitamin B, folate, and riboflavin. Quinoa is also naturally gluten free, and can be ground into a flour that allows for gluten free baking. Whew.

I really didn’t know much about quinoa, or how to use it. So I was excited to be given the chance to review The Complete Idiot’s Guide Quinoa Cookbook to learn more about it. The book is full of quinoa recipes, including breakfast, dinner, and even dessert recipes. I wanted to try one of the more traditional preparations of quinoa, but can’t wait to delve into the more interesting uses for it in future posts (Lemon Poppy Seed Quinoa Cupcakes, anyone?) The book had a recipe for Quinoa Indian Chicken Curry that sounded absolutely fantastic!

Ingredients:

1 cup uncooked quinoa, rinsed and drained
4 cups chicken broth, divided
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1 inch pieces
4 tablespoons olive oil, divided
6 teaspoons curry powder, divided
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup frozen peas
1 medium head cauliflower, chopped into 1 inch pieces
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp celery seed
1/2 tsp fennel seed
1/2 tsp turmeric
1/3 cup plain low-fat yogurt
1/3 cup nonfat sour cream
1/2 cup cashews
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper

Yields 5 cups, or about 4 servings.

Oven-Roasted Halibut with Quinoa and Warm Tomato Vinaigrette

I’m still working through my tomatoes (no complaints here), and I am trying to experiment with different ways to use the tomatoes. I found this recipe for Oven-Roasted Sea Bass with Couscous and Warm Tomato Vinaigrette and used it as a base. I substituted halibut for the sea bass (Chilean sea bass is severely overfished, often illegally, and also has a high content of mercury. Try to buy Pacific halibut because Atlantic halibut is also overfished). I also used quinoa, which was already in my pantry, instead of couscous.

Ingredients:
1 scallion (green onion)
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup halved cherry tomatoes
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, divided
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
1 teaspoon kosher salt, divided
1 cup chicken broth
1/2 cup uncooked quinoa
1/4 cup chopped fresh chives
2 (6-ounce) halibut fillets
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Cooking spray
4 (1/4-inch-thick) slices lemon, halved

Preheat oven to 350°.

Cut scallion into 3-inch pieces, and those pieces into thin strips (see photo below).

Prepare your garlic, tomatoes, and lemons.

Heat oil in a saute pan over medium-high heat. Add garlic and cook for 30 seconds or until garlic begins to brown.

Add the tomato and scallions and reduce heat to medium, cooking for 1 minute.

Remove from heat; stir in 2 tablespoons lemon juice, vinegar, and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Keep warm.

Combine 1 tablespoon lemon juice, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and chicken broth in a medium saute pan and bring to a boil. Gradually stir in quinoa and chopped chives and cook for 15 minutes on low. heat Remove from heat; cover and let stand 5 minutes.

Fluff with a fork. Cover and keep warm.

Season fish with salt and pepper. Place fillets on a baking dish coated with cooking spray. Place 4 halved lemon slices on each fillet.

Bake at 350° for 20 minutes or until fish flakes easily when tested with a fork. Serve over quinoa, and top with vinaigrette. Garnish with more chives, if desired.

These ingredients worked SO well together. The tomatoes added a slight sweetness to the vinaigrette, which brightened up the entire dish. The quinoa added a nice earthy flavor.

Be sure to top the halibut with a lot of the tomato vinaigrette. I actually went back for more for my serving.

Quinoa Salad with Parsley. Or…. Tabbouleh.

Have you ever started creating a recipe, and thought to yourself “Wow! This is going to be awesome! Why hasn’t anyone thought of this before?” Well, probably because they have. And you just didn’t know it. That is what happened to me this weekend. I was so proud of how my “Quinoa Salad” turned out, but then my boyfriend kindly pointed out that is was a take on Tabbouleh, without the mint. Whoops. Anyways, here is my mint-less Tabbouleh.

Ingredients:

1 cup uncooked quinoa

2 cups chicken broth

1 large cucumber, or 3 small cucumbers, chopped
2 tomatoes, chopped

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 sweet onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, smashed
2 tablespoons parsley, chopped

Most quinoa you’ll find in the supermarket has already been soaked and rinsed. But another rise won’t hurt it if you prefer to do so. Measure out 1 cup quinoa and put it in a mesh strainer. Rinse under cool water allowing to drain out the bottom. This helps to remove the coating on quinoa, called saponin, that can taste soapy. Again, most quinoa is already pre-rinsed.

Begin by cooking the quinoa. Add the quinoa and chicken broth to a sauce pan and bring to a boil. Cover and simmer over low heat or until the liquid is absorbed. Remove from heat and let cool.

While the quinoa is cooking and cooling, chop your cucumber and tomatoes.

Prepare your onion and garlic.

Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and saute until the onion begins to soften, about 5 minutes.

Remove the garlic cloves. Allow the onions to cool. Combine the quinoa, onions, tomatoes, cucumbers, and the chopped parsley. Zest the lemon over the mixture and squeeze lemon juice over the dish.

Serve cold. Garnish with additional parsley, optional.

This was a light-tasting but filling dish, perfect for a hot summer lunch or dinner. I feel kind of silly for essentially making a pretty common dish, but at least I’m beginning to understand which ingredients work well together!