How to Make Your Quinoa Fluffy and Light?

Learn to cook quinoa easily for tasty and healthy meals like salads, soups, and breakfast dishes.

Quinoa is very healthy. It has lots of good things like manganese, phosphorus, magnesium, folate, and vitamin B1. It’s also full of fiber. Here’s how to cook white, red, or mixed quinoa simply:

Put one cup of quinoa, two cups of water, and half a teaspoon of salt in a medium pot.

Heat it until it boils. Stir now and then so it doesn’t stick.

When it’s boiling, turn the heat down. Let it simmer until all the water is gone, about 15 minutes.

Take it off the heat. Add some olive oil, lemon juice and zest, herbs, and more salt and pepper if you like.

You can eat quinoa with grilled meat or seafood, in chicken soup instead of noodles, or make a tasty grain bowl like Vegetable Quinoa Bowl or Quinoa Egg Bowl. Try simple recipe for Herbed Quinoa with Lemon and Pepper. You can also make Quinoa Salad with Sweet Potatoes and Apples or Roasted Carrot and Red Quinoa Salad. Quinoa is great for vegetarian sliders, meatballs, or patties. For breakfast, try it as a hot cereal with fruit and nuts, or make Quinoa Pancakes with Lemon.

What’s the Best Water to Quinoa Ratio?

Use two cups of water for one cup of quinoa. This way, you won’t have extra water left over. For more taste, you can cook the quinoa in vegetable or chicken broth. Just use less salt if the broth already has salt in it.

How Long to Cook Quinoa?

Cook quinoa on the stove for about 15 minutes. If you use a rice cooker, keep the same quinoa to water ratio. Cooking times may vary from 15 to 25 minutes. In an Instant Pot, use 1 1/2 cups water for each cup of quinoa. Cook it for three minutes on high pressure and let it release naturally for 10 minutes. After cooking, fluff the quinoa with a fork.

Do You Need to Soak Quinoa Before Cooking?

In short, no, you don’t need to soak quinoa. However, doing so is said to remove phytic acid, which may make it easier for people to digest quinoa. If you just want to remove the bitter flavor from quinoa, rinse it under cold water for about a minute. This will remove what’s known as saponin, a naturally occurring chemical that coats the outside of the grain and is said to give quinoa its distinctly earthy flavor

How to Store Quinoa?

Keep dry quinoa in an airtight container in a cool, dark place for up to a year. Cooked quinoa should be stored in the fridge in an airtight container and used within three to five days.

Is Quinoa Gluten-Free?

Yes, quinoa is gluten-free. It’s a good alternative to small wheat-based pasta or pastina, especially for soups and salads.