Photos: Borbála Zergi
Dear Friends,
First of all, I’d like to wish you a beautiful, peaceful and successful 2017!
Now that the holidays are over, we all try to eat healthier and pay more attention to the things we consume. I find drastical diets and occasional fixes inefficent so I try to focus on eating higher quality and more nutritious foods and implement them in my overall diet like more fruit and veggies, crunchy salads while reducing the amount of sugar and dairy. In this post I’m sharing with you three delicious ways to pump up your quinoa and these recipes are as vibrant and colourful as the colours of the rainbow. Before getting into the recipes, let’s talk about quinoa.
This is a really interesting plant, that’s similar to rice. It’s original locality is in South-America. Quinoa is very rich in nutrients like calcium, mahnesium, phosphorus and it also has tons of protein in it. It’s quite low in calories hence it doesn’t increase blood sugar levels drastically which means that you won’t feel famished an hour after eating. You cann have it sweet or salty but first and foremost it’s a great alternative of regular sides like rice or fries. Oh, and quinoa is gluten free so it’s also an awesome choice if you’re intolerant or sensitive to gluten.
Cooking quinoa
In a measuring cup, measure out some quinoa and then go ahead and run it under cold water with the help of a drainer. This is super important because the outside of the quinoa is covered with a bitter substance so we want to get rid of that before cooking it. Then just put yout quinoa in a saucepan, add double the water as the quinoa. Cover it and cook on medium-high heat until it absorbs all the water and becomes fluffy.
#1 Qunioa With Fried Chicken and Eggplant
What you need
-500 g chicken breast, cut into small pieces
-1 large eggplant cut into cubes
-1 tsp. ground tumeric
-1/2 tsp. ground cumin
-1/2 tsp. ground cayenne pepper
-2 tbsp. olive oil
-1 clove of minced garlic
-salt and pepper to taste
For the side salad
-1/2 cucumber
-cherry tomatoes cut in quarters
-minced parsley
-4-5 cube of feta cheese
-2 tsp. extra virgin olive oil
-juice of 1/4 lemon
What you do
- In a pan heat up the olive oil. Add the garlic, cumin, tumeric, cayenne pepper and salt. Fry them on medium heat until the garlic becomes slightly brown and the spices start to bubble up with the oil.
- Add the chicken and fry it on medium-high heat for about 5 minutes.
- Then, add the egg plant and fry until it becomes golden brown and kind of mushy and soft.
- Make the salad: mix together the cucumber, cherry tomatoes, olive oil, lemon juice and parsley.
- Lay some cooked quino on a plate. Put the chicken and salad on top and sprinkle the whole thing with some feta cheese. Aaaand you’re done. 🙂
#2 Quinoa With Chili and Honey Roasted Prawns and Caramelized Veggies
What you need
-350 g prawns ( I used frozen prawns but make sure you properly get rid of most of the moisture that comes out as it melts)
-1 yellow bell pepper cut into strips
-.1 red bell pepper cut into strips
-1 red onion cut into strips
-1 clove of minced garlic
-1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper
-1 tsp. dried oregano
-1 tbsp. honey
-juice from 1/4 lemon
-2 tbsp. olive oil
What you do
- Heat up the olive oil in a pan. Add the honey, cayenne pepper, oregano and salt. Roast these ingredients on medium heat for 1-2 minutes and then add the prawns. Fry them on medium-high until they become beautiful pink. Place them on a plate lined with paper towel and set aside.
- To the spicy oil add the veggies: the bell peppers and red onion. When they’re lightly browned and a bit softened up that’s where you want them to be.
- Put your cooked quinoa on a plate. Place your colourful veggies and light pink prawns on top, squeeze some lemon juice to finish off. And you’re ready to eat.
#3 Vegan Quinoa Plate With Sweet Potatoes and Beans
What you need
-2-3 smaller sweet potatoes
-1 can of red beans
-salt and pepper to taste
-1/2 avocado
-juice from 1/4 lemon
-2 tbsp. olive oil
What you do
- In a pan, heat up the olive oil. Add the sweet potatoes, salt and pepper. Roast them until become golden brown on each side and soft.
- Add the beans (without the liquid in the can) and warm the two veggies together.
- Place your quinoa on a plate and pour the sweet potato-bean mixture on top. Place your avocado in the middle or on the side, drip some lemon juice on it and you’re done. 🙂
I hope you’ll try these delicious recipe because they’re healthy, super easy to make and they will bring some colour into these winter days.
In this video, I used 100% compostable plates and “silverware” for presentation that are made of sugarcane. The Yama products can be purchased at every Auchan supermarkets in Hungary, in the bijó webshop and soon in the Yama webshop too. If you liked the video, give it a thumbs up and subscribe to the Yama Kitchen channel on Youtube for more.
Love,
Fatima
yama kitchen and Lifestyle 