Quinoa Salad with Carrots, Raisins and Almonds

Quinoa (for Passover)

For April 14, 2011

Quinoa is the new go-to dish for Passover. Sure, it looks like a grain, cooks like a grain and fills you up like a grain. But it isn’t a grain and is not related to the 5 grains prohibited during the holiday (wheat, spelt, barley, oats, and rye). It doesn’t rise nor grow near the forbidden ingredients and doesn’t look similar to any of them. Quinoa is also unlike corn, millet and rice, products known as kitniyot, that Ashkenazi Jews (whose heritage is from Eastern Europe) also do not eat during Passover.

So it’s appropriate for the holiday according to most authorities (it’s always better to check with your local rabbi). Eat up, and fill yourselves with this wonder food.

Quinoa is, indeed, a wonder food. The plant (related to beets and spinach) has flourished throughout the Andes region of South America since ancient times, a staple crop for Native Americans. Until recently it was considered a “poor people’s ingredient.” But when health-conscious folk in the United States became aware of its nutritional benefits in the 1990s, sales took off here and quinoa became the new culinary find.

But quinoa is not a mere trend, no ordinary ingredient. Its place in the American pantry is assured because the benefits are too hard to ignore: a high protein content that, like soy, is complete, providing all the amino acids we need. Quinoa also contains fiber and respectable amounts of minerals including calcium. There’s no cholesterol and no fat. It’s low-carb and it’s gluten free. It’s easy to digest and it’s filling. Some scientists say quinoa competes with breast milk for building neurons in infants and suggest that breast-feeding mothers consume quinoa to increase their milk supply.

Is there a catch?

Nope. Quinoa tastes good too. It’s nutty and earthy, and has a texture that varies to please, depending on whether you prefer it soft or crunchy. All of which makes this little seed an ideal ingredient for chefs, food writers and home cooks who appreciate variety in their diet. Quinoa is so versatile you can cook it as a cereal, use it to thicken soup or stew, sauté it as for pilaf, poach it for salads, treat it as risotto. Use it to stuff peppers, cabbage leaves or mushroom caps. Substitute it for rice or potatoes as a change of pace side dish at any daily dinner, but understand -- it’s festive enough to serve at your Seder too.

You can buy packaged quinoa in most supermarkets (for Passover use, be sure to look for a “kosher for Passover” symbol on the label). The seeds range in color from pale yellow to red to black. Some say that the darker grains have an earthier taste and more of a crunch, particularly the black varieties.

All quinoa, whatever the color, has a natural coating of saponin, which is bitter and can be off-putting. Packaged quinoa labels usually say the seeds have been rinsed to remove this compound, but wash them again anyway, in a fine-mesh sieve, using cool water, for a minute or so.

The simplest way to cook quinoa is similar to how you would cook rice: add water or stock, bring the liquid to a boil, cover and cook. It’s the amount of liquid and the timing that makes all the difference. The standard measure is 2 cups liquid for each cup of quinoa cooked for about 20 minutes, which will result in soft, fluffy grains (a “sprout-like” curl will appear indicating that the germ has separated from the seed).

But you can use less water and/or cook it for less time, for chewier or crunchier quinoa. No way is the right way. You might prefer tender quinoa as a breakfast cereal, a chewier one for salads, or soft, but still resilient grains for risotto or pilaf. The only way to discover your preferences is to cook with quinoa a few times, a few ways.