Quinoa is an extremely versatile seed. You can use it in sweet and savoury dishes and use it as a substitute for grains like rice and cous cous.
This recipe uses quinoa in a risotto-style dish that features olives, tomatoes and haloumi. It’s perfect for a weeknight dinner and leftovers can be easily packed away for lunch the next day.
The following recipe is an extract from Quinoa, Flakes, Flour & Seeds by Rena Patten (New Holland Publishers Australia), the cookbook is available now and retails for $35.
Serves 4
Ingredients
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon butter
1 large onion, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, finely grated
60 g (2 oz) sun-dried tomatoes, finely chopped
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 x 400 g (14 oz) tin diced tomatoes, undrained
200 g (7 oz) quinoa, rinsed and drained
500 ml (16 oz) hot vegetable stock
Freshly ground black pepper
125 g (4 oz) kalamata olives, pitted and halved
3 tablespoons at leaf parsley, chopped
Extra virgin olive oil
90 g (3 oz) haloumi cheese, coarsely grated
60 g (2 oz) Parmesan cheese, grated
Flat leaf parsley, roughly chopped, to garnish
Step 1.
Add oil and butter to a large saucepan on medium heat until the butter melts. Add the onion and sauté until soft. Stir in the garlic, sun-dried tomatoes and oregano and cook for about 1 minute.
Step 2.
Add the tomatoes, quinoa and stock. Season with pepper to taste—no need to season with salt as there are ingredients in this dish that are quite salty including the olives and cheese.
Step 3.
Stir well. Bring to the boil, reduce the heat, cover and simmer for about 20 minutes until all the stock is almost absorbed. If you think of it—and only if you think of it— give the pot a stir once or twice.
Step 4.
Stir in the olives and cook for another 5 minutes then stir in the parsley, a good drizzle of olive oil, haloumi and Parmesan cheese.
Step 5.
Remove from the heat and leave to stand for about 5 minutes until the quinoa is soft and creamy.
Step 6.
Serve with parsley and a little more Parmesan sprinkled over.
Note: This is one of my favorite ways to have quinoa. It is simply delicious and, unlike with risotto, the stock is added at once and you don’t have to stir constantly.
