How to Make Fluffy Quinoa (and Quinoa Tabbouleh)
Oct 06, 2011, Updated Oct 03, 2017
Quinoa (pronounced Keen-Wa) is a spectacularly impressive grain. For such a tiny little guy, he’s packed with nutrients, and it’s even been said that you can survive on nothing but quinoa, although I wouldn’t recommend trying it. Quinoa is not only a complete protein, it is also packed with iron, copper, zinc, magnesium, folate, lysine, and other essential amino acids. Along with a dose of fiber and zero saturated fat, quinoa is an incredible addition to any diet.
So, now that you are completely on board with a heaping spoonful of quinoa, how can you cook it without making a bowl of mush? I’m so glad you asked.
There are a few basic steps to make fluffy quinoa that, in most cases, are inexplicably left off the package directions.
For this lesson in quinoa cookery, I am making 2 cups. Quite a large amount, but in the interest of saving time throughout the week, I like to make a large batch on Sundays and have it ready to go for the next 3-5 days.
First, don’t forget to rinse your quinoa. Think of this like remembering to wash your hands before eating, you really have no idea what could be on those little grains.
Put 2 cups of quinoa in a bowl that will hold at least 6 cups.
Cover the quinoa with cold water, rinsing it thoroughly.
Then drain through a fine mesh strainer.
Allow to drain and dry for 20 minutes to remove all the water. Skipping this step will lead to mushy grains.
Once your quinoa has dried, toast in a dry pan until you can smell the nutty flavor that has now been brought out in your quinoa, about 5 minutes. This also removes any additional water that may have been left behind by the rinse.
Remove the quinoa from the pan, set aside.
Cooking quinoa with the same liquid to grain ratio as rice (1 cup grain, 2 cups water) is the biggest culprit in the battle for fluffy quinoa. It’s just too much water, and will leave you with mush. Cook instead with a 1 part grain to 1.5 parts liquid ratio. For the purposes of this post, that would be 2 cups quinoa to 3 cups liquid.
As for the liquid, you can use broth, vegetable juice, water, or any combination of those to achieve to taste you want. I use at least half broth most often, but for the sake of simplicity, I used water for this post.
Bring 3 cups of water/broth to a rapid boil in sauce pan.
Then add your toasted quinoa and cover the lid with a slight vent, allowing the steam to escape.
Reduce your heat to medium-low, and maintain a strong simmer.
Cook for 16 minutes or until all of the water is gone. Remove from heat and remove the lid.
Allow to cool and rest for ten minutes and then fluff with a fork.
So what can you do with that nice fluffy quinoa you just made? You can make yourself a nice bowl of quinoa tabbouleh!
Quinoa Tabbouleh
Ingredients
- 1 cup fluffy cooked Quinoa
- 1/2 cup peeled Cucumbers, chopped
- 1/2 cup chopped Tomato
- 1/4 cup chopped Red Onion
- 1/4 cup Lemon Juice
- 3 Tbs. chopped Chives
- 1 cup chopped Parsley
- 1/4 tsp. Salt
- 1/2 tsp. Pepper
- 1 Tbs. Olive Oil
Instructions
- Put all ingredients in a bowl and stir to combine. Enjoy.
Thank you so much, that worked perfectly..
If I buy a box that says it is prewashed, should I still follow all of the steps to get the fluffy quinoa? Or could I just skip down to the appropriate step?
not a comment, just a question. Can you buy quinoa the bulk way? I have only found it sold in boxes, flavored by a company called near east. I would appreciate any help
yes, it can be found in the bulk section, and it’s
unflavored
I buy Organic Whole Grain Quinoa here in Bozeman Montana at Costco. It’s sold in a 4 lb bag and it sells for $8something. It is fantastic.
Good luck,
Michelle
Looks easy. I can hardly wait to try it!
I just made the tabule as per your recepie without chieves, onions and cilantro instead of parsley and it was so awesome. thank you so much!
this is awesome. Thanks
Amazing! Thanks to you, i can now enjoy very tasty fluffy quinoa! I’ts the very first time for me & it was perfect.
Making 1/2 recipe (1 C Quinoa with 1.5 C water) right this minute! For those who like recipes, it is one of the most versatile grains imaginable! It can be used with nuts and berries as a breakfast cereal, used as a stuffing (for example, I’ll bake an acorn squash in the oven, scoop out the contents and mix with quinoa,cooked onion and other spices/veggies, stuff back into the squash and bake in the oven. Then I eat the entire “bowl”, including the squash into which it is stuffed. I also make stews with it….it goes well with beans and tonight I’m going to make a lentil stew with lentils, quinoa, onion, spinach and roasted pepper. Yum!
Jackie,
Thanks with all the comments made from others! Are you going to create a quinoa recipe book????? 🙂
Thanks for the instructions. Glad I read all the comments first. I made a large amount for the week. My first portion went straight in to banana nut muffins. They turned awesome. Thanks again.