I put out a call on Twitter when I was making the Black Bean Casserole for a good quinoa side dish to make with it. Someone suggested Mexican quinoa, well duh, I should have thought of that one. I scoured my pantry for “Mexican style” items and found onions, garlic, and diced tomatoes. This sounded like a good start. Of course I finished off the dish with cilantro for that fresh herb taste. If you aren’t a fan of cilantro I would swap it out for basil, but then we might need to call it Italian style quinoa.
Can you believe that this was my first time have quinoa? I had been hearing about it for months, years maybe, and just finally was getting around to trying it. Well ever since that day I have been hooked. I now keep a box in the pantry at all times.
What I love most about quinoa is it’s versatility. You can make it into a grain (although it’s technically not a grain) salad which is great for lunches or a light dinner or serve it as a side to compliment the rest of your meal. There are plenty more quinoa recipes to come here on the blog, so I hope you aren’t over my favorite new seed yet.
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- ½ medium onion, chopped
- 1 clove garlic, chopped
- 1 cup quinoa
- 1 (14.5oz) can diced tomatoes (preferably with garlic)
- 1 cup water
- 1 tablespoon chopped cilantro
- Heat olive oil in saucepan over medium high heat. Add onion and garlic and sauté 2-4 minutes until onion is soft.
- Stir in quinoa, tomatoes, and water. Bring to a boil.
- Reduce heat to medium low and cover.
- Simmer 20-25 minutes until the liquid is absorbed.
- Remove from heat and stir in chopped cilantro.
Welcome to supperforasteal – Helena Here, but friends call me Lane! 