Quinoa Vegetable Pulao
Quinoa is a gluten-free super grain that has been gaining a lot of popularity over the last few years. While it looks very similar to the pearl millet easily available in India, I don't believe there's an Indian name for quinoa or that it's locally produced. Quinoa pulao makes a great lunchbox recipe since it doesn't dry out as much as rice pulao tends to.
Prep Time:
Cook Time:
Total Time:
Ingredients:
| 1 cup | quinoa , rinsed well and drained |
| 1/2 cup | onion, chopped fine |
| 2 tablespoons | ghee or olive oil |
| 1/2 teaspoon | cumin seeds (jeera) |
| 4 | cloves |
| 1 | small piece of cinnamon |
| 1 | bay leaf |
| 3 to 4 | green cardamom pods, crushed |
| 1 teaspoon | minced garlic |
| 1/2 teaspoon | grated ginger |
| 1 cup | mixed vegetables (i used frozen carrot,, peas, corn) |
| a few mint leaves or coriander leaves (optional) | |
| salt | |
Directions:
1. Heat the 2 tablespoon oil in a pan, preferably non-stick. Add the cumin seeds and when they sizzle, add the whole spices - cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, bay leaf. Fry for 10 seconds and then add the chopped onions. Fry until just soft (about 3 mins) and then add the ginger and garlic. Sautè until fragrant - about 2 mins.
2. Add the vegetables now, along with finely chopped coriander or mint leaves (if using). Sautè for 4-5 mins until the vegetables are almost cooked.
3. Add the 1 cup quinoa to this.
4. Check your quinoa package to see recommended amount water needed to cook it. There are different varieties and I am assuming they have differing lengths of cooking time. I have only cooked with white quinoa and the method I follow is to add double the water. So 1 cup quinoa gets cooked in 2 cups water and that's how much I added.
5. Add salt and bring this to boil. Then lower heat to simmer and cook covered for about 5 mins. Check in between to make sure there's still water in the pan and the quinoa or vegetables is not burning. Ensure heat is at a minimum and you should be fine. The quinoa will fluff up quite a bit on cooking and in about 5-6 mins, you should have very soft and fluffy quinoa. The rest of the vegetables should be done now too. Add more coriander leaves if desired and serve hot.
Source: cookingandme.com
