Veggie Quinoa Stir-fry

Have you ever tried quinoa? It's a low-carb, grain-like alternative to rice, packed with complete protein (meaning that it contains all nine essential amino acids) and nutrients. We've used both red and the traditional white before. For this dish, we used equal parts red and white for a fun mix.

Ingredients

• 1 cup quinoa
• 2 cups water
• 4-5 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 medium onion, sliced
• 3/4 pound carrots (we used baby carrots), julienned
• 1 pound green beans, cut into 1-2 inch lengths
• 2 bell peppers (we used 4 or 5 baby red, orange, and yellow ones), julienned
• 3/4 pound white mushrooms, quartered (or smaller)
• 2 medium tomatoes, diced
• 1 tablespoon canola oil
• 1 can cannellini beans, rinsed
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons mirin
• 1 tablespoon sesame seeds

Directions

1. Cook the quinoa in water per directions, or in a rice cooker.
2. In the meantime, prepare the vegetables.
3. Heat a wok, add oil, and swirl it around until it gets hot.
4. Add garlic and stir for about 30 seconds.
5. Add onion and sauté until translucent, stiring occasionally.
6. Add the carrots and green beans, and cook for about 3 or 4 minutes, stirring occasionally.
7. Follow with the bell peppers (3 minutes), the mushrooms (another 3 minutes), and the tomatoes and beans (until heated through).
8. Mix the soy sauce and mirin, and drizzle over the stir-fry. Combine with the cooked quinoa and sesame seeds, and mix well.

She said

Quinoa is such a healthy food, and it makes a great base for stir-frys. It also works well in granola and in cold salads.

If you don't have a rice cooker, cook the quinoa in a saucepan on the stove: Add the quinoa and water to the saucepan, and bring the mix to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer, and cook it for about 15 minutes, or until the quinoa has absorbed the water.

A lot of quinoa recipes suggest rinsing the quinoa before adding it to the water to remove the bitter-tasting saponins. We've never bothered with this step, and we've never had any bitter-tasting quinoa. It's possible that the only quinoa we've bought is prerinsed.

He said

This is a great dish to prepare as a group—get your family involved cutting up all the vegetables that go into it. Of course be careful and avoid handing good knives to young children. As with any stir-fry, feel free to use different vegetables or beans that better match what you have on hand.