Most recipes call for cooking quinoa in a 1:2 ratio—1 cup quinoa to 2 cups liquid. This leads to soggy and over-cooked quinoa. This recipe for Mediterranean Quinoa with Fresh Herbs from Everyday Vegan Eats by Zsu Dever produces fluffy, tender quinoa. If your package of quinoa doesn’t specify that it is rinsed, make sure to rinse it well in a fine mesh strainer. To make this dish a meal, add cooked garbanzo beans and serve over lettuce greens with extra lemon juice and olive oil, if desired. Serve with pan-sautéed or grilled marinated tofu slices.
Mediterranean Quinoa with Fresh Herbs
Serves 4
Ingredients:
- 1 cup quinoa, well rinsed
- 1 1/2 cups vegetable broth
- 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
- 2 garlic cloves, minced, divided
- 1/4 cup minced scallions or 2 tablespoons minced fresh chives
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped parsley
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped basil
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped mint
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped soft sundried tomatoes
- 1 tablespoon olive oil (optional)
- 1/2 teaspoon lemon zest
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons minced pistachios or other nut
- Salt and fresh ground black pepper
Preparation
Combine the rinsed quinoa, broth, 1/4 teaspoon sea salt and 1 clove minced garlic in a medium saucepan. Bring the broth to a boil, reduce to a simmer, cover, and cook for 15 minutes.
After 15 minutes, remove the saucepan from the heat and set the pan aside, still covered, for another 10 minutes to steam. Fluff the quinoa with a fork.
Add the scallions or chives, parsley, basil, mint, tomatoes, oil, zest, lemon juice, and nuts to the quinoa fluffing the mixture with a fork. Add additional lemon juice, salt, and black pepper to taste.
From Everyday Vegan Eats by Zsu Dever. ©2014 Zsu Dever. Used by permission from Vegan Heritage Press.
