Quick and Easy Quinoa Recipes for Beginners - 24 Mantra Organic

Here is a list of nine quick to fix and easy quinoa recipes:

Quinoa Upma

Quinoa upma makes for a delicious, protein-loaded breakfast. It is one of the many easy quinoa recipes that you can prepare in 20 minutes. All you need to do is saute some peanuts, onions, peas, carrots, and other miscellaneous vegetables and add washed quinoa to it. Season it with salt, red chilly powder, and turmeric. Add water to the mixture and let it simmer it with the lid on for 15-20 minutes, while stirring occasionally. Once the quinoa grains cook thoroughly, garnish the upma with a squeeze of lime and freshly chopped cilantro. Serve hot!

Vegetable Quinoa Pulao

Pulao is easily the most comforting, one-pot meal that you can have for lunch and dinner. This dish makes it to our list of easy quinoa recipes as we give it a healthier makeover. You can use any vegetables that you may have lying around your home. Start by washing and draining the quinoa grains. Next, in a pressure cooker, heat some oil and saute whole masalas like jeera, bay leaf, cinnamon stick, clove, and cardamom. Then, add finely chopped onions, ginger-garlic paste, and an assortment of vegetables. Finally, add the quinoa, salt, and regular spices and pour in water. Close the pressure cooker lid and cook it for one to two whistles. Fluff out the quinoa and serve hot with curd and pickles.

Mexican Quinoa Salad

The Mexican quinoa salad is no-cook easy quinoa recipes that only require assembly. However, do keep in mind that you need pre-cooked quinoa and pressure cooked rajma for the authentic flavours. Start with a bed of quinoa in a bowl, to it, add finely chopped bell peppers (red, yellow, and green), red onion, tomato flesh, boiled sweetcorn, and jalapeno spices. Add quartered chunks of avocado, boiled red/black kidney beans, and a drizzle of lemon juice. Top everything with some freshly chopped cilantro and give it a good mix. Your Mexican Quinoa salad is ready!

Quinoa Burritos

Quinoa burritos are easy quinoa recipes when you have leftover Mexican Quinoa salad from above. Pan roast some tortillas or prepare a few chappatis, then apply a layer of guacamole on the insides, and stuff the Mexican salad inside. Add a final layer of grated cheese and roll the burrito. Cook or grill it on the pan and serve with some sour cream, guacamole, and Tabasco sauce!

Quinoa and Oats Patty

Our easy quinoa recipes also include delicious patties that combine two superfoods – quinoa and oats. Grind the instant oats into flour and prepare the quinoa in double the amount of water. In the meantime, finely dice or grate the vegetables for your patty, and lightly saute them in some olive oil. Once the quinoa and vegetable mixture cools, combine them together and add crack two eggs into it. Sprinkle salt and spices over it, and add the oats flour little by little until it forms a dough. Grease your palms and form quinoa oats patties. You can chill them in a refrigerator before shallow frying them in a pan.

Quinoa Lentil Soup

Adding quinoa to soups is the best way to bulk it up and add to its nutritional value. If you want easy quinoa recipes that involve soup, you can start with a hearty quinoa-lentil soup. Heat some oil in a pressure cooker and saute the onions, ginger, and garlic. Then add the tomato puree, arhar/masoor dal (or any lentil of your choice), vegetables, and spices. Saute them until they lose their raw aroma. Now add the quinoa, some chicken or vegetable stock and pressure cook it for two whistles. Open the lid and let it simmer for a few more minutes until you get a soup of desirable consistency. Garnish with lemon juice and fresh cilantro, and serve with a side of dinner rolls or toast.

Quinoa Phirnee

Phirnee is a traditional Indian dessert prepared with broken rice. Luckily, quinoa is just the perfect replacement for rice not only for its health benefits but because of its grain size. To make the easy quinoa recipes, heat some ghee in a heavy-bottomed pan and roast quinoa in it until it turns nutty and light brown. Add hot milk to it and bring it to a boil and let it simmer. Keep stirring the phirnee occasionally. Once the quinoa is cooked, add sugar, saffron strands, crushed cardamom, and some condensed milk. Simmer for a few more minutes and turn off the heat when it is thick enough. Serve hot or cold with a garnishing of nuts.

While trying out the above easy quinoa recipes, make use of organic spices and ingredients to up its nutritional value. The improvement in the taste and flavours is an added plus!

Try 24 Mantra Organic’s Quinoa and savour the taste of organic goodness.