You’ve seen it everywhere and heard about it non-stop. But what’s it really all about? The original superfood: QUINOA!
Quinoa exploded on the healthy food scene and you can now find it at grocery stores from Whole Foods to Safeway. Quinoa is one of the healthiest grains you can eat: it is a complete protein all on its own, so it’s great for vegetarians, and it boasts a high oleic-acid (heart-healthy monounsaturated fat) content. It’s also got a ton of anti-inflammatory phyto-nutrients, so it’s great for preventing chronic diseases. Lastly, (but definitely not least) it’s naturally gluten-free!
A few weeks ago, when I did my diet, I was intrigued by the diet’s anti-grain status, which included quinoa. I did some research, and it turns out the primal community’s opposition to grains is not inherently the grains themselves, but how they’re prepared. Phytic acid, which is present in most grains and legumes, can bind to other minerals (mainly zinc, calcium, magnesium, and iron) in our system and prevent their absorption. So by eating improperly prepared grains, we cause these nutrients to pass through the body unabsorbed and miss out on a ton of great nutrition. Luckily, you can neutralize phytic acid through proper soaking of your grains and legumes before you cook them.
It is recommended soaking quinoa for up to eight hours, with 1 tablespoon of lemon juice per cup of water. For example, if you wanted to cook 1 cup of quinoa, you would soak it in 2 cups of water with 2 tablespoons of lemon juice. I put my quinoa on to soak before I left for work, just leaving it (lightly covered) on the counter….
And cooked it when I got home. It is recommended just cooking the quinoa in the soaking water- you dump the mixture into a medium saucepan and bring it to a boil over high heat. Once it’s boiling, you reduce the heat to medium-low, cover, and let simmer for 15 minutes. Remove from the heat and let stand, covered, for about five more minutes before fluffing with a fork.
And you have a delicious, healthy, phytic-acid free batch of quinoa! One cup raw cooks up to about two cups cooked, perfect for a dinner for two. I also often cook up two or three cups at a time on Sundays to have throughout the week.
2 cups water
2 tbsp. lemon juice
1 cup uncooked quinoa
Combine all ingredients together in a glass jar or bowl. Let soak for up to 8 hours.
Pour mixture into a medium sauce pan and bring to a boil over high heat.
Reduce heat to medium low, cover, and let simmer for 15 minutes.
Remove from heat, let stand another five minutes. Fluff with a fork and serve.
