MEXICAN QUINOA
Ingredients:
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic, pressed
- long red chilli, chopped finely
- 1 cup quinoa
- 1 cup vegetable stock
- 1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 can diced tomatoes
- 1 cup corn kernels (note: not can !)
- 1 tsp chilli powder
- ½ tsp cumin
- salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 1 avocado, diced
- juice of 1 lime
- 2 tbsps chopped fresh parsley
Directions:
—Heat olive oil in a large pan over medium high heat. Add garlic and chilli, and cook, stirring frequently, until fragrant, about 1 minute.
—Stir in quinoa, stock, beans, tomatoes, corn, chilli powder and cumin; season with salt and pepper, to taste.
—Bring to a boil; cover, reduce heat and simmer until quinoa is cooked through, about 20 minutes.
—Stir in avocado, lime juice and parsley and serve immediately.
There’s a bit of a problem with seconds, as in next day seconds: the quinoa goes on soaking up the liquid so that there isn’t any left after the first delicious consuming’s done. I have yet to solve this; but I think I’ll make a bit of weak stock, because I’m not keen on the thought of adding simply water.
This interests me: there are many vegetarian meals to which the thinning down with water is absolutely fine, so what’s the difference ?
My suspicion is that it’s the amount of tomato in this recipe, and/or its prevalence (so to speak): there isn’t much. Also, I used Mutti’s Polpa Pronta (i.e., no chunks), which meant that the tomato content was largely .. erhmm .. absorbed. Or perhaps hidden ? And this is food for thought for all vegetarian dishes, especially as I quite often feel that there’s too much tomato. (Northern Italians are very demeaning about Southerners’ over-use of this vegetable; but their emphasis on cream-based sauces is out of bounds for me.)
I’m still on the WW thing, and I’ll post about it because it’s changed again ..
DOWNUNDER WITH BOODZ 
This looks delicious, M-R. I enjoy quinoa and black beans. I’m eager to hear what you have to say about the new Weight Watchers changes. I am pleased, although I almost feel like I’m eating too much. Imagine such a thing on a healthy eating plan! I’ll have to see what comes of it, but so far, it’s a winner. I really will be interested in your take on it!
Thanks for a delicious vegetarian recipe. :-)
LikeLiked by 1 person
It is indeed delicious, beautiful one; but possibly loses the best of its flavours during the seconds rounds. I believe it needs more of the last three ingredients, next day – avo, lime-juice and parsley. So next time I make it I’ll buy a couple of limes and another avo !
Btw: why does my parsley still droop, even when I put it in water ?
[sob ..]
LikeLike
Thanks, M-R. I’ve forwarded this to a few people today in the secret (and also forlorn) hope that they might make it and also ask me to come over and share it with them. xx
LikeLiked by 1 person
Patrick, mon ami, why do you not give it a go yourself ? Vego cooking is really pleasing – except when you have a stove with a top that’s a bit too high so that your stirring of all those delicious things in your dutch oven makes your arm ache .. such was the case at my penultimate abode, and it drove me nuts. Come to think of it, also at my antepenultimate !!!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’ll give it a try.
Happy things have “leveled out” for you at your new place. x
LikeLiked by 1 person
T’es gentil – merci ! :)
Yes; although my flat is old and beaten up, it has taken my fancy in a big way. Me and my terrific handyman are slowly (at a pace I can afford) putting it to rights, almost.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I love quinoa, but I cook up a bunch and use it over a few days as I need it, usually in Buddha Bowl type dishes. It’s such a yummy food.
LikeLiked by 1 person
The whole Buddha bowl thing is very attractive to me, too, Sue: just to look at shots of all those delicious vegies and quinoa or couscous – unhappily, both are high in points with WW .. and this is another thing that puzzles me: how can something as good for one as quinoa be so high in points ?! It maketh me mad ..
LikeLiked by 1 person
The thing about Buddha Bowls – and quinoa – is that you can just have a tablespoon or so in a salad. I’ve had salads with quinoa where that’s about all there is. It just adds a bit of nuttiness. But, maybe that’s not a good idea either?
LikeLiked by 1 person
Good thing abaout WW is that nothing is off the table, it’s just up to me re points. ½ cup cooked quinoa is only 2 points, because it’s far less than ½ cup raw (7 !), which ends up being roughly a cupful. For that recipe I posted the 14 points are all in the quinoa, but they end up manageable because they’re divided by the number of servings.
LikeLiked by 1 person
You have to be an arithmetician to manage all this 😂
LikeLiked by 1 person