Chicken & Quinoa...My latest Craving!

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I am on a big quoinoa kick lately...for those who have never tried it, I suggest you do!! I love experiementing and trying to add different things to help change the flavor. I am sure there are a lot of different ways to cook quinoa but here is what I have found that works and tastes the best for what I do. I cook our quinoa in my rice cooker with low sodium, fat free chicken broth & water. Then I just set it to cook like rice. I have found when you cook quinoa in something other than just water, the flavor is better.

Why choose quinoa? Here are some breif nutrition facts about this low-fat, high protein food!!

Protein in Quinoa:
One of the best reasons to enjoy quinoa is because it has a high-protein content, which makes it a great cholesterol-free and low-fat source of protein for vegetarians. One cup of cooked quinoa (185 g) contains 8.14 grams of protein.

Fat in Quinoa:
Quinoa is naturally low in fat, but as a seed, it does have a small amount. One cup of cooked quinoa provides 3.4 grams of fat. By comparison, 185 grams cooked lean ground beef provides 33 grams of fat.
 
Calories in Quinoa:
Quinoa is relatively low in calories. One cup of cooked quinoa provides 222 calories. But of course, watch what you add to the quinoa, as it's in the cooking process that most of the calories and fat will be added,depending on how you prepare it.

Other Nutrients in Quinoa:
Quinoa is a great source of iron and fiber for vegetarians...actually for anyone! One cup of cooked quinoa (185 grams) provides 15% of the recommended daily intake of iron, and 5 grams of fiber, which is 21% the recommended amount. Some other nutrients in 1 cup of cooked Quinoa is:

39.41 mg carbohydrates

118 mg magnesium

31 mg calcium

2.76 mg iron

318 mg potassium

13 mg sodium

2.02 mg zinc

Like I said, I have been loving quinoa lately. I add different things and usually pair it with some sort of chicken or fish. Here are 2 recipes from this past week that my family really enjoyed and they were fairly quick and easy!!

For both of these, my base quinoa was cooked in a crock pot with low-sodium chicken broth!

 

Black Bean & Avocado Quinoa

In my rice cooker I added quinoa, chicken broth, about 1 tsp garlic, some cilantro and green onions. Let it cook altogether. Once it was cooked I added the following:

 

Black Beans

Corn

Avocado (diced)

Tomato

Lime Juice

Cumin

Chilli Powder

 

Served this with chicken cooked in the crock pot that I added a little Garlic Salt, Pepper, Fat-free Italian Dressing and a little bit of Sprite Zero. Shredded it once it cooked on low for about 5-6 hours.

 

Also for dinner I added about 1 c of Romaine Lettuce to this and made it like a salad. You can top with anykind of salsa too or try Greek Yogurt instead of Sour Cream.

 

 

Curry Chicken Quinoa

 

I don't have a picture of this one, but this is a favorite of my hubby and little guy!

 

Cooked Quinoa

Diced Apples

Shredded Chicken

Raisins

Diced Celery

Diced Onions

Curry Seasoning

Garlic Salt

Little bit of Sugar

 

Mix everything together and season with curry & garlic salt to your liking. I add a little bit of sugar to sweeten things up a bit.

 

Try and be creative and just add different things to switch up the flavor of your quinoa. If you just eat straight quinoa all the time, it could get a bit boring! Switching to quinoa in your diet over white rice doesn't have to mean every meal is plain and gross and you have to suffer through eating healthy. Find the things you love and try adding them together!!

 

 

Have you tried Quinoa?

How do you like to eat your Quinoa?