Quinoa as a Healthy Alternative to Rice

The ancient Incans held quinoa in such high regard that they dubbed it “the mother grain”.  It served as a primary source of protein, carbohydrates, and minerals all in one tiny and tasty package. Now, centuries on quinoa is regaining much of its popularity as the grain of choice when it comes to providing a lot of nutrition. Chefs and gourmands have found that it makes a much healthier alternative to another popular staple food: rice. 

Quinoa and rice are roughly similar in size, and share much of the same cooking procedure: soak the grain in water, and then steam or boil it. In fact, you can use any rice cooker to cook quinoa as well. They differ in texture, as rice tends to be sticky and glutinous while quinoa is rather light and puffy. In terms of nutrition however, quinoa clearly has an edge. Rice really only contains carbohydrates, which our body breaks down into simple sugars for use as energy. This is great for people with active lifestyles that will burn up that energy, but given the sedentary lives most people now lead, those sugars end up being stored as fat. At best, you get a little extra dietary fiber to go with the carbohydrates, but that’s fairly limited to brown and red rice varieties. There have been some efforts in the past to further imbue rice with other nutrients, such as adding beta-carotene, which resulted in ’golden rice’. Quinoa however, is naturally at a major advantage. It contains nearly every essential amino acid for building muscle and tissue, along with essential minerals such as iron, calcium, and potassium. Quinoa is also filled with phytochemicals for fighting cancer and other diseases, and has anti-inflammatory and cholesterol lowering properties that help make it a very heart-healthy food. Unlike rice, which requires massive irrigation and infrastructure to grow, quinoa can be grown almost anywhere under much harsher conditions. This means that quinoa as a major food source requires fewer resources to grow while providing better nutrition than rice. For this reason, it is being hailed as a food of the future and currently being studied by relief organizations as a possible relief crop for battling famine and malnutrition.
 
Quinoa has a slightly nutty flavor, but it is mild enough that it can be used in almost any dish. Try using it as a substitute for rice in a rice pilaf. As stated above, the cooking procedure is very similar to that of rice, but much shorter. Quinoa should be rinsed before cooking, since it has an outer layer of saponins that impart a bitter taste. After rinsing, simply put it in a pot with some water. Use 2 cups of water for every cup of quinoa. Cook for only 15 minutes. It’s important not to overcook quinoa, as it will turn all mushy and unappetizing if improperly prepared. Once cooked, you can use it as a substitute for rice dishes, and even create a few of your own. Toss them into a salad, or even use it as a base with which to make some pudding. The culinary possibilities are endless.
 
Quinoa is just another of the healthy lifestyle choices that Hidalgo Foods has to offer. By offering these alternative functional foods, we believe that we are helping to build a world that is stronger, healthier, and greener. Most of these functional foods have been around for centuries, and some served as the part of the foundations of great empires of the past. As more of these ancient superfoods are discovered, you can count on us to be there to inform and provide our customers with products of the highest quality and potency.