When I first moved here, I went a little crazy trying to find quinoa, the nutty, protein-rich seed that’s related to amaranth. I tried smuggling some in from the States, but it didn’t work. Mexican customs agents confiscated my supply. (Later they let me keep my brown rice flakes from India, which shows that their policies make no sense.)
Eventually I found quinoa at Green Corner, a natural-foods store in Mexico City. And then I just kept buying and buying, until the bags of quinoa began multiplying in my pantry.
Faced with an issue I’d never thought I’d have in Mexico — I have too much quinoa! — I tried to think of a way to use it, besides the usual steaming. My first thought was quinoa mexicana.
It’s basically the same thing as sopa seca de fideo or Mexican rice, except with quinoa as the main grain. I’d actually tried to make this in Dallas once and it didn’t work out too well. But this time around, it was pretty fantastic: the quinoa soaked up the tomato puree, and I couldn’t detect any of the bitterness/earthiness that quinoa sometimes exudes after cooking. (This is why Crayton isn’t the hugest quinoa fan. But he loved the Mexican version.)
Toasting the quinoa also toughened the seeds up a bit, which meant they had a nice, hearty texture. It wasn’t quite in the Israeli cous-cous realm, but the dish was definitely more fun to eat than rice or noodles. Plus quinoa has more protein. How can you go wrong?
I ate several tostadas with this quinoa slathered on top and served it twice as a side dish. In the future I might add a dollop of crema or some diced, fried chile pasilla. Adding a wee bit of chipotle en adobo to the tomato sauce might be a good idea, too.
Sopa seca de quinoa
Serves 4 to 6 as a side dish
Note: I used boxed tomato puree for this because it’s easy, but if you want to make your own tomato puree, blend perhaps three medium-sized tomatoes in a blender and pour into a pan heated with a little bit of oil. Season with salt and cook over medium-low heat until the tomato mixture turns a deeper red color and no longer tastes raw, perhaps 10 to 15 minutes. Add a little water if the mixture looks too thick.
Ingredients
1 tablespoon oil
3 slices of onion, about 1/4-inch thick
1 cup quinoa
1 3/4 cups water
1 210-gram box of tomato puree (or a small can of tomato sauce, if you live in the States)
salt
Heat your oil in a heavy-bottomed saucepan and, when hot, add onion and quinoa. Stir constantly (this will burn if you leave it too long), until quinoa starts to brown and releases a pleasant, toasty smell. Add water and tomato sauce and stir. But be careful, because the pan might hiss and spit. Add salt to taste. Bring to boil, and then lower heat to simmer. Cook for 30 minutes (this is how long it took me in Mexico), or perhaps half that if you’re at normal altitude. Feel free to check on the quinoa as it cooks. It won’t hurt the dish.
The quinoa may look wet when it’s done cooking, but it solidifies a bit as it cools. If you find it too wet for your taste, cook with the lid off and let some of the liquid evaporate.
That looks good. My mom has a couple of South American cookbooks that have quinoa recipes that we use all the time. One is a casserole with quinoa, green chile, canned milk, potatoes and cheese. Another is a thick breakfast drink called Apí de Quinoa– so delicious. Similar idea to atole. If you want another way to use up quinoa, I’ve transcribed the recipe here: http://fourdogfigfarm.blogspot.com/2010/09/culinary-chronicles-api-de-quinoa.html
Thanks for the tip, Sasha. They sell instant quinoa atole here in Mexico, but I don’t like the flavor very much. I really like the idea of blending my own drink, especially if it has evaporated or condensed milk. Sounds lovely for a cold day.
I’ve tried loving quinoa, but it doesn’t love me. I bought some, rinsed it three times, and it still had that soapy taste. Do you have any tips on taking that taste away? Thanks!
Hi Danielle: I’ve heard that rinsing quinoa is supposed help leech out some of the bitterness/soapy flavor — other than that I’m at a loss. This guy recommends flavored stock. Maybe that would help? The Mexican quinoa doesn’t have that taste soapy taste though, I promise you. Somehow the tomatoes mask it.
Hi Lesley,
That sounds really good. I’ll try it when I get to DF. Can’t get Quinoa where I am now. We’re lucky to find brown rice.
I make a similar side dish with brown rice, homemade chicken stock and a can of El Pato that seems to add just enough zing. I’ll try to toast the rice next time.
Thanks
I just had the most amazing dark chocolate bar with quinoa. Perhaps you can experiment with sweet flavors at our expense…
Oooh Felicia. You’re onto something. I’d love to experiment with amaranth and chocolate too. And chia! A completely pre-hispanic bonbon…
Oooh, good timing for this gluten-free girl who just had a blog reader bring Trader Joe’s quinoa down to me. Looking forward to trying this recipe and experimenting for the first time with quinoa.
Something I don’t understand tho, since quinoa is an ‘ancient food’ like amaranth, why are we not able to buy it here in MX????
Thanks for this!
I can answer this one! Quinoa is indigenous to the Andes in South America. It’s dirt cheap down there and kind of treated with scorn (because it’s indigenous); you’re more likely to find it in a market than in a restaurant.
I wonder if soaking Quinoa with a bit of salt water would help get rid of the bitterness. Haven’t tried it but would be interested if anyone else does it. Would like to know the amount of salt used for that. I do that Philipino trick of rinsing the peeled pineapple in salt water to reduce the acidity and think this trick might work for the Quinoa bitterness.
Hi Armando: Interesting idea — I’ve never heard of the pineapple thing, so thanks. Maybe it was the saltiness of the tomato puree that masked the quinoa taste in this case? These are the times when it’d be helpful to have a food scientist on the payroll. Perhaps soaking the quinoa in 1/2 teaspoon of salt and two cups water to start might help.
Ha ha ha another quinoa addict? I went crazy for the stuff while living in Bolivia (where it’s super-cheap and super-local). Pretty much stopped eating rice or other grains and just ate quinoa for everything (quinoa veggie burgers = revelation). Enjoyed it all immensely but lost quite a bit of weight. That can be a good thing or a bad thing but given that I am more on the skeletal side of the spectrum anyway, it definitely wasn’t a good thing for me. Be warned! The two-edged sword of quinoa addiction….
I am going to try this recipe it sounds good. I always like to find new ways to make quinoa. I just had some red, black and white quinoa last night to go with salmon. Funny trying to smuggle it across the border 😀
I love fideos! So much so it’s all I ever make as a side dish to anything and everything Mexican food related! This is a great alternative and genius idea. My hubs is really picky about quinoa and I think he just might eat more if I make it like this. Thanks for the idea!! So happy I found your blog:)
Wow that looks yummy, excellent recipe and photos look great as well
Do you cook it with the pot covered?
Yes, cover the pot until the quinoa is done, and you see the white ridges appear on the grains. Mine had a little extra liquid at the end, so that’s when I uncovered it, turned up the flame and let the liquid evaporate. (We’re at a high altitude in Mexico City so the evaporation is quite quick.) It’s really a matter of taste. Hope that helps!