Quinoa? Quin-WHAT?!! Have you heard of it? Well let me tell you a little about it. First of all…..it’s pronounced KEEN-WAH. And although it seems like a new thing, it has been around for thousands of years. The Incas cultivated this crop and believed it gave power and stamina to their warriors. Quinoa is cooked and treated like a grain but is technically a seed. This tiny seed comes in a rainbow of colors but the kind we see in most stores is an off white color. Quinoa is a complete protein which means it contains all nine essential amino acids that our body needs. Complete proteins are hard to come by in the plant world which make it an exceptional protein choice for vegetarians and vegans as well as anyone else wanting to choose a healthy diet. And while one cup of quinoa only has 8 grams of protein, it’s the quality of the protein that matters! Quinoa is also a great source of iron, manganese, potassium, riboflavin, copper, phosphorous, tryptophan, B6, niacin and thiamine.
So how do you eat it? Well some people just eat it plain. And some people use it in all kinds of recipes. Here is a link to 23 different recipes using quinoa:
As you can see…..quinoa is an extremely nutrient dense food. It’s another one of those foods that I deem SUPERFOOD! I personally LOVE it and put it in tacos, salads….mix it with chicken. It’s super easy!
I hope everyone has a WONDERFUL weekend!
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