I am so excited to share this recipe, because I not only made quinoa for the first time, but I completely made up the recipe! True, this is not very complex and there are not too many spices involved, but having never cooked quinoa before it could have turned out disastrous. The only *oops* part was using a skillet that was too small and after stirring the dish I ended up with quinoa everywhere. Despite the post-cooking war zone that was my stove, this recipe could not have turned out better.
Quinoa is ridiculously good for you, and when paired with tons of fresh veggies, you’ve got yourself one tasty health food. And as an added bonus, this recipe is vegan! Woo!
After looking at the pictures you’ll see why I decided to call this recipe “Rainbow Quinoa.” Tasting the rainbow is no longer about eating gelatin-filled, cavity-inducing Skittles, but rather some Quinoaey (new word) & Vegetabley goodness!
Ingredients:
1 cup uncooked quinoa
2 cups water
3 TBS olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 medium red bell pepper, chopped
1.5 cups frozen corn
2 cups frozen broccoli florets
1 can black beans
1/2 tsp turmeric
dash or two of paprika
Instructions:
Chop red pepper into small chunks and set aside. (that’s a pretty one, isn’t it?). Cook frozen corn and broccoli as directed on package, set aside.
Mix uncooked quinoa and water in medium saucepan. Heat until boiling, then reduce heat to low and simmer until all water is absorbed (usually 10-15 minutes).
Meanwhile, in large, deep skillet heat olive oil and garlic until the garlic is translucent. Stir in chopped pepper and sautee until crisp-tender. Drain and rinse the black beans very well, and stir in with the peppers.
Sautee until black beans are soft but not mushy. Stir in broccoli and corn, mix well and heat for a couple minutes. Now you start to see why I’m calling this “Rainbow Quinoa” 🙂
Then, add the quinoa. Mix well with veggies.
Add the turmeric and paprika.The turmeric will turn everything visibly yellow. Mix and heat until the flavor is absorbed into the ingredients (find out by doing little taste tests…my favorite part of cooking!) You may have to add some extra olive oil as you go so that the quinoa doesn’t get too try. It absorbs quite a bit of moisture.
Stir well and serve! If you want to make this recipe vegetarian vs. vegan, try it topped with some grated parmesan cheese or Vermont Cheddar Cheese….it’s delicious!
Pink Troll Kitchen 
God that looks so healthy it makes me feel guilty about the pancake-related creation I’ve just made!
Ha don’t feel guilty! I made this dish partly to make up for the half box of Girl Scout Cookies I had eaten earlier that day 🙂
And all pancake creations are the best creations!
This looks so tasty! I love all of the veggies in it, it’s so colorful!
It was pretty tasty indeed, I highly recommend trying it! Thanks for commenting 🙂
oh my goodness, all of your dishes look waay too good!
Thank you so much… I’m very, very flattered!