What We Ate This Weekend; or, My Name is Jen and I Have a Quinoa Problem

We have a quinoa problem in our house. At some point I clearly thought it was the answer to our gluten-free troubles – well, OK, I thought this at several points. Several points at Costco, to be exact, which is how we ended up with 12 pounds of quinoa sitting in our pantry. Fortunately for me, this recipe is just right for toting along to events, since it doesn’t need to be kept hot or cold, and is tasty served at any temperature (including straight out of the bowl in the refrigerator. Theoretically.)

In its original form, this recipe appeared in Cooking Light, January/February 2007. It quickly became a go-to favorite for potlucks, picnics, and any other time that I needed to make sure the GF guys could eat something but didn’t have access to a stove or refrigerator. It scales up easily and, as it turns out, is very flexible.

It’s not all that hard to keep most of these ingredients on hand. And if you’re in the middle of making it and you realize that you’re out of a key ingredient, you can substitute. It goes something like this:

Me: Hey, everyone liked the quinoa salad at the potluck last week. I think I’ll make it again for this picnic dinner that we’re already late for.
GF Guy: What a great idea, especially since you ate it all at the potluck and I didn’t get any.
Me: Oops, I’m out of pistachios. I’ll use slivered almonds instead.
GF Guy: OK.
Me: Oops, I’m out of dried pineapple. I guess I used it all last time. I’ll use these dried cherries.
GF Guy: Sounds good.
Me: Oops, I used all the green onions. I’ll use onion powder.
Me: And I’m out of fresh ginger so I’ll use this curry powder.
Me: And we just ran out of sesame oil so I’ll use some really good olive oil and throw some toasted sesame seeds on top.
GF Guy: Do you want me to go to the grocery store?
Me: No, it’s going to be great even though it has absolutely no resemblance whatsoever to the dish I set out to make. I promise.
GF Guy: Aren’t you the person who hates improvising in the kitchen? The follower-of-recipes-to-the-very-last-detail person?
Me: Um.

I Have a Quinoa Problem Salad
1 cup quinoa (give or take)
½ cup toasted chopped pistachios
½ cup chopped dried pineapple
1 bunch chopped green onions
1 teaspoon minced fresh ginger
1 ½ teaspoons cumin
1 tablespoon sesame oil (the dark kind that actually tastes like sesame, not the cooking kind)
Salt
Crushed red pepper (though we use Szechuan pepper instead, since we're not eating nightshades)

Cook the quinoa in some water or broth (enough to cover it by an inch or so, and let it cook on low heat until it's al dente. Don't overcook the quinoa or it will be pasty instead of fluffy, and you'll end up spending a lot of time issuing disclaimers about your spouse being the one who cooked the quinoa. Or maybe that's just me.)

Mix everything together in a bowl. That’s it. Sometimes we put in a splash of lemon juice to perk it up, and I’ve been known to use a sweet vinegar (fig, basalmic, or rice) as well if the quinoa ends up a little on the drier side.