Cooking With Quinoa: the Supergrain

Quinoa-pronounced keen-wah-is a grain, but not just any grain. It is considered to be almost a complete food. It is very high in protein, full of vitamins, gluten- and wheat-free, cholesterol-free and usually organic. And it is simply delicious.An ancient plant native to the Andes mountains, quinoa is known to have been a staple food of the Incas. Quinoa contains more protein than any other grain. The quality of this protein has been likened by the World Health Organization as being closest to milk. Quinoa is also a very good source of manganese, magnesium, potassium, phosphorous, copper, zinc, vitamins E and B6, riboflavin, niacin and thiamine. It has more calcium than cow's milk, is an excellent antioxidant, is rich in dietary fibre and has more iron than any grain. It also has the highest content of unsaturated fats and a lower ratio of carbohydrates than any other grain plus a low Glycemic Index level. The health benefits are truly enormous.

Rena Patten, author of Cooking with Quinoa, has some 20 years cooking experience as a recipe developer; held cooking classes on Mediterranean cooking; and assisted Geoff Janz and Lyndey Milan in cooking demonstrations. Rena is an established author having previously published Greek Cooking and How to Prepare Stuffings.