I have experimented cooking with "ancient" grains lately, mostly in stews and soups. The gluten grains, wheat, rye, barley, spelt and kamut, must be avoided should you be allergic to them. It's important to note that wheat has become dominant in the diet of the modern world not because of its nutritional value but because of its commercial convenience. Sadly, the opposite is the case with spelt and amaranth which can be used as a high-protein grain or as a leafy vegetable, and quinoa whose green leaves can also be eaten though the availability of quinoa greens is severely limited. Pic of amaranth below, note how pretty it is as well as being immensely edible! Food of the gods indeed.
These "ancient" grains have a much higher nutritional value than wheat but lack the formidable marketing machine behind wheat and therefore have become less prevalent, which is a pity. Over the jump for the goodies.
Quinoa was called "the mother grain" by the Incas, and was considered sacred. It was believed to be brought from heaven by the kullku, a sacred bird, and quinoa grains were honored as the progenitors of the city of Cuzco in Peru. Quinoa is high in protein, calcium and iron, and contains Vitamin E and B vitamins. Quinoa is not technically a grain. The seeds are the fruits of a leafy green plant in the Chenopodium family. It is in the same family as beets, chard, and spinach. It cooks up both soft and crunchy. As it cooks, the outer germ cooks up crunchy, and the grain cooks up soft. It comes in colors ranging from pinks to browns to reds.
With the most complete nutrition and highest protein content of any grain (its protein is high in lysine, methionine and cystine) quinoa is light, tasty, and easy to digest. Besides its unique protein, quinoa also provides starch, sugars, oil (high in essential linoleic acid), fiber, minerals, and vitamins. Many people seem to eat grains only during the colder months, but quinoa's lightness combined with its versatility in cold dishes like salads and desserts makes it an ideal source of excellent nutrition all year round.
In this diary I'll concentrate on meat dishes and in the next I'll deal with the vegetarian ones, which are numerous and full of pleasant surprises. Stay tuned.
Mutton Stew Izzy (named as such because it's damn easy to prepare, one hour tops, half hour for me):
There's nothing like a hearty mutton stew to ward off the winter blues and this one happens to be inexpensive to make. Ask your butcher for neck cuts, boned and chunked. When I say mutton, most butchers or supermarkets don't stock it and it's most likely aged lamb that will end up in your stew. But do try to source mutton if you can, it tastes, well, muttony!
Note the following: quinoa is coated with a waxy substance called saponin that has a bitter taste to naturally repel birds and insects from eating the grain. Because of this, it is important to rinse quinoa before adding to any stew or soup
For 6 to 8 persons you will need:
2 pounds of mutton or lamb neck, 3 tablespoons of olive oil, 1 pint of chicken stock, 2 eggplants, cut into chunks, 2 leeks, cleaned and chopped up, 4 carrots, cut into same size chunks as eggplants, 6 to 8 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped roughly, 2 large onions, chopped up, 2 yellow or red bell peppers, cut into rough triangles, 1 pound and a half baby potatoes, 300 grams quinoa (pre-rinsed), bunch of parsley, 2 or 3 thyme and rosemary sprigs, 2 bay leaves, the juice of 2 lemons, approximately 1/2 cup of cornstarch, salt & pepper to taste.
In a large cast-iron pot and over a medium flame heat the oil, then add garlic, the onion and the leek, stir well, add the meat chunks, throw the cornstarch into it, stirring at all times, add the lemon juice, the chicken stock (from cubes is ok), then all the vegetables & potatoes, herbs and cover, cooking for 30 minutes slowly. Add the rinsed quinoa and cook further for 12 minutes or until it's done. I have done a different version adding tomato passata to this dish to color it but I have to say that I prefer the mutton without it.
Tuna & Quinoa Salad, Italian Dressing:
This is a great dish that can be served all year round, cold or warmed up.
Note: to prepare in a rice cooker, simply treat quinoa like rice. Add two parts water to one part quinoa, stir, cover (unlike rice you can stir quinoa a few times while cooking to prevent burning in the bottom of the pan) and when the cooker shuts off, the quinoa is done. Alternatively you can also use a microwave to cook it: 1 cup quinoa, 2 cups water in a 2 quart microwave bowl. Cook on high 100% for 5 minutes and 60% for 8 minutes. Let stand for a few minutes and voila, perfect quinoa. Now you have a highly nutritious cooked grain which you can use for a number of dishes like salads, pilafs, soups and even breakfast (try it with yogurt, dried fruits, nuts and a dash of maple syrup).
For 4 to 6 persons you will need:
About 1 cup and a half of quinoa, 2 medium cans wildcaught tuna drained and flaked (check labels to ensure you're getting the real thing), 1 bunch baby spinach leaves, 2 green Thai chilies (finely minced), a handful of basil leaves, 2 cucumbers seeded and cut small, 2 celery sticks chopped up finely, 4 or 5 firm tomatoes (you can even include green tomatoes in this recipe) seeded and cut finely, 2 or 3 scallions (white and some green) chopped up roughly, the juice of 2 limes, 4 garlic cloves finely minced, a pinch of cayenne pepper, some sea salt, 1/2 cup of virgin olive oil, 4 tablespoons of Balsamic vinegar.
First cook quinoa as described above, and set aside. When cool, prepare your salad: mix all the above in a wooden bowl, add the quinoa, the lime juice, the balsamic vinegar and mix again before you add the oil. Check for salt and serve with warm or toasted pita pockets.
Amaranth (Amaranthus, pic above) has a colorful history, is highly nutritious, and the plant itself is extremely attractive and useful. Amaranth was a staple in the diets of pre-Columbian Aztecs, who believed it had supernatural powers and incorporated it into their religious ceremonies. The leaves and seeds of the amaranth plant are still characteristic ingredients in Mexican cuisine, especially in the staes of Morelos, Mexico, Puebla, Tlaxcala, and particularly Oaxaca, where the plant is widely cultivated as a valuable cash crop, worth four times more per kilo than corn. This is understandable, given the fact that amaranth provides a high quality protein, with a nearly perfect balance of essential amino acids, including abundant lysine and methionine, not found in most grains.
Amaranth is just as easy to cook as quinoa. Here is a recipe for a truly fantastic soup. The trick is to find a few smoked tomatoes because it brings out the flavor of the amaranth superbly. If you can't find any, it's easy enough to make your own smoking device: just follow the instructions here. A quick aside: in China, the leaves and stems are used as a stir-fry vegetable and called Yin Choi (which would be a close cousin to Bok Choi!)
Smoked Tomato, Pancetta, Bell pepper & Amaranth Soup:
For 6 to 8 persons you will need:
2 pints chicken stock, 1 and 1/4 cups amaranth, 4 red bell peppers, seeded and cut into chunks, 1 leek, cut into chunks, 4 medium-sized smoked tomatoes (don't overdo it with smoked tomatoes, just a few will give you that flavor), and roughly 10 ounces of Pancetta (which is really glorified bacon), 6 garlic cloves, peeled, salt & pepper to taste. A dash of cream (optional) but it gives this soup a nice velvety touch.
All you need to do is to put all of these ingredients into a large pot and cook it slowly for close to one hour. Use a processor to blend it, then add the cream and a few chopped basil leaves for effect.
I've tried another version in which I added a handful of blanched almonds. Not a bad result.
Are you ready for a bit of exotica?
Chicken & Amaranth Tagine, Moroccan Style:
I simply love tagines. Check this diary of mine, written 3 years ago, if you're going to make this dish, it explains how to use cook using a tagine.
Note: if you are going to make this dish, it would be even greater if you were to procure yourself with a few preserved lemons, a must ingredient in a Moroccan tagine dish. Having said that, if you can't come across these little buggers, then use the juice of 3 or 4 lemons.
For 6 to 8 persons you will need:
6 chicken breasts, cut into medium-sized chunks, 1 and a half pint of chicken stock, 2 soupspoons of olive oil, 2 onions, chopped, 2 zucchinis, sliced thick, 8 oz of amaranth, 1 large can of cooked garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained, 1 pint of passata, the juice of 3 or 4 lemons, 6 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped, 1 pinch of cinnamon, 1 pinch of ground coriander, 1 pinch of smoked paprika, 1 pinch of ground cumin, and a big handful of large green olives, salt & pepper to taste. You can give this dish a little heat if you add a soupspoon of harissa or a couple of chopped chilies.
In a tagine or cooking pot, heat up the oil, add the garlic, then the onions and the chicken. Stir well till more or less sealed, and add the zucchinis, amaranth, all the spices & olives then the garbanzo beans and the lemon juice. Cover with the passata, mix well and cook slowly for 50 minutes, with the lid on. Make sure you stir every 10 minutes or so. You can plate this dish and top it up with a few toasted almond flakes.
Next week I will post Patrick's Day Food News Roundup, an interesting array of tidbits about foodstuffs, good & bad. Subscribe at will.