Quinoa

Both P and I used to be very partial to couscous but, for some unknown reason, it's not very partial to either of us - causing headaches, nausea and some dreadful, ahem, 'wind' issues.  I've rather missed not having couscous in my culinary 'repertoire', especially the very useful flavoured couscous that is now so readily available in every supermarket.   However, a month or so ago when I was having lunch in Spitalfields I had a rather tasty taboulleh, apricot and feta salad.   It was a real 'ah-ha' moment for me and I thought I'd actually found a good replacement for couscouse.  Sadly, even Waitrose couldn't oblige with taboulleh so I bought quinoa instead.

Quinoa is not quite as user-friendly as couscous in that you actually have to wash it first and then boil it up in a pan until all the liquid has been absorbed - cue the likelihood of charcoaled quinoa at some point in the future.  But I duly followed the instructions and cooked up 100g of quinoa - which looked most odd when I'd finished.  In an attempt to try and replicate the taboulleh salad, I added chopped dried apricots, chunks of feta cheese, chopped cucumber, some fresh mint leaves and a good slosh of balsamic vinegar.  It was rather nice and I didn't have any ill effects from eating it either.

So, two questions, does anybody know where I could get hold of taboulleh (I think that's the correct spelling) and also have you got any recipes for quinoa as I think I'd quite like to extend my range from just one recipe.  Any suggestions most gratefully received.

Comments

[Jennifer]

We absolutely love quinoa. Shame to hear about the cous cous, do you normally have problems with pasta? I was wondering if there is maybe MSG (it can cause bad headaches) or something in the flavoured ones that is causing the problems. I believe the grain that is used to make taboulleh is called bulgar, perhaps you could find it in bulk at a natural food store. As far as quinoa goes, I usually cook it up with half of the liquid being chicken stock, the other half water. If we are eating it hot, I roast some veggies (carrots, peppers, mushrooms, sweet potato etc.) and then chop them up and add them at the end. If we are eating it cold, I cook it the same way, but add cold chopped veggies such as cucumber, peppers, black olives etc. Cooking it in chicken stock gives it that extra bit of flavour so I don't usually add any extra dressing. It is so good for you and we just love it, even the babe scarfs it down. Hope this helps.

[The Shopping Sherpa]

It's also sometimes spell Bulghur Wheat.

I agree with Jennifer: both couscous and bulgur wheat are wheat-based so i guess it's something in the packet mix that's causing the problems. Have you tired plain couscous (it's cheaper than buying the packet ones too).

Check your local health food store or the health food aisle of the supermarket for bulgur wheat...

[Catherine]

Nice list of recipes here...http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/search.do?keywords=quinoa&pager.offset=0
Mmm. Making my mouth water! I love couscous too, it's so soft and easy to eat.
I'd heard tell of bulgar wheat but not of quinoa till I saw that You Are What You Eat woman prescribing it. My mum used to use bulgar wheat in stuff, in similar ways to couscous. Anyway, hope you find something there - a Google search yielded up lots of recipes x x x
Catherine

[Maureen]

Generally New Zealand is a bit of a desert when it comes to culinary delights for vegetarians but here we do have Tabouli ( often served with falafel and pide..yum) and on the packet it states that it's made of bulgar wheat,parsley,onion, mint, garlic and pepper and salt. Mix it with a little oil, chopped tomato and diced cucumber.
It can be varied with the addition of chopped red capsicum,toasted pinenuts, a little chopped chilli and some lemon juice.
Couscous is something I came across when I joined Slimming World in UK. On a green day ( I won't bore you with an explanation)I'd bake a cake with couscous, eggs, plain yoghurt, sweetener and a dollop of lemon curd et voila! a pretend cake that fills a big gap and all alowed on the eating plan.