Quinoa Veggie Terriyaki Stir Fry

While walking through my local bulk store the other day, I came across this beautiful deep red quinoa that looked so alluring, I had to buy some. I also picked up some regular quinoa and some veggies, and made a stir fry out of it all.

Quinoa (pronounced keen-wa) is a protein rich grain-like seed that is native to South America. It is a great source of protein because it contains all nine essential amino acids, making it a complete protein. Natural quinoa has a bitter coating, but most quinoa found in stores today have the bitter coating removed. Some people are bothered by the bitter smell quinoa gives off, but I personally have never noticed it.

When cooked, quinoa is both crunchy and fluffy in texture.

This recipe makes 4-6 servings.

Quinoa Veggie Terriyaki Stir Fry- 1 cup of organic quinoa
- 1 cup of organic red quinoa
- 1 package (227 g, 8 oz.) fresh button mushrooms, sliced
- 3 carrots, chopped
- 4 cups of broccoli florets
- 3 scallions, chopped
- 2 cups of frozen corn
- 1 medium onion, finely chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 2 Tbsp terriyaki marinade
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
- salt
- black pepper and white pepper
- extra virgin olive oil

Method
1. In a pot, bring 3 cups of salt water to a boil. Turn off the heat. Pour the quinoa into the pot of hot water, place the lid on the pot, and let it sit for 10 minutes. Drain the excess water, and set the quinoa aside.
2. In a pan, Sautee the garlic and onions with some extra virgin olive oil until the onions are translucent. Add in the carrots and scallions and stir fry for 10 minutes.

3. Turn the heat down to medium, add in the cooked quinoa, mushrooms, broccoli, and corn, and stir fry for an additional 30 minutes. While stir frying, add in the cayenne pepper and terriyaki marinade. Add salt, white pepper, and black pepper to taste.
A dash of white pepper adds a nice touch to this dish.