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Peruvian superfood a tasty alternative

November 5, 2006 12:50 am

WHEN I traveled to Peru a few weeks ago, I had a chance to try a lot of wonderful foods. Although we can't buy many of the exotic Peruvian fruits and vegetables here, one Peruvian superfood is available in many American supermarkets and by mail order.

Quinoa has a delicious, mild flavor and cooks in 15 minutes flat--more quickly than rice. But it's much richer in protein, fiber, magnesium and calcium.

On my trip, we toured Machu Picchu, the ancient, mist-shrouded mountaintop city of the Inca empire, as well as nearby villages and towns. I was breathless, not just from the altitude but from the amazing views over nearly vertical cliffs in the cloud forest, and the amazing stonework of the Inca ruins. The traveling exhausted me, but the quinoa soup served at all the restaurants was refreshing and energizing and became a homey comfort food to me.

Quinoa is incredibly nourishing. It has more protein than other grains, and the protein is higher quality, with balanced amino acids, similar to milk and to soy.

Quinoa has been farmed for more than 5,000 years on chilly, dry mountainsides in Peru, Bolivia, Ecuador, Colombia, Argentina and Chile. Quinoa plants have broad leaves, like spinach, and the seed crop is borne in brushy spikes that look like little brooms, 1 to 6 feet above the ground.

The ancient Incas revered it as chisiya mama , or "the mother grain." The Inca warriors marched over 25,000 miles of rock roads carrying rations of "war balls" of quinoa mixed with fat as a high-energy food. When the Spaniards conquered Peru in the 1500s, they named the grain quinoa and outlawed it and other parts of the indigenous culture.

You'll mostly find the beige variety of quinoa in the U.S. But in South America, you can find white, gold, pink, orange, red, purple and black varieties.

In the Andes mountains, the indigenous people use the seeds to make cereal, soups and breads. They eat the leaves as a vegetable (quinoa is related to spinach). And they use quinoa stalks as fuel for their fireplaces.

Here in the States, I recommend quinoa to anyone who wants to try something new and delicious. It works especially well for busy people who don't have time to cook traditional whole grains. Quinoa cooks in 15 minutes, compared with 45 minutes for brown rice.

It's low on the glycemic index, so it's good for people with diabetes. Quinoa is also wonderful for people who have allergies to wheat or who have celiac disease.

It's also versatile--you can cook it as a hot breakfast cereal, like oatmeal, with cinnamon and raisins; or use it for dinner instead of rice, cooked in vegetable or chicken broth in stir-fries, pilafs and risottos. You can use it instead of bulgur wheat to make tabbouleh salad.

To prepare quinoa, first rinse for a minute or two under running water in a fine sieve, swishing to remove the natural soapy coating on the grains. Check to make sure there are no pebbles mixed with the grain. Then cook it as you would rice: one part quinoa to two parts water, simmered in a covered saucepan. It takes about 15 minutes to cook. When it's done, the natural white ring around the seed often separates, looking like a tiny, spiral tail.

For such a tiny food, quinoa packs a big punch.

JENNIFER MOTL, a registered dietitian, welcomes reader questions via her Web site, brighteating.com, or mailed to Nutrition, The Free Lance-Star, 616 Amelia St., Fredericksburg, Va. 22401.