Quinoa w/ Summer Squash & Super Chili Peppers
This Super Chili Peppers Quinoa consists of yellow summer squash, red bell pepper, super chili peppers, cumin, coriander, and smoked paprika. Although feel free to mix and match your own favorite peppers to adjust the heat level. Super chili peppers are roughly similar to a cayenne peppers (in between Serranos and habaneros). You can also substitute zucchini, sweet potatoes, and any fruits or vegetables that would soften within 45 minutes in a rice cooker.
Equipment
- Rice Cooker
Ingredients
- 1 yellow summer squash diced
- 1 red bell pepper diced
- 3 super chili peppers (optional) minced
- dash cumin
- dash coriander
- dash smoked paprika
- dash salt
- dash pepper
- 1 c. quinoa
- 3 c. water
Instructions
- Add all of the ingredients into a rice cooker. I like to start with the larger vegetables and then add the smaller ingredients. Top with the spices and then add the quinoa and water.This cooks the larger vegetables on the bottom, while dispersing the flavor profiles in the middle. Although with some mixing, this really doesn't matter all that much. Everything will eventually cook together!
- Press the cook button on the rice cooker. It should take about 45 minutes to cook.
- When the quinoa is fully cooked, let sit for 10 minutes, and then fluff with a wooden spoon and serve.Do not use a fork or other metal utensil. It will scratch off the nonstick surface on the rice cooker. This will leach Teflon into your food and cause future dishes to stick to the bottom.
Tips, Tricks, & Notes
- While quinoa is not rice, it does cook the same and oftentimes better than rice in a rice cooker. It typically takes 30-45 minutes. Alternatively you can simmer on the stove. Add all of the ingredients to a pot, bring uncovered to a boil, lower heat to a simmer, and cook for about 15 minutes, or until the sweet potatoes and quinoa are tender. Turn off heat, add lid, and let sit another 5-10 minutes.
- You can also easily substitute other vegetables or types of quinoa. For this recipe I used whatever I had ripening in my garden with royal quinoa. Royal quinoa is primarily cultivated in Bolivia and tends to have larger grains and a fluffier texture. I tend not to notice much of a difference between typical white quinoa and royal quinoa. But it’s always fun to explore! Red quinoa has a more prominent and nuttier flavor and tri-colored is largely the in-between variety.
- Any quinoa, or even other grain or legume, like lentils or rice, would substitute in this recipe without changing the ratio.