Quinoa w/ Sweet Potatoes & Spinach
Spinach quinoa combines Ethiopian-inspired lentils with sautéed spinach and Japanese-inspired quinoa. It might at first sound like an odd combination at first! But what else is food for than creating absolutely delectible meals out of what you have on hand? And this quinoa salad with sweet potatoes and spinach is one of my new favorite dishes. It's sure to make an appearance in everything that I make in the next week, from salads and eggs to burritos.
Equipment
- Rice Cooker
- Skillet
- Stovetop
- Paper Towels
Ingredients
- 1 sweet potato diced
- 1 ½ c. spinach chopped
- 1 tsp. turmeric fresh, minced
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 c. white quinoa
- 2 ½ c. water
- 8 oz. tofu (1/2 package)
- 1 tbsp. high heat oil
- 1/4 c. rice vinegar
- 1/4 c. tamari (or soy sauce of choice)
- dash salt
- dash pepper
Instructions
Cook Quinoa
- Add sweet potato, spinach, turmeric, garlic, quinoa, and water to a rice cooker.
- Press the cook button on the rice cooker. 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.
Fry Tofu
- While the quinoa is cooking, drain the water out of the tofu and cut into cubes.
- Wrap in paper towels to absorb the moisture.It's important to absorb as much water out of the tofu as you can. Oil is less dense than water, so the molecules repel one another. With cold ingredients, this causes separation. When you're frying at high temperatures, though, this can cause boiling hot oil to spray back at you.
- Meanwhile, preheat oil in a cast iron skillet over medium-high heat.
- When the skillet has preheated and the majority of the water has absorbed into the paper towels, carefully add the tofu to the skillet. Fry until golden brown. This should take about 2-4 minutes. Rotate until all sides are evenly fried.
- Remove from heat and wrap again in paper towels to absorb the excess oil.
Finish Quinoa
- When the quinoa is fully cooked, add tofu, rice vinegar, tamari, salt, and pepper.Different brand of vinegar and tamari will have vastly different tastes. I recommend starting with a couple of tablespoons and then building up. These flavors will also seep in over time and become stronger the longer that it sits. So make sure not to add too much! Particularly if you aren't serving right away.
- Fluff with a wooden spoon and serve.Do not use a fork or other metal utensil to fluff! 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
- I used Fresh Turmeric in Olive Oil. You can easily substitute dried turmeric. But there is something particularly refreshing about fresh turmeric! And, if you can find it, mincing it and preserving in olive oil is the key to longevity.
- While quinoa is not rice, it does cook the same and oftentimes better than rice in a rice cooker. For more tips and tricks to rice cooker quinoa, check out my article on The Fundamentals of Making Quinoa, including a stovetop version if you don't have or don't want to use a rice cooker.
- I also tend to prefer tamari over soy sauce. They're both made from fermented soy and a lot of recipes use them interchangeably. Tamari tends to have a richer flavor and less salt content. It also tends to be gluten free.
- For a more in-depth article on preparing tofu, check out my article on The Fundamentals of Fried Tofu. High heat oil and a precise cooking temperature are important to keep the tofu from drying out or burning.