Recipe: Easy Peas-y Rice and Quinoa

This simple yummy recipe is my take on the Indian restaurant staple, basmati rice with peas and cumin. My reasons for the changes I have made are as easy as the recipe. 1. Brown rice and quinoa together are a one two protein punch, perfect for low meat meals or those who abstain all together. 2. Basmati rice has one of the lowest glycemic indexes for white rice and its brown ultra fibrous counterpart is even lower with a glycemic index of 45. (Quinoa is 35, just if you were wondering) So let's get cooking!

Ingredients:

7/8 of a cup of Organic Brown Basmati Rice (quick cooking)

1/8 cup Organic Quinoa ( I use tricolor, but it doesn't really matter)

3/4 organic frozen green peas

1/2 tsp cumin seeds

a healthy pinch of ground cumin

1/4 tsp fennel seed

1 tsp organic coconut oil (unrefined)

salt to taste

cilantro to garnish (optional)

Directions:

1. Pour brown rice in a measuring cup and fill nearly to the top, leaving about a half an inch. 

2. Fill the rest of the way with the quinoa

3. Pour into a mixing bowl and cover with cold water. Massage until the water turns cloudy.

4. Pour into fine mesh, or very small holed sieve and rinse. repeat steps 3 and 4, four times until water no longer readily clouds up in the bowl. 

Congratulations! You have released a ton of the starches and made your grains even more readily digestible!

5. Put all grains into large sauce pan with two cups water, the cumin, cumin seeds, coconut oil, salt, and fennel seeds. *note, check your packages for specific water quantities. I find that when using the quick cooking rice the water content and cook times match that of the quinoa, making them easily combined, but check your brand!*

6. Bring to a boil and stir, then cover, reduce heat and cook for indicated time on package. Mine takes twelve minutes :) If you're a lucky duck you can do this in your rice cooker and it will be even more amazing. Sigh, someday...

7. Microwave peas on high for 1 min. in a ceramic or glass bowl. If you don't microwave, simple take out your peas before starting any of the other steps and then leave next to your cooking rice. They'll thaw out :)

8. When your rice mixture is ready, there should be no excess water left at the bottom of the pan. Fluff with a fork and add peas....

9. Plate and garnish with fresh cilantro if you wish!!!

This dish refrigerates well, and reheats easily, so even if you're not serving a family or friends, but just yourself, it's still an awesome, oh sooo yummy dish to prepare and eat. I have some with my lunch every day!!!!! ENJOY

BKBTY