Description
Note: An essential piece of equipment for cooking quinoa is a fine-meshed sieve. You need this piece of gear for both rinsing the quinoa before you cook it and for draining the quinoa after you cook it.
Also: More on cooking quinoa properly and a few notes on Fair Trade quinoa can be found here.
Ingredients
- 1 cup quinoa (I like red quinoa, Alter Eco brand, if you can find it)
- 1 cup snap peas, stem removed
- 1/2 cup cashews, (roasted unsalted)
- 4 to 5 scallions or spring onions, rinsed and trimmed
- 2 mangoes, peeled
- 1–2 serrano chilies (or Thai bird chilies or jalapenos — whatever hot chilies you like best)
- an inch-long (or slightly bigger) knob of ginger, peeled
- kosher salt and pepper to taste
- 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 to 2 limes, juiced
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Meanwhile, place quinoa in a fine-meshed sieve and rinse under cold water. When the water comes to a boil, add the quinoa and simmer for 9 minutes. Drain in a fine-meshed sieve and run under cold water until cool. Set aside to dry.
- Meanwhile, prepare the remaining ingredients: Slice the snap peas on a bias and set aside. Roughly chop the cashews. Slice the scallions (white and light green portions) thinly. Slice down around the pit of the mango to remove, then dice the flesh. Remove the seeds from the chilies, then finely dice. Grate the ginger on a box grater or finely dice with a knife or purée in a food processor. You need about a tablespoon (or more or less to taste) of minced ginger flesh/juice.
- Place the drained and dried quinoa into a large mixing bowl. Season all over with salt (I used one teaspoon kosher salt to start) and pepper to taste. Add the snap peas, cashews, scallions, chilies, mangoes (or not if you have time to let the salad marinate in the fridge for a bit), minced ginger, olive oil and about two tablespoons of lime juice to the bowl. Toss and taste. Adjust seasoning as necessary. I added two more tablespoons of lime juice and a pinch more salt. Let salad marinate in the fridge for an hour (if you have the time). Fold in mangoes just before serving.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes