Tuesday, August 31, 2010

Warm Quinoa Salad with Edamame and Lemon-Tarragon Dressing



From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...As part of my commitment to Meatless Mondays, I've been spending some time experimenting with meatless recipes that make dishes that are substantial enough to serve as entrees. My most recent foray led me to a series of recipes that utilize quinoa as a protein source. Contrary to popular opinion, quinoa is not a grain. It is actually the seed of a plant that is related to spinach. The seeds have a nutty, smoky flavor that is quite pleasing and they have the added advantage of being less filling that similar grains or pasta. Most quinoa is grown in the poor soil of the Andes region of South America. Despite that, it has been identified as one of the best sources of protein to be found in the vegetable kingdom. As a matter of fact, scientists have found that the quality of its protein is the equivalent of that found in dairy products. The ease with which it can be grown and its nutritional content make it a boon to the poor of the world, as well as you and me. I've found and tested two recipes that I think are outstanding and I want to share one of them with you today. I really loved this salad. Here, quinoa is paired with edamame, an immature or green soybean, to produce a delicious meal that packs a nutritional punch. The recipe was develop for Eating Well magazine, so that should come as no surprise. I do hope that those of you who are trying to reduce your dependence on animal protein you will try this salad. You won't regret it. Here's the recipe.

Warm Quinoa Salad with Edamame and Lemon-Tarragon Dressing
Ingredients
...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite, courtesy of Eating Well Magazine

Ingredients:

1 cup quinoa, (see Cook's Note)
2 cups vegetable broth
2 cups frozen shelled edamame, thawed (10 ounces)
1 tablespoon freshly grated lemon zest
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons chopped fresh tarragon or 2 teaspoons dried
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup drained and diced jarred roasted red peppers, (3 ounces)
1/4 cup chopped walnuts, preferably toasted (see Cook's Note)

Directions:

1) Toast quinoa in a dry skillet over medium heat, stirring often, until it becomes aromatic and begins to crackle, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a fine sieve and rinse thoroughly.
2) Meanwhile, bring broth to a boil in a medium saucepan over high heat. Add quinoa and return to a boil. Cover, reduce heat to a simmer, and cook gently for 8 minutes. Remove pan lid and, without disturbing quinoa, add edamame. Cover and continue to cook until edamame and quinoa are tender, 7 to 8 minutes longer. Drain any remaining water, if necessary.
3) Whisk lemon zest and juice, oil, tarragon and salt in a large bowl. Add peppers and quinoa mixture. Toss to combine. Divide among 4 plates and top with walnuts. Yield: 4 servings.

Cook's Notes:
1) Make Ahead Tip: Prepare through Step 3. Cover and refrigerate for up to 2 days.
2) Toasting quinoa before cooking improves its flavor and rinsing removes any residue of saponin, quinoa's natural, bitter protective covering.
3) To toast walnuts: Cook in a small dry skillet over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until fragrant, 2 to 4 minutes.

You might also enjoy these recipes:
Quinoa with Vodka-Tomato Sauce - Pham Fatale
Quinoa Stuffed Peppers - Chef In You
Quinoa Veggie Burgers - Wicked Good Dinner
Quinoa Stuffed Eggplant with Marsala Tomatoes - The Baking Barrister
Tomato Basil Quinoa Salad - Chantel's Recipes
Lemon Scented Quinoa - Stylish Cuisine
Spinach and Feta Quinoa Salad - Closet Cooking
Quinoa, Corn and Edamame Salad - Melting Mama

53 comments :

sara said...

I learn so much from you! I am fortunate that my husband doesn't mind skipping meat and there are plenty of salad-type dishes that he will consider a "dinner;" I am always on the lookout for more. Thanks!

Sushma Mallya said...

oh i would love to have that, simply amazing and beautiful looking salad...

Sushma Mallya said...

oh i would love to have that, simply amazing and beautiful looking salad...

Bakericious said...

Mary, sound good to dedicate a day as meatless day, I shall look into this as well. The salad looks and sound delicious, and is healthy too,

My Little Space said...

I love the colour contrast of this salad. Totaly delightful! Yummm.... Hope you're enjoying your day.
Cheers, kristy
p/s Mary, all grandchildren went back home already?

Houdini said...

Fantastic! Never got even the idea of toasting quinoa and using it for a salad. Great. Only used it for soup so far. Thanks.
I wish you happiness, Eric

GLENDA CHILDERS said...

You are so thoughtful and careful, Mary, to always source your recipes. I love Eating Well magazine. I love your blog.

Fondly,
Glenda

cocoa and coconut said...

I love Edmae beans! Looks delicious and sounds very flavorful

Koek! said...

Oooh that looks deliciously healthy! Fantastically inventive as well. Nice one!
Robyn

Red Nomad OZ said...

Wow! A recipe with two ingredients I've never heard of!! That means I'll have to give it a try - if I can find them down under!!

Happy travels!

Barbara said...

Lovely, Mary! You have teamed quinoa with edamame...my two favorites. And what a divine vinaigrette!

Kim said...

What a great salad. I love quinoa, it's so perfect!

From the Kitchen said...

Except for the vegetable broth, I have every ingredient for this salad on hand--until now, they were without direction!! In fact, I'm going to take the edamame out of the freezer and put this on the table for our lunch. A very timely recipe for which I'm grateful on what promises to be a busy day.

Best,
Bonnie

Ciao Chow Linda said...

Mary - I only cooked quinoa once and it was not very flavorful. But this salad looks delicious. Thanks for all the good info about quinoa too.

penny aka jeroxie said...

You are so good! I need to get back to my meatless mondays. Been so slack later... tsk tsk to me!

Regina said...

Interesting quinoa. Looks delicious.

Have a great week Mary.

Simply Life said...

yum! I wish I could just grab that from the screen and take it for my lunch!

Biren said...

I like edamame and this is the first time I am seeing it paried with quinoa. I like that you toasted the quinoa first. That must give it added flavor.

Unknown said...

I did not know that about Quinoa, I, like so many others, thought it was a grain. I will admit I have not cooked with it yet, more due to the picky eater in my house then anything else. This dish looks so good, I need to definitely get with the program and try it now!! Thanks for sharing!

Diane said...

Love the sound of this recipe, it looks good too. Diane

Katerina said...

I have never tried quinoa although I've seen a lot of recipes in the internet. I love your salad that combines cheese as well. Also tarragon gives great flavor to the dressing. I will keep this for future reference. Thanks!

Susi's Kochen und Backen said...

What a gorgeous, colorful salad! I don't utilize quinoa nearly enough but will make it a point to incorporate it into our dinners more often since it is so delicious!

Valerie Harrison (bellini) said...

This is a lovely salad Mary and perfect for any day of the week.

Lemon Verbena Lady said...

Drool is falling to the floor just from the title of your post, Mary! Quinoa is a favorite of The Herbal Husband since his home country is Peru! Thanks for sharing!

StephenC said...

Quinoa is something I've made many times without knowing how good it is for me. Just put it on my shopping list. Great recipe!

Jennifer said...

That looks yummy, I happen to have a large bag of Quinoa that I had no idea what to do with, I have never eaten or cooked with it! Thanks for sharing!

Radhika said...

Gorgeous and comforting Salad. Love the dressing

Pam said...

I bet lemon and tarragon make this quinoa salad extra special!

San said...

Quinoa salad is undoubtedly refreshing with the apt dressing .Pic is superb .

~ Chef Louise said...

Quinoa- I just love it. I adore tarragon but often forget about using it, thank for the reminder. Now if I could only get my family to think a bowl of quinoa is dinner. ;)
~Chef Louise

Unknown said...

That just sounds great and very healthy. I love snacking edamame.
Have a great day. Michael.

Cooking Gallery said...

I love seeing new salad recipes. Thanks for sharing, Mary :).

The Blonde Duck said...

That looks marvelous! Yum!

Claudia said...

I love quinoa and love pairing it with edamame. I eat meatless a few days a week. Plus I have a tarrago bush in my garden so this must be destiny.

Julie said...

Love quinoa and edamame! This one goes in the "One Pefect Bite" file. Thanks for another great recipe, Mary!

Unknown said...

Fallen in love with the healthy recipe.....looks very tasty and tempting..

Maria @ ScandiFoodie said...

I love edamame! This salad looks right up my alley!

Ginny Hartzler said...

just a few minutes ago, I was watching the show "The Doctors", and they were talking about quinoa! Saying how good it is for you. This salad is so pretty!

Schnitzel and the Trout said...

This is definitely a recipe to try, Mary!! Your photography, as always, is over the top! By the way, loved your clever comment on my blog. Bless you for your humor. Susan

Rita said...

Thank you so much for gioving me another great recipe for my quinoa. It sounds and looks fantastic.

Joanne said...

I love quinoa! It's texture, it's flavor...just delicious! What a great salad...tarragon is an herb that I definitely don't use enough!

Faith said...

I've only just recently started eating quinoa. It's so healthy though, I'm going to try to get it into my diet as much as possible. This salad looks very delicious and refreshing!

Simona Carini said...

Love the photo - and the dish, of course. Quinoa is very satisfying.

The Words Crafter said...

This looks really good! BTW-I made the black bean burrito-and it's been a massive hit! Thank you so much!!!!

Jen_from_NJ said...

I have a large bag of quinoa from Costco just waiting to be used. Thank you for the delicious idea!

Unknown said...

Wow! What a fantastic blog you have. I've only just arrived and I'm already booking recipes to try!Thanks for visiting my blog so I could find yours!

Lori said...

I love quinoa. One or two times it was bitter but I found the rinsing before boiling helped with that a lot.

A great idea with the tarragon Mary. I have gobs of it in my garden. You know this is my kind of salad!

Adelina said...

beautiful recipe! Quinoa is one of our staples here, being vegetarians!

Monet said...

Edamame and quinoa happen to be two of my favorite ingredients. Both so full of nutrition! I have never had a warm quinoa salad though...usually I serve mine cold. This looks great!

Mary Bergfeld said...

Jane, I'm glad you enjoyed the salad. It is a favorite of mine. Have a great night...Mary

FOODESSA said...

Mary...I do love quinoa...especially the red kind. Your dressing just enhances the greatness of this fine protein.

Thanks for sharing and flavourful wishes,
Claudia

Deb in Hawaii said...

I think I have this recipe tagged somewhere--I love lemon and tarragon together and thought it sounded delicious. ;-)

flying eagle woman said...

Thank you so much my friend - I plan on making this part of our thanksgiving meal this year...something different and NEW
Cheers!
Shawna

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