- 500g quinoa
- 1 vegetable stock cube
- 2 red onions
- 1 carrot
- 1 courgette
- 1 red pepper
- 1 green cabbage
- 2 garlic cloves
- A thumb of ginger
- A handful of coriander
- 1 orange
- 50g tamari
- Sea salt
- Freshly ground pepper
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 ltr boiling water
- 1-2 tbsp cold water (optional)
- Large pan with lid
- Measuring jug
- Vegetable peeler
- 1.
Fill your kettle and boil it. Rinse the quinoa under cold water for 1-2 mins (this washes off the soapy coating that can make the quinoa taste bitter) and tip it into a large pan. Crumble in the stock cube. Pour in 1 ltr boiling water and stir well. Cover, bring to the boil and simmer for 10-12 mins till the quinoa has absorbed the water and is tender. Drain the quinoa if needed and set aside.
- 2.
While the quinoa cooks, peel and thinly slice the red onions. Peel the carrot. Chop it into thin matchsticks. Trim the courgette and slice it into thin half-moons. Halve the red pepper and scoop out the seeds and white pith. Thinly slice the pepper. Trim the base off the cabbage and remove any ragged leaves. Halve the cabbage and shred the leaves, discarding any thick pieces of core.
- 3.
Give the pan used for the quinoa a quick wipe and pour in 2 tbsp oil. Pop the pan back onto a medium-high heat. Slide in the onions, carrot, courgette and pepper. Stir fry for 5-6 mins, till the veg are slightly softened. Add the cabbage to the pan and fry for 5 mins. Add 1-2 tbsp cold water if the pan starts to look dry.
- 4.
Peel and finely chop the garlic and ginger. Roughly chop the coriander stalks and leaves. Zest the orange.
- 5.
When the veg are cooked, tip the quinoa into the pan. Stir in the garlic, ginger, coriander and orange zest. Squeeze in the orange juice. Add the tamari and stir well. Warm through for 2 mins. Have a taste of the quinoa and add some salt or pepper if needed. Heap the veg and quinoa into warm bowls and serve.
- Tip
Eat & Keep
Cool the quinoa, divide into smaller portions and store in airtight containers in the fridge for up to 3 days, or freeze for up to 3 months. Defrost and reheat thoroughly before eating. - Tip
Open Sesame
This hearty pot of veg and quinoa is a marvellous meal in itself, but if you’d like to take it further, try adding some savoury cubes of pan-fried marinated tofu, or topping with toasted sesame seeds, sliced spring onion and a sticky drizzle of hot or sweet chilli sauce.