Quinoa is truly a super food. It contains 6g protein per serving (that’s the same as an egg). It’s also gluten-free. And it’s just about the only plant-based food that contains all nine of the essential amino acids. The versatility of this grain is truly astounding: you can use it for breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks or desserts. (Quinoa cookie, anyone?) Plus, it’s super easy to cook.
I’ve been cooking quinoa on the stove-top since my eldest was in diapers. It literally takes 10 minutes. But, like anything cooking on the stove-top, you have to babysit it to make sure it doesn’t boil over, stick to the bottom, or burn. 10 minutes of babysitting a boiling pot may not seem like much (and it isn’t), but when it occurs right in the midst of homework time, it transforms into a herculean task to get even 5 uninterrupted minutes. Then came the Instant Pot, and voila! suddenly I can make quinoa while I’m multi-tasking. Here is how I do it:
Savory Quinoa in the Instant Pot
Equipment
- Instant Pot or Electric Pressure Cooker
Ingredients
- 1 cup Quinoa
- 1.5 cups filtered water
- 1 TB organic vegetable paste or bouillon for flavoring (this is optional, but really adds to the taste)
Instructions
- Rinse the quinoa.
- Dump all ingredients into the Instant Pot.
- Seal Instant Pot and set cook time to 1 minute and pressure to high.
- Allow to pressurize and cook. It will take approximately 10 minutes for the Instant Pot to reach full pressure.
- After cooking, allow to depressurize naturally. This should take 15-20 minutes.
Notes
This recipe is for a savory quinoa. It garners its flavor from the organic vegetable bouillon. It’s delicious sprinkled in salads, combined with lentils and broccoli to form a quinoa bowl, or used as a side dish. However, if you would prefer a sweet quinoa (think breakfast porridge with apples, cinnamon and maple syrup, yum…) then skip the vegetable bouillon. It’s also important to note that many bouillons (even the organic ones) contain yeast extract, which can sometimes cause a reaction in people sensitive to MSG (like my mom!). So, if in doubt, just skip the bouillon.