In my quest to reduce my carb intake, I have been replacing bad carbs with good carbs, such as quinoa. Quinoa is an ancient herb packed with protein, high in iron, magnesium and fiber and a perfect running fuel.
As a runner, I’m always hungry. With bad carbs, such as regular semolina wheat pasta, I’m hungry an hour later even after eating piles of pasta. Since quinoa is such a rich, healthy grain, I always feel full and satisfied with a reasonable portion (about ½ cup), which a hard task for most food. Throw in some veggies, like with my Quinoa UnFried Rice and you have a hearty, healthy meal.
Since I love salads and side dishes, I decided to try making Tabbouleh with quinoa rather than bulgar wheat. Quinoa seemed like a logical substitute because I rarely have bulgar wheat in the house, but these days, I have plenty of quinoa on hand. Then I found Vigo organic quinoa for $2.79 at Publix and now I have even more quinoa in my pantry.
As I mentioned before, Quinoa always has a strange odor to me, like grass. Strangely, this Vigo quinoa had no odor. When I rinsed it before cooking it, the quinoa didn’t foam or bubble, like so many other brands. Not sure if that’s good or bad, just an observation.
As with traditional tabbouleh, Quinoa Tabbouleh is simple enough to prepare, just a lot of chopping and prepping. Just like traditional tabbouleh, you will need lots of parsley (about two cups) and about a ½ cup of mint.
I also added in some red onion.
I drained my tomatoes before adding them to avoid having too much liquid.
With a little lemon juice, some olive oil, salt and pepper, and the above mentioned ingredients, you have all you need to make Quinoa Tabbouleh, a gluten free, healthy, filling runner fuel dish.
Plus, you can trick you non-runner friends into eating something healthy too at your next potluck party or cook-out.
- ½ cup uncooked quinoa
- 4 large tomatoes, chopped and drained
- 1 cup parsley, chopped
- ½ mint, chopped
- 1 red onion, chopped
- Juice of one lemon
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 1 tsp salt
- ¼ tsp ground black pepper
- Rinse and drain the uncooked quinoa. Bring 1 cup water to boil. Reduce to a low heat and stir in quinoa. Cover and cook until all the water is absorbed and the quinoa looks uncoiled and fluffy. Remove from heat and allow quinoa to cool.
- Once cool, add quinoa to a large bowl. Add chopped parsley, mint, red onion and tomatoes and toss through the quinoa. Add salt and pepper.
- In a small bowl, whisk together lemon juice and olive oil. Pour mixture over tabbouleh and toss until well coated. Salt and pepper to taste.
- Allow to chill for about an hour before serving. Quinoa tabbouleh will keep for about a week if stored in an air-tight container.
Thanks for joining our weekly Friday Food Fight! Can’t wait to see what everyone is flinging this week!
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I’m going to have to give this stuff a shot. It can’t hurt. I’ve picked up a few bad habits in the last few years. I need all the help I can get.
You will love it! Promise!
Great idea for a gluten free version of tabbouleh. Thanks so much for sharing it with us on foodie friday.
oh that looks wonderful! I really need to try quinoa again.
Thanks for sharing on Foodie Friday
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