A salad fit and mighty as a main dish protein salad bowl featuring shredded chicken, quinoa, red cabbage, Brussel sprouts, snow peas.
Quinoa is nutritious whole grain that can be easily added to vegetable salads and make salads a meal. Make Smoked Salmon Turmeric Quinoa Bowl, Broccoli Cauliflower Celery Quinoa Bowl, Biryani-Inspired Quinoa Pilaf, Asparagus Quinoa Bowl.
A few days away from daylight savings when we turn our clock back an hour. The days are getting shorter and temperatures are down to sweater weather.
A warm wholesome bowl of multigrain congee (this Rice Cooker /Multicooker will be useful) is a welcoming meal as we embrace autumn and winter. Call this Surf and Turf as shrimps (prawns) and ground meat (pork, chicken) are added to the otherwise plain bowl of congee made from brown rice, millet, quinoa.
Whenever whole grains such as quinoa or other multigrains are planned in our family meals, extras of chicken and seafood such as shrimps, canned fish are added while cooking these grains - not only to impart flavors; but more importantly to boost protein in the cooked grains. This is in addition to other main protein dishes that are being prepared separately. For example, One Pot Shrimp Quinoa and One Pot Shrimp Multigrains can be served with chicken (main protein) and veggies as a protein-worthy grain bowl.
Sometimes when there is leftover grilled/roasted salmon, it can be as easy and simple as gently flaking leftover salmon into the cooked rice (or grains), fluff and mix salmon into the rice. When there is no leftovers, the often forgotten pantry-friendly canned fish becomes our friend. Canned sardines or canned mackerel if you have; but today, this canned version of braised eel with fermented black beans fits the bill of One-Pot Canned Eel Quinoa.
Which rice cookers or multi-cookers are you currently using? I am using this rice cooker which is one of the most common multicooker (cooks rice, steams/stews/braises dishes, cooks soups etc.) in many Taiwan households. It operates with simple ON-OFF and COOK-WARM buttons, its durability and reliability has been proven as my family has been using it for years (and hopefully, many more years).
Swap out multi-grains in this One-Pot Shrimp Rice for quinoa; and make Duck & Shrimp Quinoa, Veggie Bowl similar to this Duck Protein Bowl, just better.
A nutritious protein bowl easily prepared and put together with store-bought smoked salmon (found this good quality Cambridge House smoked honey-roasted salmon from Costco), sliced cucumber, turmeric quinoa, and leftover chimichurri tofu.
This oven-"fried" meatless mince is like "meat-sauce" without the sauce, without the meat. Besides making Vegetarian Mapo Tofu, this meatless mince versatility can easily be extended to make such balanced meatless meals.
A batch of oven-"fried" mince is "blank canvas" for other stir-fries too; or tossed with pasta (above) or mixed in with quinoa (below), then served with vegetables as a complete meal.
You can always make your own vegetarian meatless mince (Vegetarian Simmered "Meat" Sauce) from scratch with diced mushrooms and tofu. It is definitely healthier and taste more naturally delicious than store-bought plant-based mince which wins on convenience but end of the day, still partially processed.
One of my favorite ways to cook salmon (or other variety of fish) is using en-papillote/ parchment-cooking. This fuss-free and healthy parchment cooking method never fails. The salmon turns out moist and tender even when the oven time goes over by a few more minutes.
In addition to these chicken-themed grain bowls, you can switch up the protein in your grain bowls or veggie bowls by using seafood such as shrimps or fish. A quick and easy method to prepare fish using en-papillote/ parchment-cooking also means that your grain bowl is fast to complete and a meal ready in less than 30 minutes.
Making your own marinara sauce from scratch is not difficult. But when you are pressed for time, even 15 minutes is a lot of time. Store-bought marinara sauce makes meal preparation easier and reduces cooking time as there is no need to prep. the onions, garlic, tomatoes; and it is not necessary to wait for the ingredients to cook down over the stove.
Pasta marinara sauce is not only good for pasta, it is also quite handy as "seasoning" sauce. For example, simply think shrimps and vegetables stir-fry with tomato-based "seasoning sauce" . Oh, isn't that sweet and sour shrimps? Quite close.
Sweet and soup or tomato-sauce shrimps is the protein feature of the grain bowl today. With store-bought marinara sauce, these delicious tomato-sauce shrimps can be prepared in less than 20 minutes.
The lunch bowl today is similar to this healthy and delicious Broccoli, Cauliflower, Chicken Quinoa Bowl. Routine might not be be a bad thing after all.
Batch-cooking quinoa and chicken breast leftovers are all part of meal preparation and that really got me into the groove of such a meal combination (or shall I say, post-workout worthy meals).
Come meal time, all we need is re-heat the leftovers, roast some sweet potatoes or potatoes and steam fresh vegetables (Note: Steaming vegetables is a gentle quick-cooking method that maintains vegetables' nutritional value and beautiful color).
Celery for fiber boost, dates for additional potassium (especially after a sweaty workout) and nuts for protein (plus good fats) - this Celery, Dates, and Nuts salad turned out a perfect component to a post-workout lunch salad bowl composed of steamed broccoli and cauliflower, leftover shredded chicken, hard-boiled egg, and quinoa.
For vegetarians, omit the chicken as the celery, dates and nuts component is delightfully tasty to glorify this steamed vegetables and quinoa grain bowl.
Remember this Chickpea-Tuna Lettuce Endive Wrap ? Besides chicken, eggs, vegetarian tempeh and tofu, Chickpea-Tuna Mix has become one of the latest protein add-ons to my salad bowl meals (a.k.a grain bowls or workout meals). Certainly, this grain bowl can be made vegetarian by omitting the tuna - simply use chickpeas or other legumes as meatless protein mix-in.
This Chickpea-Tuna Mix is quick and easy to make - less than 30 minutes, no stove required; it is also a superb make-ahead dish that you can prepare on Sunday, and good for powering up healthy lunches for the week ahead.
To prepare a healthy wholesome grain bowl, always start with a base of colorful vegetables and greens, for example a spring mix of green and red leaf lettuces, radicchio and arugula.
To boost the nutrition and to have a forkful of textures and flavors, add more vegetables and fruits such as cucumbers, tomatoes, red cabbage, steamed asparagus, like this:
Protein and fiber packed, quinoa is a super versatile whole grain with endless possibilities - healthy fried "rice", exotic "rice" pilaf, creative sushi, comforting porridge/congee, savory snack-size patties, colorful salads, and wholesome plate meals or bowl meals.
With broccoli, zucchini, green beans and red cabbage, you can easily turn this light vegetarian salad to quick supper. Alternatively, if you are making a seafood entree like this Seafood in a Bag, this salad will be your perfect side-accompaniment.
Store-bought or roasted at home; freshly cooked or leftovers; thigh meat, or breast meat. You can work in any meat (or meatless) protein options into this platter or bowl of food which is often gloriously called - salads; or simply a one-dish meal.
From start to finish, this delicious and nutritiously balanced meal took only about 30 minutes to complete, with the help of good-quality store-bought rotisserie chicken from Whole Foods Market.
Not only it saves time, store-bought rotisserie chicken is also budget-friendly if you regularly prepare meals for a small family of two to four. Typically, a whole roasted chicken can be used in two-three meals for a family of two. The drumsticks and wings consumed on the day itself, and leftover chicken (thigh meat and breast meat) used throughout the week in sandwiches/wraps and in dishes such as Asparagus, Cauliflower, Chicken Quinoa Bowl, and Asparagus, Chicken, Potato Bowl.
Mixed vegetables quinoa is a good starting base in salad bowl meals. Simply top it with tofu, tempeh or legumes/beans to create a meatless salad bowl meal; or pair it with roasted fish, shrimps, scallops, or roasted chicken.
When the goal is to simply get healthy lunch and dinner on the table, it’s not a bad idea to stick with routine and habit. Routine makes it much easier to develop the habit of meal preparation.
Meal preparation has become quintessential ever since salad-bowl meals (e.g. Asparagus, Chicken and Potato Bowl, Mushrooms Broccoli and Green Bean Bowl) became house meals in my family. It is not extremely difficult; but a dedicated preparation will get us there, sooner and better.
The prep. work on Sunday, before the new week begins includes boiling and peeling a batch of eggs so that hard-boiled eggs are ready-to-use for the week; slicing broccoli and cauliflower into florets; dicing carrots, for example, so that these vegetables can be conveniently used for cooking during the work week.
Take this bowl, for example. It may seem an easily assembled meals but meal prep includes:
So how about pairing the kale and mushrooms with spiced quinoa, topped with a fried egg?
Would you fancy a rice plate like this?
In some Chinese restaurants in the US, you find rice plate combinations in the menu. We have heard before that the Chinese themselves will not order rice plate items (usually rice combined with roast/BBQ meat) from the menu as we know how to order the each individual from the menu and always make sure all the dishes go well together.
It has been months since I last cooked quinoa. I ran out of it and never had a chance to replenish it until I visited Costco where I would usually get a 3-4lb bag (truRoots Organic Quinoa
Today, this quinoa dish is inspired by biryani, with the use of spices:
Salad is the norm. How about Sushi? Omairashu? "Rice" cakes? And how do you see quinoa playing a part in all of them?
Quinoa is in the house!
Consider a plate of "Nasi Lemak" look-alike made with quinoa sans the coconut milk. No lemak (coconut cream), no nasi (rice).
Rather, a healthful plate of veggies (roasted broccoli and carrots) with quinoa topped with egg shreds, ikan bilis (dried anchovies) and peanuts..
Enjoy!
Sharing this with Souper Sunday
Tag: quinoa, nasi lemak
Pan-seared scallops might be the only way to get that golden crust and sear on those scallops. Baking does not work that well, really, in my opinion.
If you are looking for more spice and complexity than the usual salt and black pepper pan-seared scallops, you can look into Japanese 7-spice - Shichimi Togarashi
The spice is not overpowering and the citrus notes (orange peel) in the spice elevates and complements the uber-umami savory-sweet in the scallops.
Guess what I brought back from my recent Singapore trip? A HappyCall Pan(HCP), with compliments from Mom. :)
The HappyCall Pan is a pan (not an electric appliance), so there were no worries about me having voltage/power issues over in the US.
Well, I know that gas stove is like the norm in Singapore home kitchens; likewise, the HCP demo on TV is mainly using the pan over the gas stove. So another concern was using the pan over an electric stove, as most rental apartments here in the Bay Area, California is "furnished" with an electric stove in the kitchen - I do not fancy electric stove but no choice. So, HCP on the electric stove - Does it work? Will it work?
