Quinoa….it is everywhere. I am willing to bet that you hadn’t heard of it until the last few years. While it has been around forever, (the Incas thought it was food from the gods) it has really not been popular until recently. Now, of course, you cannot turn around without bumping into it on virtually every food blog (now this one included). In fact it is almost like an avalanche of quinoa recipes all at once.
Quinoa, while looking and for the most part acting like a grain, is not a grain at all. In fact it is closer to a beet (paging Dwight Schrute of Schrute farms) than it is rice. The versatility of the product is great, from replacing rice or couscous to forming patties and subbing for burgers for vegetarians.
I hadn’t cooked with it before and after seeing thousands of posts on food blogs about it, had to buy some. It was only then that I found this recipe.
The quinoa brings a heartiness to the dish when paired with the ground beef and Mexican spices.
Once I bought the quinoa, I had everything on hand.
Brown up the ground beef with the onions.
Throw in the rest of the ingredients and simmer.
A super simple recipe that works well with tortillas and some shredded cheese!
Mexican Ground Beef Quinoa Skillet
Prep Time: 5 mins | Cook Time: 25 mins | Servings: 4 |
Ingredients:
- 1 lb lean ground beef
- 1/2 cup chopped onion
- 1 (15 ounce) petite diced tomatoes
- 1 cup quinoa
- 1 1/2 cups water
- 1 1/2 tablespoons chili powder
- Taco seasonings to taste
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- Tortillas
Directions:
1. Brown ground beef and onion and drain excess fat.
2. Rinse quinoa.
3. Add tomatoes, chilies, quinoa, water and spices to ground beef and simmer, uncovered, for about 25 minutes.
4. If water evaporates, cover pan for remainder of cooking time.
Serve with tortillas and cheese.
Nutritional Info:
Calories 393.5 Calories from Fat 132 Total Fat 14.7 g Saturated Fat 5.0 g Cholesterol 73.7 mg Sodium 135.8 mg Total Carbohydrate 34.9 g Dietary Fiber 5.6 g Sugars 3.8 g Protein 30.3 g
Source: http://www.food.com/recipe/mexican-ground-beef-quinoa-skillet-419596
Rantings of an Amateur Chef 
It does seem to be everywhere. I bought some for future experiments 🙂
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Quinoa is great! So versatile. I make vegetable dishes with it often. A perfect vegetarian choice. 🙂
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It’s a pretty good gluten-free option. I’ve had some success with quinoa-based GF pastas.
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It’s true! It’s everywhere. I even saw a contestant on the Bachelorette hilariously mispronounce it while pretending to be food-literate.
This is a great idea to combine it with beef!
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I love your blog posts, baconbiscuit21 … but especially your comments (here and at my own blog). How did she pronounce it?
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Oh, man! You have to watch it to believe it:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/07/02/about-quinoa_n_1637673.html
KWEE-NO-AH. Rhymes with YODA. Hysterical!
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Many years ago I was in Halifax with my wife and saw ‘Rillettes’ on a menu. I didn’t know what that was at the time and there was nothing elsewhere on the menu to indicate it was a French charcuterie speciality so I ordered the ‘RILL-ettes’… the waitress (quite snottily, I thought) informed me that the pronunciation is ‘REE-yette’ and I was duly embarrassed. Nowadays, I wouldn’t be embarrassed at all though 🙂
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Thank you so much for this recipe! I used to eat it all the time in place of rice. My mom lives with us now and hates it. I think she would eat it like this, just wasn’t liking it for a stir-fry.
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It’s funny you decided to try quinoa – I did the same last week! It definitely has a nutty flavor. I like your use with the ground beef. Makes for a very hearty dish.
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I usually have quinoa in vegetarian recipes but this looks good. I couldn’t help but laugh when I saw the first few sentences of your post. I grew up eating quinoa 20+ yrs ago and everyone gave us weird looks. Now it’s so fashionable
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We dialed into quinoa a number of years ago (one advantage to hanging out with the holistic health types) We love it. Good taste, fun texture. I like to stir cooked quinoa into sauteed zuccini, and add some diced tomatoes for a summer goulash sort of thing. Thanks for reminding me to put it on this weeks shopping list 😉
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I’ve made it with spinach and cheese. Not bad.
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Wow love this recipe. Will definitely try this out.:-)
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There are a couple of reasons I have fallen in love with Quinoa….first it is so easy to make….second it has a great taste….hmmm and I guess there is a third reason……having to live a gluten free lifestyle I find it’s one ingredient that I can use in just about everything from savory to sweet! It’s just that versatile!
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Oh my gosh! That’s the same ginormous bag of quinoa that I bought at Costco and have yet to open! It’s my goal for this coming week. Have to join the craze, you know. 😉
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I have never eaten quinoa! I must really try it!
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This looks great! I am always looking for ways to slip things like quinoa into my picky kid’s food (the baby is a pushover) and this might be just the thing…
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This is oddly similar to the filling I make for stuffed peppers. I use couscous mixed with black beans and ground beef; maybe I’ll try quinoa next time I make them!
I love quinoa, and think it makes a great side when mixed with raw veggies, a little olive oil, and lots of pepper.
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Excellent idea for quinoa. I’m going to have to try this the next time I’m in a mexican mood.
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I bought some quinoa and then have kept wondering what am I going to make with this. Now you have given me something that sounds delicious.
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