…so far I added a can of artichoke hearts, some lemon juice, and some olive oil. A little chopped red onion. It desperately needs something else, because it’s as blah as blah could be. Any ideas? (I had some quinoa at a restaurant a couple months ago with these ingredients, and that was tasty, but my attempt seems to be a big failure.)
Red pepper flakes.
ETA and maybe some garlic salt.
Garlic and a little honey? I like to add something sweet when I’m using lemon juice or garlic to balance out the flavors a bit. You could also try a splash of rice vinegar, maybe.
I’ll try a bit of each. It’s been in the refrigerator overnight and is actually a little better this morning.
Add some e.
I found a great recipe for quinoa in Cook’s Illustrated, but to simplify: it helps to toast the quinoa first, which you can do in a dry pan until it smells a little nutty, then take it out. Spray the pan with cooking spray and saute 1/2 a chopped onion in a bit of butter until it’s translucent. Add chicken stock, garlic pepper & quinoa (I use less liquid and more quinoa than generally called for), bring to a bowl, lower heat and simmer until done. I mix in some tarragon and a squeeze of lemon at the end and finish with some chopped pistachios.
Leftovers make a nice cold lunch with some shredded radicchio, edamame, feta, balsaic dressing, pomegranate seeds, chopped apple… you get the idea :-).
One of my favorite quick meals is quinoa with a can of chopped tomatoes (the kind with jalapeños) and some chickpeas. Very simple but protein-heavy and more satisfying than cereal when you’re too tired to cook for real.
Quinoa is also great cold on a salad with a lemony dressing.
My wife cooks this all the time : add some water chestnuts, green onion, black olive and soy sauce. Throw a few dabs of Sriracha on top for a little kick.
If it’s “as blah as blah could be” was it cooked without salt?
I add cilantro. YMMV 