s/o:How do you cook unusual grains?

[Magelet]

Spin off from the "An interesting quote from Dr. Price" thread:

Oatmeal, wheat flour, rice, some grains are really overused in america. Others are not so common. How do you cook less commonly used grains?

Quinoa: I like to soak quinoa for a while (at least 2-6 hrs.) And then I drain it and rinse it, and toast it with plenty of olive oil (often I do some minced sauted onions or sauted onions, carrots and celery in the pan first and then add the quinoa and toast it in the oil). it will steam a bit. Then I add some salt, water or broth, and steam until it is cooked (to taste). And serve it with more fat and salt if needed.

Farro, barley, quinoa, millet, teff, kamut, amaranth, rye, spelt, casava, sorgum, bulgur, buckwheat, unusual traditional or unusual modern, TF preparations of more standard grains like oats, wheat, corn, rice. I'm not so much thinking of substituting other flours for wheat flour, though that would be interesting, but other preparations. I'm sure there are lots of them. Let's share our knowledge!!

[ursusarctos]

I'll be back when I have something to add!

[LauraLoo]

Here's an easy recipe for Quinoa Pudding that we eat for breakfast. I soak the quinoa with a Tbs. of whey overnight, then drain and I omit the sugar the recipe calls for - it's sweet enough without it.

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Quinoa-...-2/Detail.aspx


I'll be back to post more later!

[kjbrown92]

We do millet porridge a lot:

1/3 c. hulled millet
1/2 c. coconut milk
3/4 c. water
a dash or two of cinnamon
2 Tbs. maple syrup
dash of salt
1/2 tsp. vanilla

Combine. Cook covered for about 20 minutes. Then uncover and cook until rest of liquid is absorbed.

[stephienoodle]

I'm mostly avoiding grains right now, but I've used millet to make stuffed peppers. Even SAD/non-TF folks have enjoyed them.

2 cups millet
1lb cooked ground meat (I've used beef, pork sausage, and pork)
1 med tomato, chopped
2 med onions, chopped
3 tbsp tomato paste
2 tbsp parsley
1 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp paprika
pinch of allspice
Approx 8 bell peppers

Soak millet overnight and cook in a couple of quarts of water for about 30 minutes. You do NOT want to cook the millet until the water is absorbed - you should use a fine mesh strainer to drain the millet. This will make the millet grains stay separate and not as sticky.

Brown meat in a separate pan.

Mix the cooked millet, ground meat, tomato, onions, tomato paste, parsley, sea salt, paprika, and allspice in a bowl. Fill cleaned and deseeded whole bell peppers with millet mixture until full.

Place stuffed peppers in a shallow baking dish. Put a small amount of water in the bottom of the dish. Bake peppers at 350F until peppers are wrinkly.

Makes about 8 peppers, depending on the size of the pepper. The stuffing also freezes well. Just pull out a container of stuffing to thaw in the fridge a day or two before you're ready to stuff peppers again.

[LauraLoo]

Here are a few Kamut recipes that we like:

Kamut, Beet and Orange Salad with Dijon Dressing (I always soak the Kamut)
http://www.bigoven.com/138729-Kamut,...ng-recipe.html

Kamut and Wild Rice Salad
http://www.yum-recipes.com/Recipe/Un...ice_Salad.html

Kamut, Lentil and Chickpea Soup - (I use chickpeas that I have soaked, cooked and frozen, not canned, I soak the kamut and lentils overnight, - and also use REAL chicken stock, not the fat free stuff the recipe calls for)
http://find.myrecipes.com/recipes/re...cipe_id=388846

[nukuspot]

I like the quinoa recipes. Keep them coming!

[BedHead]

I didn't think quinoa was a grain though - I thought it was a fruit??

[newcastlemama]

Here is the recipe I use to make EASY whole grain soaked waffles..you can use almost any combo of whole grains. We like brown rice and millet.

http://www.suegregg.com/recipes/brea...erwafflesA.htm

[LauraLoo]

Originally Posted by BedHead

I didn't think quinoa was a grain though - I thought it was a fruit??

Are you thinking of quince?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quince

[wife2jason]

"We usually think of quinoa as a grain, but it is actually the seed of a plant that, as its scientific name Chenopodium quinoa reflects, is related to beets, chard and spinach."

http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?t...spice&dbid=142

Interesting.

[velcromom]

I found that soaking quinoa til it sprouts seems to mellow the flavor. I like to cook it in milk and add vanilla & a sprinkle of rapadura for a breakfast dish. Even better with grated apple, carrot & coconut cooked in.

[nukuspot]

How long do you soak it for it to start sprouting?

[onetrumpeter]

hope I'm not getting too OT - how do you drain the quinoa after soaking?

I've never soaked it before but when I try to rinse it I feel like I lose so much in the colander - those little seeds are just SO tiny! oh - seeds? grains?! lol - I'm still mixed up on what quinoa really is... and I *want* to like it as we have a big ol' Costo bag of it but it just has this flavor I don't like... maybe if I soak it I'll like it?

oh yeah - I bought millet at an Amish mark-down grocery, but how do I know if it's "hulled"? will try googling that one...

thanks, ladies!

[onetrumpeter]

Originally Posted by velcromom

I found that soaking quinoa til it sprouts seems to mellow the flavor. I like to cook it in milk and add vanilla & a sprinkle of rapadura for a breakfast dish. Even better with grated apple, carrot & coconut cooked in.

Originally Posted by nukuspot

How long do you soak it for it to start sprouting?

velcromom - what does the sprouting look like? I'm wondering if you mean the little "tail" that uncurls from the ball? I don't think that's a sprout (but I'm total newbie - have not yet knowingly/intentionally sprouted anything, lol!)

[LauraLoo]

Originally Posted by onetrumpeter

hope I'm not getting too OT - how do you drain the quinoa after soaking?

I use a fine mesh stainless steel strainer that's as large as a medium sized colander -- looks like a colander, except that the mesh is really fine so quinoa & millet can't slip through.

[stephienoodle]

Originally Posted by onetrumpeter

hope I'm not getting too OT - how do you drain the quinoa after soaking?

I use a fine-mesh strainer. I was able to find a cheap one (like $4?) at a bulk grocery store. I also use it for draining millet after I cook it.

[Magelet]

I too use a mesh strainer.

[nukuspot]

I'm still wondering if I did it right. I soaked the washed quinoa for 6 hours in the refrigerator before cooking last night. It was yummy.

Should I have done it on the countertop? Should I have soaked for longer? Shorter?

I also did not add anything to the soak water. Do you all add anything?

[Teenytoona]

My local HFS sells amarath and millet for a decent price. I used to buy them alot, but haven't lately. I would soak either grain overnight or sometimes 24 hours. Amaranth is teeny, so to drain it, I'd use cheesecloth inside my standard colander, it was hard to scrape all the little bits off the cloth, though. Then I'd cook the grain in bone broth to make a savory porridge for breakfast. I really liked the taste and texture. Add in some coconut oil or butter to top it off. Mmmm. I need to do that again, in fact.

I've never tried to sprout millet, but amaranth sprouts fast. I was used to sprouting beans over the course of 3 or so days, but amaranth takes about one, if that. If you let it go to 3 days, it might start fermenting (or something) and then it really tastes off. So do not plan too far ahead for amaranth. I'm just sayin'.