Sand/rocks in my quinoa, or something

[BellinghamCrunchie]

I'm tired of finding hard crunchy things in my quinoa. It feels like sand. Don't know what it is, but its small enough that I guess I don't see it when I go to cook it. What is that stuff and how do I get rid of it?

[blumooned]

Do you rinse it before you cook it? That might help. I've never had sand in mine, but I've read that you should rinse before cooking.

[BellinghamCrunchie]

I haven't really tried rinsing it. I guess I should.

[luckychrm]

Most of the instructions I've read for quinoa say to rinse and/or soak and drain one or several times before cooking, kind of like how basmati is prepared. It is supposed to clean and also reduce the natural bitter taste of quinoa caused by saponins in the outer covering.

I've never had any sand/rocks in mine either. I usually get Bob's red mill or bulk from a health store that may be provided via Azure Standard, but I'm not positive.

[JudiAU]

Quinoa should be rinsed well before cooking otherwise you can get a nasty soapy flavor. It might be easier to spot things when you rinse although I've never seen anything like a rock. Bob's Red Milll also makes a prerinsed version we like.

[redvlagrl]

I had this too once. It was GLASS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[BellinghamCrunchie]

Yikes! Well, unfortunately some of the time I can't figure out what it is and just end up swallowing it. Other times I have managed to see that it looks like tiny gray rocks. I get different kinds of quinoa from different places, and it seems like I've found it no matter where I've gotten it from.