“Interesting combination” said the eight-year-old, . . . “fantastic” said the husband, helping himself to thirds. “It’s worth repeating”, said the cook. . . who enjoyed the leftovers for breakfast this morning.
Quinoa and Tangerine Salad
11/2 cups quinoa
Scant 2 cups water
Several generous pinches salt
3 tangerines or clementines, 1-2 oranges (or whatever similar citrus fruit you have), broken into sections and cut in half, crosswise. If you want to be fancy and are using oranges you can peel the whole orange with a sharp knife, including all the pith, and then slice out all the individual sections carefully along the skin on both sides of the section, leaving only the skin and core on the cutting board. But this really isn’t a fancy salad so I’d say skip it!
1/2 cup cilantro, roughly chopped and stems finely chopped
2 scallions, greens and all, thinly sliced or a chunk of red onion, sliced as thinly as you possibly can
Zest of 1 lime (microplane works well for this job)
Juice of 1 lime (or more)
3 or more tablespoons good olive oil
Salt and freshly ground pepper
Put the quinoa in a pot with the water and some salt. Bring to a boil, turn down to a simmer and cook, covered, on low heat for about 15 minutes or until the water is absorbed and the quinoa is tender. Let sit, covered, with the heat off to steam for at least 5 minutes if you can. Then put the quinoa in a salad bowl and toss in the tangerines, Let cool for a few minutes. Then add the remaining ingredients. Toss and taste and adjust seasoning with lime juice, oil, etc.
If I’d had toasted filberts (or walnuts or pine nuts) on hand I would have added some and am quite certain that this would be a lovely addition. Please report if you add nuts!
Natalie says:
Thanks for the awesome recipes! Question: Have you cooked much with canihua? I bought some as an alternative to quinoa b/c quinoa’s price has tripled lately. But when I cook canihua, it just isn’t working well for me. I have looked online and found only directions to cook it just like quinoa. But there are some hard parts to canihua, even after it’s cooked. And the flavor is a bit different. I just don’t think it’s supposed to be treated exactly the same. In the interest of cooking with what I have… I have 5 lbs of canihua and don’t know what to do with it. I would donate some to you to experiment with for me. =) Thanks!
cookwithwhatyouhave says:
I have not cooked with canihua and just had a to look it up. I would be happy to test some though if you want to share a little. So, yes to your generous offer!
Lynne F says:
“yum,” said the former roomie and her husband. Thanks for the great idea(s)! Toasted hazelnuts work nicely with it, too!
cookwithwhatyouhave says:
Hurray! Thanks for the report. Miss you roomie!
Mary Lane says:
Tasty and pretty and easy. AND we used up a petrifying lime and a few scallions Tom found in the veg drawer. So it was perfect!
cookwithwhatyouhave says:
Just what I hope to hear. So satisfying to use up those dregs and have it be beautiful and tasty!