Quinoa and Tofu Curry

This dish works well for potlucks since it is a nice accompanying dish to many other foods and it is unusual because most people don’t think of using quinoa too often. (You can substitute the quinoa for a blend of exotic rices in this recipe for another excellent dish.) I use is a red quinoa that comes pre-rinsed. If you use an unrinsed quinoa, be sure to rinse it well first (as per instructions on the package).

Ingredients

1 cup uncooked red quinoa
2 cups water
olive oil as needed
6-10 oz. firm tofu
½ cup raisins or dried cranberries
½ red pepper
3 tbsp. chives
2 tsp. curry powder (see below)
1 tsp. garam (optional)
1 cup cubed and roasted sweet potato (optional)
¼ cup slivered almonds or pine nuts (optional)

Directions

Bring the water to a boil, add the quinoa, and simmer covered on low temperature until all the water is absorbed (about 15 minutes). Fluff with a fork and allow to sit for 5 minutes, covered.

If you want to include the sweet potato in this dish, it will need to be roasted in the oven beforehand. Scrape the skin off the sweet potato, cut it into cubes about ½ inch to ¾ inch square, toss approximately 1 cup of sweet potato cubes with 2 tbsp. olive oil and bake for 30 minutes (or until just tender) at 350° on a cookie sheet.

For this dish, I like to use the savory baked tofu or teriyaki baked tofu already prepared. You can also make your own tofu using my Pan-Fried Tofu Recipe. If you use the prepared tofu, cut it into ½-inch cubes and pan-fry it lightly in olive oil until just browned.

Chop the red pepper and chives.

If you have a curry powder that you like, use that for seasoning. If not, the main ingredients I look for in a curry powder (or use when I throw one together) are turmeric, cumin, fenugreek, ginger, black pepper, and coriander. The garam adds a slightly sweet spicy flavor as it usually includes coriander, ginger, and cinnamon.

Eat well, be well, live deliciously!