Instructions
You don’t typically associate high-protein with vegetables, but certain grains and seeds are incredibly rich in protein. Quinoa (pronounced Kin-Wah) is one of them, and its carbohydrate content is sufficiently low-GI / slow-release as to make it the ultimate ingredient to complement your training regime, and a healthy lifestyle.
Quinoa is a seed which provides all 9 essential amino acids (a complete protein – great for veggies), whilst being gluten-free, cholesterol-free, very low sodium, and it’s almost always organic. My favourite part is that it only takes about 10-15 minutes to cook it! It’s also rich in magnesium (for energy release & good circulation) and phosphorus too (for cell repair and energy storage). For reference – 1/3 cup (c. 60g) of cooked quinoa has c. 160 calories, 2.5g of fat (zero saturated), 3g of fiber and a chunky 6g of protein!
For my Grilled Vegetable & Quinoa dish in the picture above, I added broccoli (vitamin C & fibre, for healthy immune system & digestive health), grated carrot (beta carotene for healthy sight; + fibre), grated & chopped courgette (rich in magnesium & potassium, all good for blood pressure normalisation), lime (helps purify and stimulate the liver), and chilli (for a metabolism kick).
It also goes well with leaf salad, vegetable wok, or it’s lovely on it’s own (just add some olive oil, sea salt, lemon juice & spices!) To cook quinoa, just treat it like rice – cover it with water or vegetable broth and boil until soft, that’s about 10 – 15 minutes.
Voila! Faya x