This recipe is straight
from the Arthur Street Kitchen cookbook ‘Community’ and is the tastiest way
I have ever eaten quinoa! Initially I did not fancy quinoa much, so I have
tried my hand with this grain in various ways, so trust me when I say that I
have eaten it a lot. The sweet sauce is a revelation and whilst the ingredients
may sound strange together, they work beautifully to create a slightly sweet,
faintly sour and a somewhat nutty dressing. I have kept the recipe very similar
to the original, just omitting all the oil and nigella seeds (as they are
difficult to source). Black sesame seeds are delicious and can be found in all
health food stores. Mirin is a sweet rice wine, similar to sake but with a
lower alcohol content and a slightly sugary taste. Mirin seasoning is much more
accessible, hence why I used it and is available from all major supermarkets.
If you cannot find it, you can substitute it with rice wine vinegar. The
edamame quality may look odd (227g), but it is exactly half of a standard
packet of edamame that you can buy from all major supermakets (454g) in the
frozen food aisle. This unique salad is great as a filling lunch and is
impressive enough to be served as a vegetable dish at a dinner party. I myself
ate it for dinner last night with a boiled egg on top.
P.S- Probably a good idea
to explain what edamame is as well! Edamame is a type of bean commonly found
in Taiwanese Chines, Japanese, Indonesian and Hawaiian cuisine.
It is a green soybean that are boiled or steamed and served with salt. They
have recently found increasing popularity as a healthy food item, due
to it's high iron (for a plant food), it's protein content and
its substantial levels of vitamin C & A.
Ingredients
• 1
cup quinoa (170-200g)
• 1g
(a pinch) of stevia
• 2
heads of broccoli (around 1kg), cut into similar-sized florets, with the stalks
cut into small pieces
• 227g
frozen edamame beans, thawed & podded
• 2
heaped tablespoons white sesame seeds
• 2
heaped tablespoons black sesame seeds
• a
handful of fresh coriander leaves, washed
Sweet sauce
• 3
tablespoons tahini
• 1
medium garlic clove, crushed or finely chopped
• 1
teaspoon soy sauce
• a
pinch of sea salt
• 1
heaped tablespoon honey
• 1
tablespoon apple cider vinegar
• 2
tablespoons mirin seasoning
Cooking
1. Rinse the quinoa well with cold water. Bring a
medium saucepan of lightly salted water to the boil with the quinoa. Once
boiled, reduce the heat to a simmer and simmer for 8-10 minutes or until the
quinoa has absorbed all the water. Turn off the heat and leave the quinoa in
the pot for 8 minutes, covered. After this time remove the lid and fluff the
quinoa with a fork.
2. Meanwhile, bring another medium / large saucepan
of water to the boil, adding a pinch of sea salt and the stevia to the water.
When boiled add the broccoli and cook for 3 minutes or until just tender. Add
the podded edamame beans to the boiling water and cook for 1 minute, then
remove the vegetables from the heat and drain in a large colander under cold
water.
3. Make the sweet sauce by whisking all the sauce
ingredients together as well as a few tablespoons of water. You want the
consistency of the sauce to be quite runny and easy to pour onto the salad, so
carefully add more water as you see fit. The sauce should taste slightly sweet
from the honey, slightly sour from the vinegar and a tad nutty in flavour from
the tahini.
4. Place the quinoa on a large serving plate or in
a large bowl. Add the broccoli edamame mixture and 1/2 of the sesame seeds and
toss well to combine. Sprinkle the remaining sesame seeds and coriander leaves
over the salad and pour the sauce on top. Enjoy!
Serves / 4 - 6
Total Preparation time /
15 minutes
Total Cooking time
/ 30 minutes maximum
x Emily
