The Q Tiffin

Welcome to A to Z of tiffin ideas with me. I am trying to give A to Z suggestions for lunch box woes and today is Day 17 with letter Q. So Let’s pack the Q Tiffin

Quinoa Pilaf

Fried Quinoa

Quinoa Veggie Tikki

Quesadilla

Before we begin a little Quinoa gyan – It is not the same as dalia but has similar health benefits as dalia.

Quinoa is a crop grain from South America, and it was also used in ancient India by locals to make bread. Quinoa is rounded grains several millimeters long. If we talk about quinoa color they have a traditional cereal color: cream, greyish-brown. In contrast, there is black and red quinoa too, but they do not differ in taste and culinary characteristics. This super food has many health benefits

Quinoa belongs to species Chenopodium album which is known as “bathua” in India. It belongs to amaranth family and you may find amaranth flour as well in local markets. Cultivation of quinoa has started in India as the crop can be grown in barren lands and areas where there is low availability of water. It can also sustain drought, it may be grown in areas where bazra(Tiffin millet) is grown. With the increasing popularity about the benefits of Quinoa, it will soon hit the markets in good quantities.

Inputs from wikipedia and quora

Quinoa Veggie Tikki

Method

• Rinse the quinoa in a mesh sieve it helps to remove the bitter coating on the quinoa beads.
• onion finely chopped
• Peel and cube potatoes
• grate or finely chop ginger
• Turn the wok/ Pot on Sauté. When it’s hot, add oil and cumin seeds. When cumin seeds sizzle, add ginger, onions, green chili and potatoes. Saute for 2 minutes.
• Add all dry spices, quinoa, peas, and water. Stir well. Close lid.
• Release pressure slowly and then open lid and fluff the quinoa with a fork.
• Add chopped coriander/cilantro and lime juice.
• Let cool the mixture and for tiffins, you can even make this a day ahead.
• Add the shredded cheese. Mix everything together.
• Now wet your palms with water and keep a bowl of water aside to dip hands as it prevents the patties from sticking to your hands.
• Take 2 spoonfuls of mixture and form it into a patty, using your hands.
• Lightly roll the patty in the coating. You can use maida/
• Similarly, Form all patties and keep aside.
• Heat a kadhai/skillet on medium-high heat and Add oil and let it heat up.
• Shallow fry patties, and flip/turn them once they golden brown on one side, sprinkle oil if needed.
• Similarly, Crisp them on both sides and then they are ready to pack once cool.

Fried Quinoa for Kids

Ingredients

• 2 medium – carrot
• 1 small – onion
• 2 cloves – garlic
• 3 tbsp – butter, salted
• 3 large – egg
• ¹/₂ cup – green peas, frozen
• 4 cup – Quinoa, cooked
• 4 tablespoon – soy sauce, low sodium
• 1 tablespoon – oyster sauce
• 2 stalk – green onion

Directions

1. 1. Chop carrots, onions, and garlic. Set aside.
   2. Place a large pan over medium heat and add 1 tablespoon of butter.  When melted, add eggs and use a spatula to scramble them.  When cooked, remove from pan.
   3. In your same large pan, add 1 tablespoon of butter and turn heat to medium-high.  Add chopped carrots, onion, garlic and frozen peas. Occasionally stir and let cook for 5 minutes or until they veggies are soft.
   4. Add butter to the pan and stir in cooked quinoa, Let cook for 2 minutes. add Chop green onions and add to your pan.

Likewise, Quinoa Fried Rice is An easy way to sneak in some veggies, hence mommies favourite.

quesadilla a tortilla filled with cheese, veggies like onions, tomatoes, peppers, mushrooms and heated is another great Q tiffin food.

one simple way to make quesadilla is – Heat a large skillet to medium-high heat. Add about ½ teaspoon of olive oil to the pan. Place the flour tortilla in the pan and add your preferred ingredients. Once the cheese begins to melt, gently fold the tortilla in half to get that classic quesadilla appearance.

Today is Day 17 with the letter “Q” of AtoZ challenge.

My theme for the challenge is ‘Tackling Tiffin tantrums” to help ease lunchbox woes for moms & kids.

If you liked this post then do drop a comment below. Don’t forget to share this post with your friends and family.

That’s all for today, see you tomorrow! For all AtoZ of Tiffin Ideas click here or search for #A2ZTiffinideas on Twitter and Facebook.

Linking with #BlogchatterA2Z and #AtoZ Challenge for April 2019