Quinoa Stew or Quinotto

Versión en español

From time to time, we have foreign guests for dinner. Houston is a city that receives many people from other countries for periods of 2-4 years; many come to work while others come to study and some stay as we did. This time, the guests were two German men and two Chinese women. On these occasions, I always try to do something Chilean, but on the safe side… I’ve learned that the “Pastel de Choclo” (corn pie) is a bit too exotic.

Also, one of the guests was gluten intolerant, so the quinoa came to the rescue. I cooked this quinoa stew or Quinotto, served with grilled chicken. It was an effortless dinner. For dessert, I baked an almond cake with Chilean papayas, also know as Caricas. Soon, I will share that recipe. And drinking pisco Sour  puts everyone in a pleased mood.

Visit our collection of Chilean recipes here.

Quinoa Stew or Quinotto

Serves 6
Ingredients:

• 2 cups quinoa
• 4 cups vegetable broth, low sodium preferred
• 1 large bundle of chard
• 1 onion
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 2 tablespoons butter
• oil, salt

Preparation:

1. Wash the quinoa until it stops foaming. Place in a medium saucepan and cover with 3 cups vegetable broth. Cook over medium-high heat until it boils. Lower the heat to low, simmer for 20 minutes. Once ready, let it cool down on a tray.
2. Wash and chop the chard stalks into small cubes. Cut the leaves into strips.
3. In a large saucepan, cover the bottom with water. Place over medium heat, when boiling add the chard, leaves only, and cover. Cook 5 minutes over low heat. Uncover and remove the chard to a plate.
4. Chop the onion into small cubes.
5. Clean the saucepan and heat one tablespoon oil and 1 of butter. Brown the onions and chard stalks for 10 minutes until golden. Add the cream, vegetable broth, and grated Parmesan cheese. Stir in the quinoa and finally the cooked chard.
6. If necessary, add more vegetable broth to desired consistency, like a thick soup. Finally, add the butter, mix well and adjust the seasoning.
7. Serve hot.