This recipe uses kin-waaaaaaaah darhling!

There was an article recently that mentioned, 2013 is International Year of Quinoa. Thanh showed me the article after I had used it two days in a row. I was convinced I was setting the trend 😛

Yes, this dish does taste as good as it looks. The best bit? You don’t really need to follow the recipe, you can just mix it up with whatever you prefer or have in your fridge. That’s most certainly what I did; substituted parsley for coriander, left out cucumber and added more carrot, and bunged in some spring onions. In fact with one lot of leftovers, I added a little of my favourite salad dressing and it was even better! The yoghurt totally makes it though, adds a certain guilt free creamyness to it all.

I made the chicken meatballs that were with the original recipe but you can add beef meatballs, cut up sausages, tofu, whatever takes your fancy really. Great for work lunches and school lunch boxes.
Chicken Meatballs & Vegetable Quinoa Salad
Adapted from Australian Good Food Magazine – October 2011

500g lean chicken mince
1 egg, lightly beaten
½ cup (35g) breadcrumbs
1 garlic clove, crushed
¾ cup (110g) quinoa, rinsed
juice and finely grated rind of 1 small lemon
2 teaspoons olive oil
¹⁄ ³ cup chopped coriander
1 spring onion, chopped
1 medium red capsicum, finely chopped
1 carrot, grated
125g natural yoghurt, to serve
lemon wedges, to serve

1. Combine mince, egg, breadcrumbs and garlic in a large bowl. With damp hands, roll into 24 meatballs (I rolled mine smaller and got more). Place meatballs on a plate, cover with plastic wrap and chill for 20 mins.

2. Meanwhile, rinse and drain quinoa, then place with 1½ cups cold water in a saucepan on high heat. Cover and bring to boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 10-12 minutes, until water has absorbed. Transfer to a large bowl. Add lemon juice and rind, oil, coriander, spring onion, capsicum and carrot. Season and stir to combine.

3. Heat a large non-stick frying pan on medium. Spray meatballs with cooking oil and cook in batches for 4-5 minutes, until brown and cooked through. Don’t over cook or your meatballs will become dry and bouncy. Add to quinoa and stir to combine.

4. Spoon into serving bowls. Serve with yoghurt and lemon wedges. You can also serve with salad greens if you so choose.

Serves 4.