Scale
Ingredients
- 1½ cups (270g) tri-coloured quinoa, rinsed thoroughly (white quinoa is also fine)
- 2 ½ cups stock of choice
- Leaves from 1 bunch coriander, chopped
- Leaves from ½ bunch flat-leaf parsley, chopped
- 5 spring onions (green part only), chopped
- ¼ cup (30g) slivered almonds
- ½ cup (60g) pepitas
- ¼ cup (30g) pine nuts
- ¼ cup (35g) currants
- ¼ cup (35g) dried cranberries
- 1 cup thick full-fat Greek yoghurt
- Seeds of 1 pomegranate
- Juice of 1 lemon
- 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tbsp pure maple syrup or honey
- 1 tsp ground cumin
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180*C and line a tray with baking paper.
- Add quinoa and stock to a pot and stir. Bring to the boil over medium/high heat. Reduce to low, cover, and simmer until the liquid has been absorbed, roughly 8-10 mins. The quinoa is ready as soon as the germ (the little white ring around the seed) becomes exposed. It should be al dente – not crunchy, nor mushy. If there is slightly too much liquid, you will need to drain it. Fluff with a fork and set aside to cool for 30 mins.
- Place the almonds, pine nuts and pepitas on the lined baking tray and toast in the preheated oven on the middle rack for 3-5 minutes or until golden. Take care not to burn. Remove from oven and set aside to cool.
- Toast the cumin by placing it in a dry pan over a low flame for a few minutes, stirring it regularly to prevent sticking and burning. It should become super fragrant.
- Combine the yoghurt, toasted cumin and maple syrup/honey in a small bowl. Stir well.
- When ready to serve, combine the cooled quinoa, coriander, parsley, spring onion, almonds, pine nuts, pepitas, currants, cranberries, lemon juice, and olive oil in a large bowl. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Transfer the salad to a serving dish and top with the cumin yoghurt and pomegranate seeds. I like to mix half of the yoghurt dressing through the salad in step 4, then add more on top, but it does make for a less photogenic salad. Completely up to you! Serve on its own or as a side. I don’t eat lamb anymore, but I have to say it goes superbly with it.
Notes
- If you don’t have IBS, double the almonds, pine nuts, currants, and cranberries. These are the quantities I use now and it makes a huge difference to the flavour and texture.
- I use tri-coloured quinoa because I love the festive colour (and because I’m difficult), but white quinoa is also fine
- You can use salted water instead of stock if you like. I prefer to use stock for flavour.
- For a dairy-free version, try topping the salad with tahini and add sliced avocado instead of the Greek yoghurt