Cilantro Lime Quinoa with Corn and Jalapeno

Cilantro lime quinoa tossed with sweet corn and spicy diced jalapeno. This flavorful cilantro lime quinoa with corn and jalapeno is the perfect choice for a simple yet delicious spring dish.

Can you believe I haven’t had quinoa until recently? I know! What kind of foodie/food blogger am I, right?

My first taste of quinoa was this exact dish. Well, almost anyway. I might have added the cilantro lime. There’s a little small food market called Lite Bite down the street from where I work. They serve low calorie premade dishes. Like salads, mashed cauliflowers, lasagnas, grilled chicken. It’s all behind the glass display case, and you order what you want by the pound or by portions. And everything has a little card in front of it which tells you exactly what’s in the food and how many calories per serving.

What I love about this quinoa dish is that it’s so refreshing, just the sort of dish I’m looking for when I think of spring. Especially now, since it’s already April! There are only a few ingredients that go into it, and it doesn’t take long to make at all. Each bite has the taste of cilantro and lime, a little sweetness from the corn, and a slight kick from the jalapeno.

Not a fan of spicy? You can always remove the seeds of the jalapeno. Most of the heat is in the seeds so if you remove the seeds, the jalapeno will be less spicy and you’ll still have that taste. If you can’t tolerate spiciness at all, you can leave it out too.

First, rinse the quinoa once or twice. Now, to cook the quinoa. The packaging and many other blogs and sites say to add quinoa and twice the amount of water compared to quinoa into a pot over high heat. Basically, the ratio is 2 parts water to 1 part quinoa. Cook the quinoa over high heat until it’s boiling. Turn the heat down to the lowest setting, cover the pot, and allow the quinoa to cook for about 15 minutes. Then turn off the heat, and allow the quinoa to sit covered for about 5 minutes. Remove the cover and use a fork to “fluff” the quinoa. In other words, you’re stirring the quinoa to make sure it’s soft and fluffy.

Have you made quinoa before? Does this method work for you?

Because it didn’t work for me. My quinoa became burnt at the bottom. Sadly.

So here’s how I would do it.

When you cook the quinoa, add 2 parts water to 1 part quinoa to the pot. Set the heat high until the water boils. Once the water boils, cover the pot, and lower the heat to the lowest setting. Allow the quinoa to cook for about 10 minutes, then check to see the water level. If the water is completely gone, I’d add a little bit more water to prevent the quinoa from becoming burnt. Cover the pot, and cook for an additional 5 minutes. Now, turn off the heat, and let the quinoa sit with the lid covering the pot for an extra 5 minutes. You’ll get soft and fluffy quinoa. Like this.

While the quinoa is cooking, you can make the corn and jalapeno. In a small pan, add a little bit of olive oil over low heat. Once the olive oil has warmed for about a minute, add the frozen corn kernels and the diced jalapenos. Cook them until the corn and the jalapenos become soft, about 2-3 minutes.

When the quinoa is ready, add the corn and jalapeno mixture, chopped cilantro, a little bit of lime juice, a little bit olive oil, and some salt for flavor. Toss all the ingredients together until they’re well combined.

Serve the quinoa warm or cold.

Enjoy!

Come me join me and my friends at Fiesta Friday where you can more delicious recipes!

Cilantro Lime Quinoa with Corn and Jalapeno

 

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Prep time

10 mins

Cook time

20 mins

Total time

30 mins

 

Cilantro lime quinoa tossed with sweet corn and spicy diced jalapeno. This flavorful cilantro lime quinoa with corn and jalapeno is the perfect choice for a simple yet delicious spring dish.

Author: Andrea Giang

Recipe type: Entree

Serves: 2 servings

Ingredients

• ½ cup uncooked quinoa
• 1cup water + ½ cup water if needed
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• ⅛ cup jalapeno, diced
• ¾ cup frozen corn kernels
• ⅛ cup cilantro, chopped
• ½ tablespoon lime juice
• ¼ - ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon olive oil (optional)

Directions:

1. Wash the quinoa once or twice, and drain them. This step is optional though. Most quinoa bought in bags should have already been washed.
2. Place the quinoa and one cup of water into a pot over high heat. Cook the quinoa until the water comes to a boil. Turn the heat to the lowest setting and cover the pot. Allow the quinoa to cook for about 10 minutes covered before checking on them. If there is no water left, add the extra ½ cup of water to prevent the quinoa from becoming burnt at the bottom. Continue to cook the quinoa for another 5 minutes before removing the pot from heat. Let the quinoa sit while covered in the pot for 5 minutes.
3. Use a fork to stir the quinoa, making sure that they are soft and fluffy.
4. While the quinoa is cooking, add about a tablespoon of olive oil to a small pan over low to medium heat. Allow the olive oil to heat for about a minute before adding the corn and jalapeno. Cook the corn and jalapeno until they become soft, about 2-3 minutes.
5. Once the quinoa is ready, add the corn and jalapeno mixture, cilantro, lime juice, and salt to the quinoa. Adjust the amount of salt to taste. And if the quinoa is too dry, you can drizzle some olive oil over it. Toss all the ingredients together until they are well combined.
6. Serve the quinoa warm or cold.
7. Quinoa can be stored in an air tight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.

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