Wednesday, June 16, 2010

Spicy Garlic Shrimp with Kale and Quinoa

Spicy Garlic Shrimp with Kale and Quinoa

I've got a confession to make: Lately, I've been a little bored by quinoa. When I first discovered the superfood a couple of years ago I used it in everything from muffins, to burgers, to salads, and cakes. I got a little burned out on the stuff and turned to other grains like farro, spelt, and wheatberries. So it was quite a surprise to me, when I found myself adding a box of quinoa to my Trader Joes basket a couple of weeks ago. I thought to myself "This is red quinoa. Normally you only cook with the brown quinoa. This could be different, new. Maybe this will get you excited about a food you should be eating a lot more of again". So last night, I got to cooking, and guess what? I love quinoa again!! This meal is super fast. While the quinoa is cooking, you can prep and cook the shrimp so everything is ready in about twenty minutes. There's so much flavor in the garlicky, spicy, and slightly tangy sauce. For me, the garlic flavor was even more pronounced since I used a roasted garlic tomato sauce from my beloved TJ's. So now that I'm excited by quinoa again, I want to know what are your favorite ways to use this miracle seed?




Spicy Garlic Shrimp with Kale and Quinoa
(From Healthy Green Kitchen)



Makes 2 servings

For the quinoa:
1 cup quinoa, rinsed
1 1/2 cups water
Large pinch of sea salt

For the shrimp:
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon butter
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 small bunch of kale, roughly chopped (about 3 cups)
1/2 cup tomato sauce (I used roasted garlic sauce)
Juice from 1/2 lemon
2 pinches red pepper flakes
Coarse sea salt to taste
Freshly grated Parmesan for serving, optional

In a large saucepan, bring the water, quinoa, and salt to a boil. Reduce to a simmer, cover and cook until the water is absorbed, about 15-20 minutes. Let stand, covered for 5 minutes and then fluff with a fork. Set aside.

In a large skillet, heat the oil and butter over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the shrimp and kale. Cook until the shrimp are pink and cooked through and the kale has wilted. Stir in the tomato sauce and cook for another minute. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the lemon juice and red pepper flakes. Season with salt as needed.

Serve the shrimp and kale mixture on top of the quinoa and top with Parmesan if desired.

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15 comments:

Adventures in Domestic Cooking said...

What a gourmet you are!!

marla {family fresh cooking} said...

I love the red quinoa too. What a wonderful, easy to prepare & healthy meal :) xo

Erica said...

Well it sure does look beautiful. Josh loves so many of your shrimp dishes...I think I have to try this one!

H. C. said...

I'm recently rekindling my love of quinoa as well -- and as of late I've been cooking them with 1/2 water, 1/2 broth (sometimes veggie, sometimes soy-ginger, sometimes mushroom, etc.) and it gives them so much more depth and complexity!

As a matter of fact, this week I intend use up the rest of my quinoa and veggies with a mixed vegetable, tofu & quinoa stir-fry! Maaaybe I can bring leftovers to Eat My Blog (if there's any left!)

Diana said...

Bored... by quinoa?!?! I'm shocked! Stunned! Appalled!

Thank goodness this boredom has passed! We might not be able to be friends any more if it hadn't! ;)

Esi said...

HC, I definitely agree, cooking the quinoa in broth makes it a million times better!

Diana, I knew you would be shocked and appalled! I'm back on the correct side now. We can still be friends :)

krissy @ thefoodaddicts.com said...

hey esi! good seeing you the other week at TOTN in LA! i wish i wasn't so stuffed cuz i really wanted to try more things. it's good to be foodies!

Joanne said...

I love quinoa! I think the red really does a lot to spice up your life. Brown gets to be kind of boring after a while. And the red is way more photogenic :P (says the blogger in me!)

Pam said...

Yum! This looks delicious! Wish I had a serving of it!

Winnie said...

I am glad you liked the recipe and that you are enjoying quinoa again!
I really like your blog, so thanks for the mention!

Maria said...

Love this dish!

vanillasugarblog said...

quinoa rehab :-P

Kerstin said...

I'm going to look for the red version at TJs! This looks like the perfect meal to me - tasty and healthy.

Banana Wonder said...

Damn this looks good! Love the garlic spice and quinoa twist. I bet D takes a B is humping your leg for this one!

Mary @Delightful Bitefuls said...

Great recipe, thanks! I love quinoa... I just made a shrimp quinoa, too... sauteed the shrimp with paprika added some avocado and other veg - it was delicious!

xxMK
Delightful Bitefuls