Quinoa and Vegetable Stir-Fry

By Alqualonde

This easy, toss together quinoa is fabulous hot from the pan. But it's also delicious cool, as a salad. Make more than you think you'll need and you've got picnic food for the next day.

Ingredients

• Olive oil
• 1 onion, diced
• 3-4 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 yellow summer squash, sliced
• A fistful of slender asparagus or green beans, trimmed, sliced
• 1 Japanese eggplant (small eggplants are way less bitter), peeled, sliced into bite size pieces
• 1 bell pepper- red, yellow, orange or green, cored, sliced
• 2 cups Baby Bella mushrooms, trimmed, sliced
• A handful of grape or cherry tomatoes, halved
• Sea salt and ground pepper
• Herbs, to taste- parsley, basil, thyme, red pepper flakes- whatever you prefer
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
• Extra virgin olive oil, to taste

Details

Adapted from webmd.com

Preparation

Step 1

Make your quinoa the easy way- in a rice cooker. You'll need roughly 2 1/2 cups cooked quinoa. As it cooks, gather and cut up your summer vegetables.

When the quinoa is almost done, heat a splash of light olive oil in a wok or large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion, stir until translucent. Add the garlic and cook for a minute. Add the remaining vegetables. Season with sea salt, pepper, and herbs. Add the balsamic vinegar. Stir-fry until tender.

Scoop the cooked quinoa out of the rice cooker and add it into the wok. Stir to combine with the vegetables. Taste test and add more salt or seasoning if it needs it. Remove from heat. Drizzle with extra virgin olive oil and toss to fluff.

Serve immediately; or allow it to cool, then cover and refrigerate it to eat as a salad. Before serving it cold, taste test again and adjust seasonings.