by: R. John

Healthy grains have long been a permanent fixture in households, but not everyone knows how to make the most out of them. More often than not, people would pair their choice of grains with another dish and call it a meal. But there are so many wonderful dishes you can put together when you unleash your creative juices.

Here are some ideas:

Brown Rice: Celery Root Soup
You don’t always have to use the actual grain when you’re making meals. Sometimes, you can use its milk to create soups and purees. In the case of brown rice — a grain that is packed with fiber, vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants — you cook it like you usually would, drain and let it cool down, and blend it until it’s smooth. Strain the mixture using a nut milk bag, cheesecloth, napkin, or a strainer, and then serve.

As for the rest of the soup, peel and cut the celery root into large cubes, pour the rice milk and vegetable stock over it, add chopped parsley and season to your liking. Access the full recipe here: http://www.therefresh.co/2019/02/12/winter-vegan-recipes/

Quinoa: Veggie Bowl

Considered a superfood, quinoa is an ancient grain that is packed with more vitamins, minerals, protein, and fibers than popular grains like whole wheat and oats. It’s also a great source of antioxidants and provides complete proteins, including all the nine essential amino acids, making it an excellent option for vegetarians and vegans.

While people tend to consume quinoa like cereal, you can also use it to make scrumptious meals like veggie bowls. You can even whip the meal up using a rice cooker. A regular pot and stovetop burner will work, too, but it requires more steps. Today’s Aroma rice cookers are known for their versatility, so you can utilize them to prep quinoa-based meals. The only key is figuring out the right water or broth to quinoa ratio. If you want to be on the safe side, it’s best to use two cups of water or broth for each cup of uncooked quinoa. Then, add the rest of the veggies, seasoning, and press cook.

Teff: Ethiopian-Style Stew

Hailing from Ethiopia, teff is the world’s smallest grain, measuring at only 0.7-1% the size of a wheat kernel. Despite its minute size, it’s incredibly healthy, packing 73 grams of carbs, 13.3 grams of protein, 8 grams of fiber, 90% of the recommended daily requirement for copper, and 98% of the DV requirement for vitamin C, per 100 grams. It’s also gluten-free, and is often used in porridge, soups, stews, and gluten-free baked goods.

What’s great about teff is it isn’t hard to cook. You can make a great Ethiopian-style stew by throwing in the teff, onion, garlic, paprika, harissa, cinnamon, allspice, cayenne pepper, and salt into a large pan. Add stock, water, sweet potatoes, red bell peppers, and crushed tomatoes, and then zucchini garbanzo beans, peanut butter, and lemon juice. It should be noted that the peanut butter is optional, so you can opt not to include it if you’re allergic. Read up on the entire recipe here: https://www.onegreenplanet.org/vegan-recipe/teff-ethiopian-style-stew-vegan-gluten-free/

Barley: Greek Salad
Barley is a versatile cereal grain that’s incredibly healthy. It’s rich in minerals like selenium, manganese, magnesium, zinc, copper, iron, phosphorus, and potassium, along with B vitamins and fiber. However, barley contains gluten, making it unsuitable for those on a gluten-free diet. But this doesn’t mean that it isn’t worth trying out. Since a cup of whole barley flour provides 14.9 grams of fiber, it already accounts for 60% of an adult’s daily recommended value.

Barley can be used to make a wonderful Greek salad. After cooking the barley the usual way — a process that involves boiling the grain in a saucepan — mix in some feta, olives, cucumber, and tomatoes to give the salad some extra freshness and tang. If you’re feeling fancy, you can transform it into a gourmet entree by switching out the feta for some grilled halloumi cheese. And if you want to make it vegan, simply use marinated tofu instead of feta, or grill some tempeh with balsamic vinegar and place it atop the salad. Check out the full recipe here: https://www.thespruceeats.com/easy-greek-style-barley-salad-3378301

Bon Appetit!

Main photo courtesy of: Pacto Visual

Image of vegetables courtesy of: Engin Akyurt

Image of feta courtesy of: Julia