Toasted quinoa with grilled zucchini and toasted chickpeas

For the last couple of weeks, I have been on a low carb kick and trying to avoid eating rice. Quinoa serves as a nice substitute for rice without all the calories and it is protein rich. Toasting the quinoa before cooking gives it a complex flavor which I prefer to cooking them without toasting.

I flavor the quinoa with some shallots and garlic, add cooked chick peas with a punch from the jalapneo and some grilled zucchini. This is pretty much a meal in itself. If you are eating this for dinner, a hearty greek salad with olives and feta cheese makes a wonderful accompaniment.

Toasted quinoa with grilled zucchini and toasted chickpeas

1 1/2  cups quinoa (washed and rinsed)
1 14oz can - unsalted chickpeas
2 medium zucchini, sliced 1/4 inch thick
Extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon finely minced jalapeño
1 large shallot finely minced, about 1 cup
2 cloves of garlic finely minced
2 tablespoon lemon juice (optional)
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper

1. In a 3 quart saucepan, over medium heat toast the washed quinoa till it is dry and starts to pop about 3 to 5 minutes. Transfer to a bowl and set aside.
2. In the same saucepan, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil and add the minced shallots and garlic and cook over medium heat for about 2 to 3 minutes till the shallot have become light brown. Add the toasted quinoa and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Mix well. Add 2 1/2 cups hot water and bring the quinoa to a boil. Reduce the heat to simmer - cover and let it cook for 15 minutes till the quinoa absorbs all the water.
3. While the quinoa is simmering, drain the chickpeas from the can and keep it in a colander to dry. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a 8 inch saute pan,  add the minced jalapeno and cook over low heat to flavor the oil for 2 minutes. Then add the drained chickpeas and 1/4 teaspoon salt and raise the heat to medium high. Cook the chickpea mixture till they are brown and toasted about 3 to 5 minutes. Remove from the pan and add to the cooked quinoa. 
4. In the meantime, toss the sliced zucchini with some olive oil and a light sprinkle of salt and grill for 3 minutes a side on a pre-heated grill pan. I like to use the ones with the double burner - this way I get the zucchini grilled much faster in bigger batches. 
5. Prepare a serving platter with a layer of grilled zucchini at the bottom, covered with the quinoa and chickpea mixture. Arrange the rest of the zucchini on top as per your liking. Drizzle with lemon juice if using.

Serves 4 with a salad

Egg fried rice with crispy garlic and scallions

Egg fried rice is a very commonplace dish available in some form or the other in every Chinese restaurant all over the world. The key to a good fried rice is left over rice which has not been overcooked. The cooked grains of rice should not stick to each other. I find basmati rice the best for making fried rice and unlike the traditional way of cooking rice using the 1 cup rice to 2 cups of water method, I like to boil the rice with extra water till the rice is almost cooked. Then I drain the rice through a fine mesh sieve and spread of a plate to cool, before I use it for fried rice. Ofcourse the best is to have left over rice.
This way of cooking egg fried rice is somewhat borrowed from Jean Georges crispy garlic and ginger rice with leeks and topped with a fried egg. I crisp the garlic in canola oil and use the same oil to cook the rice and the eggs. This gives the fried rice a subtle garlic flavor and the crispy garlic bits add a wonderful texture to the fried rice. There is no soy sauce in the recipe - hence it cannot be called a Chinese egg fried rice, but it is extremely flavorful.

             Egg fried rice with crispy garlic and scallions

1 cup basmati rice (uncooked), about 3 cups cooked rice
3 eggs
5 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
2 tablespoons fresh, peeled and minced ginger
7 thin stalks scallions, whites and greens separated, finely sliced
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
3 tablespoons canola oil

1. Cook the rice as per your usual cooking method. Make sure the rice is completely cooled before starting to make the fried rice.
2. Heat a small saucepan with 3 tablespoons canola oil over medium low heat and add the minced garlic. Cook the garlic till they turn crisp but not burnt. This process needs to be watched very carefully because if the garlic is burnt it will become bitter. Depending on the the heat, it could take about 2 to 3 minutes to crisp the garlic. Once brown,  turn off the heat and remove the garlic with a slotted spoon. 
3. Whisk the three eggs with 1/4 teaspoon salt and use some of the garlic oil to make thin omelets. Roll the omelets and cut them into strips and set aside.
4. Transfer 1 tablespoon garlic oil to a 10 inch skillet to cook the fried rice. Over medium heat, add the minced ginger and the whites of the scallions to the oil and cook for 2 minutes till the ginger begins to turn pink. Add the cooled rice and 1/4 teaspoon salt and mix well. Add the green parts of the scallions and mix well. Finally add the omelet strips and warm through.

Serves 2 to 3 as part of a multi-course meal.