1 1/2 cup uncooked quinoa
vegetable broth
creole or Cajun seasoning, optional

1 can of beans (black or kidney beans work well)
1 cucumber
1/4 chopped cilantro, sometimes more
1/2 bunch green onions
3-4 Roma tomatoes
jalapeno, optional

3-4 T lime juice
chili powder
ground cumin
garlic
salt and pepper
vinegar
chipotle powder, optional

1. Toast quinoa seeds over medium heat for a few minutes. The quinoa is ready after it starts popping and looks lightly toasted. Stir continuously, so it doesn’t burn. Rinse VERY well. Quinoa can be bitter if it is not rinsed well enough.

2. Cook the quinoa according to package directions. I use a rice cooker for this and use 1 1/2 c dry quinoa with 2 cups of water or vegetable broth. Usually I add some creole or cajun seasoning to the liquid as well.

3. When the quinoa is done, transfer it to a large mixing bowl. Add in:

- beans, rinsed and drained
- chopped cucumbers (I leave the peeling on.)
- minced cilantro
- chopped green onions (I cut the whole bunch at once with some scissors.)
- chopped jalapeno, if using

4.  Toss well to mix everything.  Add in the seasonings:

- lime juice
- cumin
- a light amount of garlic
- chili powder
- a drizzle of vinegar (I use rice vinegar)
- chipotle powder, if using

5. Toss well. Taste and add salt and pepper to your liking. Lastly, gently stir in the chopped tomatoes.

6. Chill and serve.

Note: This is also good with couscous or rice, so if you don’t have quinoa, try it with one of those instead. When I take this to potlucks, I leave out the chipotle and jalapeno so they won’t be too spicy. This recipe fills my 2-quart casserole dish and probably serves 8-10 people.

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Rice Cooker Pasta

2 cups whole grain pasta
2 cups water
1 cup sauce

Add ingredients to the rice cooker. If desired, add some seasonings or a 1/2 cup of veggies.

Start the rice cooker on the regular setting.  Check before it turns off as it may be finished a little early.

If needed, the sauce can be thickened with flour or a sprinkling of mochiko.

NOTE: I usually use rotini or penne pasta, but other types should work as well.  For the sauce, try one of the following ideas or make up your own.

* White Mushroom Sauce – Use some ranch of Caesar dressing (I use a homemade Vegan Caesar), some sweet and sour sauce, garlic, water and a 4 ounce can of mushrooms, pureed.

* Simple Red – Just use a cup of spaghetti sauce. If desired, add some mushrooms, diced onions and/or bell pepper.

* Pizza Pasta – Use a scant cup of pizza sauce mixed with some of your favorite pizza toppings.

This comprehensive book has 368 pages. It starts out with information about different types of rice cookers and helpful tips for purchasing one. Then it moves on to some of the basics you’ll find on most rice cookers, explaining the different cooking modes and basic things like how to measure and cook your first batch of rice. From there it moves on to a chapter of rice recipes and then to sections on how to cook all sorts of other things.

I use a 5.5 cup fuzzy logic rice cooker. One concern I had before buying the book was whether the instructions were tailored for the type of appliance I would be using. Fortunately, the authors have done a good amount of testing and provide useful notes to help you know if your rice cooker will work well with each recipe. They specify if the recipe is suited for a medium (6-cup) sized rice cooker or a larger (10-cup) one as well as telling you if you need a fuzzy logic machine or if a simple on/off type of cooker will suffice. In fact, there are quite a few recipes, especially the steamed vegetables based ones, that will only work with the on/off type of cooker.

Our rice cooker is almost always running. Sometimes it’s making the next batch of plain rice. Other times we’re trying out a pilaf recipe or cooking some other grain. In the morning it is often filled with the “Creamy Breakfast Oatmeal” made from steel-cut oats or sometimes the breakfast barley. I’ve gotten better results with the breakfast grains than I could get in a crockpot and with much less hassle, cleanup and babysitting than there would have been on the stovetop. At lunch time, you might find “Hearty Split Pea Soup” (without the turkey sausage since I don’t eat meat) or “Vegetarian Black Bean Chili” in there.

Basically, what I am saying is that if you need a book that’s better than the owner’s manual that came with your rice cooker, this is it. It will help you make full use of all the things your rice cooker can do and save you the time and frustration of experimenting to get just the right amounts of everything.

Order here:

We usually think of bulgur as a dinner time grain, but today I decided to try it in place of my usual oatmeal for breakfast.  I made it in the rice cooker, but I am sure you could just as easily make this in a pan on the stovetop if you adjust the amount of water.

========== Orange Bulgur ==========

1 c uncooked bulgur wheat
1 3/4 c water
3 Tbsp orange juice frozen concentrate
1/4 c sunflower seeds
1/3 c dried cranberries (such as Craisins)
3/4 – 1 c soy milk (optional)

Add the bulgur, orange juice concentrate and water to a rice cooker. Start the cooker on the regular rice setting. Near the end of cooking, stir in the cranberries and sunflower seeds.  Serve topped with soy milk or almond milk.

Nutritional Information per serving, before adding soy milk: 300 Calories, 7 grams fat, 9 grams protein, 55 grams carbohydrates, 11 grams fiber

=========================

When we were in China, most of the buffets we ate breakfast at would serve 3-5 types of congee. Its consistency can be thick like a porridge or thinner and watery.  I never knew what to expect until I lifted the lid of the huge rice cookers and looked inside. Usually all but one of them would have some type of meat in it: either bits or shavings of dried sea animals, broth from a chicken or maybe small pieces of pork.  These don’t appeal to me, so I chose the plain type unless there happened to be one with only peas or carrots in it. My daughter also preferred it plain. 

I wanted to make some congee for my daughter, but wondered, “Can it be made with brown rice?”  As you may know, we use whole foods as much as possible in my kitchen. White rice is stripped of the bran and some of the fiber and nutrients are removed with that, therefore we use brown rice.  I found a recipe and added some additional water. It turned out fine, although it probably took longer to cook than white rice. I didn’t notice though, since it happened while I was sleeping.

========== Plain Brown Rice Congee ==========

1 rice-cooker cup of brown rice (equals 3/4 cup in regular American measurements)
5 cups water

Before going to bed, add the ingredients to your rice cooker and start it up with the porridge setting.  The congee will be ready in the morning.

Note: We use a 5.5 cup Zojirushi Fuzzy Logic type of cooker.

=========================

OK, so that’s not much of a recipe. The fun is in what you choose to add to it. If you want to be more adventurous, feel free to throw in whatever you like. Maybe cinnamon, maple syrup and some raisins similar to how you might prepare oatmeal in the West. Perhaps vegetables, green onions, ginger and soy sauce if you’re having your rice porridge at dinner time?  If you need more ideas, I’ve heard reference to a Qing Dynasty manual written by Huang Yungu which lists over 200 ways to make congee.  Maybe some of those ideas have been translated to English?

My daughter still prefers her congee plain and just finished two bowls of it for breakfast.  Now she’s moved on to dessert – a banana.  I think I’ll try mine in a way sure to make most Chinese people cringe. I’m adding dried cranberries, fresh peaches and a few drops of vanilla extra today.