Quick Meals: Coconut Quinoa with Kale

This might actually qualify as a quick side dish, but a very important side dish to add to your repertoire. Quinoa simmered in rich coconut milk and tossed with chopped fresh kale– it’s as easy as cooking could be, but offers heaps of flavor and all those good vitamins we humans need. And it’s terribly easy, which hopefully makes it enticing and encouraging for those of you that might not have tried these wonder foods.

I posted this dish on Facebook the other day and a friend asked for the recipe, and cooking class students are always asking for easy recipes for kale. But truth be told, this isn’t really a recipe at all. Long ago I read about a Coconut Quinoa + Spinach Salad on Sprouted Kitchen (a gorgeous and delicious blog), and it’s always been stuck in my head. When you have some extra coconut milk laying around, this is the dish to make. Grill some tofu on the side, or serve with spiced beans for a wholesome and delicious meal.

Coconut Quinoa & Kale

1 cup water
1 cup coconut milk (from a can)
1 tsp soy sauce
1 cup quinoa
2 cups chopped kale

1. In a medium saucepan, boil the water, coconut milk, and soy sauce.
2. Add quinoa, stir to combine. Cover and simmer on very low heat for 15 minutes.
3. Add chopped kale directly onto the hot quinoa, and stir to combine. The steam will cook the kale perfectly.
4. Let cool and serve alongside something, or straight up.