Quinoa Fritters

Inspiration:
Food & Wine


Ingredients:

• 2/3 cup quinoa
• 1 1/3 cups water
• 1/4 cup all purpose flour
• 1/4 cup grated Cotija cheese
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• Pinch of freshly ground black pepper
• 4 scallions, white and light green parts, finely chopped
• 1/2 bunch Italian parsley leaves, chopped
• 1 egg
• 1 egg yolk
• 3/4 cup vegetable oil
• lemon wedges for garnish
• Red Salsa for serving

Instructions:

1. Wash the quinoa and drain well. Place a small dry saucepan over high heat. Add the quinoa and toast, shaking and stirring constantly with a wooden spoon to prevent scorching, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a large saucepan and add the water. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer and cook, covered, until the water is absorbed, about 10 minutes. Set aside to cool.
2. In a large bowl, combine the quinoa, flour, cheese, salt and pepper. Add the scallions, parsley, egg and egg yolk. Blend thoroughly with a mixing spoon until the mixture has the consistency of a soft dough.
3. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Using two soup spoons, press the batter into egg-shaped ovals and gently slide into the hot oil. Fry until the bottoms are golden and brown, less than a minute. Turn and fry the second side until golden, less than 1 minute. Drain on paper towels and serve warm with lemon wedges and red salsa.
   

Notes:
I didn't have red salsa on hand so I used a spicy taco sauce instead. It looks like ketchup in the photo, but it isn't!
I didn't think that the cheese flavor was evident. You could easily omit it if you can't find Cotija.
While I prefer Quinoa with Black Beans and Cilantro, this was good as well. You could serve this as a first course (serves 6) or a main (serves 2-3).


Tim's Rating: 9/10
Liz's Rating: 8.5/10