Cook’s Science, buy now!
The Science of Good Cooking:
It’s important to rinse your quinoa, in order to remove the bitter-tasting compounds called saponins on the surface of the seed. We tested prewashed and unwashed brands and found that both benefit from rinsing at home.
Watch more Science!
Porterhouse Steaks: Why Bigger Isn’t Always Better
Why You Literally Can’t Overcook Mushrooms
What are the differences between white, red, and black quinoa?
Everything you need to know about cooking whole grains
With a high protein content, 10 essential amino acids, a firm, satisfying texture, and a nutty flavor, there’s a lot to recommend quick-cooking quinoa. The only real downside? It can be unpleasantly bitter, thanks to a concentration of bitter-tasting compounds called saponins on the surface of the seeds. In addition to being unpalatable, saponins are mildly toxic, causing low-level gastro-intestinal distress in some people. Some brands of quinoa come prewashed, while others don’t. To find out if prewashing guarantees less bitter quinoa, and if you should still rinse the prewashed stuff, we set up the following experiment.
EXPERIMENT
We purchased all available brands of both prewashed and unwashed white quinoa and rinsed half of each under cool water in a strainer for 1 minute while leaving the other half unrinsed. We cooked each sample using 1 3/4 cups water to 1 1/2 cups quinoa and tasted them blind, side by side. Tasters were asked to rank the samples according to bitterness.
RESULTS
We found no consensus on comparative bitterness between prewashed quinoa that we did not rinse and unwashed quinoa that we rinsed, suggesting that it doesn’t matter who does the rinsing, as long it gets done. Both of these samples fell in the middle of the pack for bitterness. However, we did have strong agreement on the other samples. The prewashed quinoa that we rinsed was deemed the least bitter while the unwashed quinoa that we did not rinse was by far the most bitter.
TAKEAWAY
Our results show that making the best-tasting quinoa begins at the supermarket, where you want to buy brands that are labeled as prewashed (in previous tests we found no texture or flavor disadvantage to prewashed quinoa— only the bitterness had been removed). But your work isn’t done yet—even prewashed quinoa benefits from a quick rinse with cold tap water in a fine-mesh strainer to produce the least bitter pilaf.
If you like us, follow us:
26 Comments
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.
Alright, but how did you cook it?
My parents cultivate quinoa for a living and I always found weird the way people wash their quinoa, because we do it differently. We sell our quinoa ready for boiling, juice or any other purpose because it is prepared differently depending on what are you planning to do. I hope someday we could sell our quinoa in a supermarket or something.
Who decided on that music?
Science is the starting point of cooking:-)
i used to think that brown rice quinoa precooked in those microwavable prepackaged shelf stable bowls were the only tasty way to experience it becaues my diy attempts at a big batch came out so bad i tossed it immediately. The trick was rinsing the quinoa, buying dried par cooked brown rice and cooking them both in different pots and different times, and using broth instead of water. Now it tastes just like those ready to microwave bowls once combined.
Just looked at my quinoa package. No mention of it being prewashed. Yup, gotta wash that baby next time. Great tip!
*8 essential aminoacids
That is probably why I never liked to eat Quinoa. Good to know.
nice
Tried quinoa for the first time two weeks ago because it was in all the healthy food videos id been watching lately and pasta was making me bloat, cooked it with a bit of salt… there was a weird bitter taste but not noticeable with the chilli dressing i put in my salad… it tasted nice, angels started singing in my head, I'd found the perfect replacement! Half way through my salad blooooat. I've tried the exact same salad without quinoa and i was fine. Im going to try it again but wash it properly, maybe it was the saponins.
YES IT DOES. IT HAS SOME KIND OF CHEMICAL SUBSTANCE AND BECAUSE YOU DONT' KNOW IF IT WAS PREWASHED IT IS BETTER TO DO IT. YOU SHOULD ALSO WASH RICE… TO REMOVE CHEMICALS, (ARSENIC) AND REMOVE SOME STARCH IF YOU LIKE LOSE RICE.
Bro… You're supposed to ROAST quinoa until they start popping before you boil them ^^ much better.
the great scam to push bird seed
This is the best cooking channel so far
cook it like pasta and all the bitterness stays in water.
bring salted water to a boil and dump your quinoa.
white cooks the fastest, then red and black takes the longest.
I'm peruvian and this how we cook quinoa.
people tend to cook it like rice in witch case you do have to rinse. but it is easier just boil.
Ok, I have a question about frozen veggies. I like to add mushrooms, bell peppers to my omelets What is the best way to cook them; before or after adding the eggs? Thanks
Too bad I've never heard of quinoa
why no more science of good cooking videos? 🙁
Am been waiting for American test kitchen do a video /episode on how to make yogurts… and Italian beef at home!!!!!!
Actually there is a white quinoa variety, mainly grown organically in france, that has so small amounts of saponin that is does not need rinsing.
I wash my really well because if I don't it always ends up bitter.
or just dont eat the stuff
or you could wash it for more time xD
>science
>cups of water
pick one
Nice tip!! And you need to wash rice out to, just to get the starch out. Unless your making Thai Sticky Rice.
Quinoa being a seed, not a grain, begins to sprout very fast & its easy! Buy in BULK rinse & soak for a short time at room temp (longer in fridge) drain & rinse again. It will have begun the process of sprouting aka growing in a few hours! It is quick, easy & even easier to digest as it is switching to a live food instead of a dried seed!! To save time & $$-do this process with a larger amount & dehydrate (below 120F) & store your for quick use with no need to rinse again! Makes a great sub for gluten sensitive folks too!