Question for all you good cooks out there

[BlueLineBabe]

I love stuffed peppers and I'm sure I can fool with the recipe so that they're really GM. My question is, do you think they'd be good if I substituted quinoa for rice? When I make them, I always use either brown rice or Uncle Ben's converted rice, which I've heard is pretty low-GI. Do you think quinoa would be good or would it be rather disgusting? I must admit I've never eaten or cooked with it in my life. And if not quinoa, what about couscous? Or should I just stick with rice?

[ayj67]

Quinoa is a seed, but it is high in protein and starch and fiber, it is a balanced meal all on its own. It has some herbaceous smell. It will take a little more water than rice, but it is good.

Not sure what converted rice is, so no comment on that. What was it converting from and too? Just wondering in my head. If "convert" means par-boiled, no, not a GM food, walk away....

Brown rice, I know it was on the list for GM, but then, I saw that GI report that brown rice's GI might just be higher than white bread, so, still use a small portion only. The cure is to add beans with rice.

Buckwheat is what I think you can use, kasha is another name for it, cooks like rice too.

Lentil beans, have you considered that as a rice alternative, or add some with your brown rice? Chickpea and garbanzo beans, black beans...

Couscous is a pasta, not really a GM food.

Hull barley is another option. http://www.bobsredmill.com/whole-hull-less-barley.html

[mamalove]

The thing with Quinoa (I love it btw) is you have to rinse it well before you use it. If you don't, it'll taste very icky and bitter...and while it's cooking it'll smell horrible. So rinsing it is the key for good tasting quinoa. And the quinoa to water ratio is 1:2, 1 part quinoa to 2 parts water.

I have a recipe for delicious quinoa patties that my dad who is a carnivore LOVES, even though there is no meat whatsoever in them. PM me and I'll send you the recipe. Or, I'll post it here if ya'll want me too....

[WendyD]

Well, I'll go out on a limb - why not just ditch the grain? Make it with a lower fat beef, same spices and it should be fine. I tend to go paleo which is little or no grains and my recipes always turn out fine without the grain. You could always google "Paleo stuffed peppers" and see what comes up.

[T'appy Tapper]

I have a great stuffed bell peppers recipe! I found it back when I was notdoing any grains. It uses grated zucchini as the “filler”. Not quite as substantial as rice ( it kind of disappears) but it is still very delicious!

2 pound ground beef

1 red bell pepper

1 white, yellow, OR Vidalia onion

2 average sized zucchini

2 cans ( 16 ounce) died or crushed tomatoes

Taco seasoning

Finely chop pepper and onion. Sauté until tender and set aside. Peel zucchini ( VERY important, it will taste bitter if you don’t). Grate zucchini with a medium sized grater. Brown ground beef. Add in pepper, onion, zucchini, and tomatoes. Add in taco seasoning/ salt/pepper to taste. Let it all simmer for awhile to finish cooking. Eat as is or stuff into peppers and bake. Enjoy!

[T'appy Tapper]

I have a great stuffed bell peppers recipe! I found it back when I was not doing any grains. It uses grated zucchini as the "filler". Not quite assubstantial as rice ( it kind of disappears) but it is still very delicious!

2 pound ground beef

1 red bell pepper

1 white, yellow, OR Vidalia onion

2 average sized zucchini

2 cans ( 16 ounce) died or crushed tomatoes

Taco seasoning

Finely chop pepper and onion. Saute until tender and set aside. Peel zucchini ( VERY important, it will taste bitter if you don't). Grate zucchini with a medium sized grater. Brown ground beef. Add in pepper, onion, zucchini, andtomatoes. Add in taco seasoning/ salt/pepper to taste. Let it all simmer for awhile to finish cooking. Eat as is or stuff into peppers and bake. Enjoy!

[Ollie]

I'm not sure you would like it if you left out the rice without a good substitute. Maybe experiment with just a small batch with the quinoa and one with the zucchini. If you really like the taste of stuffed peppers and want to avoid the rice altogether, I make stuffed pepper soup that my family loves. Just before you are ready to serve it you are supposed to add rice to the pot. Well, I grew up in a house where we didn't put pasta in the pot because it would soak up all the broth/sauce. Unless we made just enough for the meal, which was rare, we put pasta in the bowl then put the soup/sauce over it. That way when we had it for leftovers another day, the soup would still be soupy (had to have something to dip that bread in!). Now that I am trying to avoid starchy foods, I just eat my portion of stuffed pepper soup sans the rice. My family still enjoys their portion just like always, and mine is starch free.

I don't mean to hijack this thread, but, Abby, I would love to hear about your quinoa patties, if you don't mind posting it here. Also, any other tips you might have for me, as I've never made it before & I'd like to use it instead of bulgar wheat in my next batch of tabouleh. Which I hope will be this weekend.

[mamalove]

I don't mind a bit, Michelle!

Quinoa Patties--sorry I don't have a jazzed up name for them.

4 c. quinoa, cooked
9 eggs
2 tsp. cumin
1/2 tsp. cayenne
2 tsp. salt
1 med. onion, chopped
8 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups Italian Breadcrumbs--I've also tried to use Panko crumbs and they came out good then too.
3/4 c. mozzerella cheese
3/4 c. chedder cheese
1/3 c. parmesan cheese

Throw everything together in a large bowl. Sometimes if I'm not feeling lazy, I'll whisk the eggs and then add them to the mixture. But most times I just crack them right into the quinoa mixture. I don't tell a difference either way. Then form them into little patties. I use a 1/4 cup to measure so they are all the same size. And, I use a biscuit cutter to pack the mixture in, so they come out perfectly round. They're so cute! Then, cook them in about 3 Tbls. oil (I use EVOO) for aprox. 6 minutes on each side. Let them cool on a wire rack, and voila! Serve them wrapped in lettuce with a couple slices of avocado on top. Delish!

P.s this makes enough for my family of 11, so you can definetly half it if you don't want 24 patties! LOL!

[mamalove]

P.s Make sure they get very golden brown, they need to be crisp!

[Anna Louise]

If the peppers are stuffed with beef, oatmeal is a good GM choice for a binder. If they're stuffed with chicken, or fish, I'd be inclined to use rice. I think converted rice is considered MM. I've never used converted rice.