This 15 minutes Shrimp Quinoa Fried Rice is just like your favorite take away fried rice and is loaded with healthy ingredients. Make it for a guilt-free indulgence. Here is how to make it.
Any day Asian food is comfort food for me and my family!
The day we are confused about what to eat, we order in some Asian food.
But within time, I have really reduced those takeouts and started experimenting on these delicious recipes with healthy ingredients.
Well, in this way we get to satisfy our cravings and also we don’t eat junk!
Win Win situation, right?
While I like almost everything, my kiddo is a fan of fried rice and any days I ask what to make, he will shout Fried Rice on the top of his voice. Haha!
So, this time when I was making his favourite Shrimp Fried Rice I substituted rice with quinoa, which is rich in protein and extremely good to include in our daily meals.
This Quinoa Fried Rice recipe that I am sharing today has become a family favourite and no one complains when they don’t see rice in their fried rice.
With just 6-7 ingredients at hand, this quinoa shrimp fried rice comes together in under 15 minutes.
This is a great recipe to make for busy weeknight dinners.
Here are some more Continental Rice recipes for you – Garlic Butter Shrimp Rice, Persian Saffron Rice, Schezwan Fried Rice, Thai Fried Rice, Chinese Egg Fried Rice, One Pot Mexican Rice and Pineapple Fried Rice.
What is Shrimp Quinoa Fried Rice?
It is an easy Asian recipe where instead of rice, quinoa is cooked in chicken stock and then stir fried along with vegetables, prawns and sauces.
Easy and delicious, this dish will hardly take 15 minutes of your kitchen time to get ready, making it apt for those quick weeknight dinners.
If you want to make it gluten free, just use gluten free soy instead of the regular one and you have a gluten free fried rice ready in no time.
This recipe is very versatile.
You can play around with sauces that you add, vegetables that you put in and you can even add an egg to make a healthy Egg Quinoa Fried Rice.
Is Quinoa better for you than Rice?
Quinoa is far better than having rice.
It is rich in protein and high in fibres and it will help you cut down on calories and still keep you full for a longer time.
Here is a nice article that you can read to get more details.
What vegetables can you add in this Fried Rice?
I have added only carrots and beans, but you can go ahead and add in mushrooms, broccoli, zucchini etc.
Benefits of Quinoa
- Gluten Free Grain
- High in protein
- High in fibre
- Contain 9 essential amino acids
- Rich in calcium, iron, potassium, phosphorus.
- Contains Vit E and other antioxidants
Why is rinsing Quinoa very important?
Quinoa grains have a coating of saponin which can make it bitter and soapy. So it’s advisable to rinse it before cooking to get rid of saponin.
The boxed quinoa that we get is mostly pre washed but I always wash it again before cooking to be on the safer side.
How to rinse Quinoa?
To rinse the quinoa, take it in a sieve strainer and run under cold water and keep rubbing it with your fingers while rinsing.
Strain and then use as required.
Can Quinoa be substituted for Rice?
You can definitely substitute quinoa for rice in this recipe. But like I said, quinoa is more nutritious than rice and this is great recipe to include quinoa in your diet.
Why you should make Quinoa Fried Rice?
It comes together in under 15 minutes.
It is a very healthy option for any meal of the day.
The recipe is very forgiving and can be adapted to your taste and availability of ingredients.
It requires a few basic ingredients which are mostly available in the pantry.
It’s a fabulous way to use up the extra steamed quinoa that’s sitting in your refrigerator.
It can be easily made vegetarian, gluten free, vegan or loaded with chicken or shrimps. So versatile right?
Tips to make best-fried rice using Quinoa
Always cook the quinoa beforehand, cool it overnight and then use it to make this Fried Rice.
It will allow the grains to stay separate and the rice will not be mushy.
If you are in a hurry or forgot to cook the quinoa beforehand, just make it freeze it for an hour. Then use it to make the fried rice.
Quinoa grains have a coating of saponin over the grains. Do wash it a few times before using it any recipes to get rid of the bitterness. You can buy Gluten Free Quinoa Grains here.
Always fluff the cooked quinoa after 5-10 minutes of cooking. It will help to separate the grains.
Use chicken stock or vegetable stock to cook the quinoa. Also known as chicken broth or vegetable broth, it will add a very nice flavor to the final dish. You can buy it here.
You can also add sauces like teriyaki sauce and oyster sauce to enhance the flavor of this rice.
Add vegetables of your choice like broccoli, beans, mushroom etc if you wish to. You can also add chicken to this rice.
Add 2 eggs and scramble them to make it into an egg fried rice.
You can also use frozen veggie mix to make this rice.
I have used olive oil to make this dish but you can use sesame oil or peanut oil too.
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Step by Step Recipe
Heat chicken broth in a pan.
Once it comes to a boil, add rinsed quinoa and cover and cook on low heat until all the water is absorbed and quinoa is cooked.
Remove the pan from heat and let the quinoa rest for 5 minutes. Fluff it using a fork. Let the quinoa cool completely.
Heat olive oil in a pan
Once the oil is hot, add garlic and onion and fry for 2-3 minutes.
Add carrots and beans and cook for 2 minutes.
Add shrimps and cook for 2-3 minutes.
Now add soy sauce, rice vinegar, sriracha sauce, salt and black pepper and mix well.
Add the cooked quinoa and mix well.
Shrimp Quinoa Fried Rice Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 cups Chicken Broth
- 1 cup Quinoa
- 2 tsp Olive Oil
- 1 tsp Garlic (Minced)
- 1/4 cup Onion (Chopped)
- 1/4 cup Carrots (Diced)
- 1/4 cup Beans (Cut into small pieces)
- 10-12 Shrimps (Cleaned)
- 2 tbsp Gluten Free Soy Sauce
- 1 tsp Rice Vinegar
- 1 tsp Sriracha Sauce
- Salt to taste
- 1/4 tsp Freshly Cracked Black Pepper
Instructions
- Heat chicken broth in a pan.
- Once it comes to a boil, add rinsed quinoa and cover and cook on low heat until all the water is absorbed and quinoa is cooked.
- Remove the pan from heat and let the quinoa rest for 5 minutes.
- Fluff it using a fork.
- Let the quinoa cool completely.
- Heat Olive oil in a pan
- Once the oil is hot, add garlic and onion and fry for 2-3 minutes.
- Add carrots and beans and cook for 2 minutes.
- Add shrimps and cook for 2-3 minutes.
- Now add soy sauce, rice vinegar, sriracha sauce, salt and black pepper and mix well.
- Add the cooked quinoa and mix well.
- Top with fried eggs and spring onion greens.
- Serve hot.
Notes
Triz
I love Quinoa. It may have a large count for calories but the proteins and the fiber is really good for the body. I like your fried rice recipe. Gotta buy some shrimps to start cooking this!
Neha Mathur
Do try and share your feedback.