2013 was declared the "International Year of Quinoa" by the United Nations Agriculture Organization. Quinoa, which is frequently used in all European countries as well as South America, is not well known in our country.
What is quinoa?
Quinoa is a type of grain. It is obtained from the nuts of the plant of the same name. Quinoa, which is becoming more widespread day by day, is very rich in nutritional value. It can be cooked like rice and barley.
Quinoa plant is a long-lived plant that grows up to 1-2 meters. Quinoa, which grows naturally on the barren slopes of the Andes Mountains in Bolivia and Peru, dates back to 1000 BC in this region, according to historical records. 3000-5000 It has been grown by locals since 2000.
Archaeological discoveries have been made in ancient tombs in Chile and Peru that the plant was consumed as food. With the arrival of Spanish explorers to the continent, quinoa spread throughout South America and then to the European continent. The most grown and popular types of quinoa, which has more than 3000 varieties, are red, white and black. The most consumed one is white quinoa.
Benefits of Quinoa
Quinoa also contains high amounts of protein. Quinoa, which is rich in protein, contains amino acids that the body needs. It is a very popular grain among vegetarians because it is healthier than animal protein.
Quinoa has more than one variety; black, red and white are the most consumed. The nutritional content of quinoa varies depending on its color. A study looking specifically at red, black and white quinoa found that black quinoa had the lowest fat content while the highest in omega 3 fatty acids. The vitamin E value in red and black quinoa is almost twice that of white.
The same study analyzing quinoa found that the darker the color, the higher its antioxidant capacity.
It is a grain with high nutritional value
Below you can see the nutritional content of a glass (185 g) of quinoa. These values are also valid for cooked quinoa.
- Protein: 8 grams
- Fiber: 5 grams
- Manganese
- Magnesium
- Phosphorus
- folate
- Copper
- Iron
- Zinc
- Potassium
- Vitamins B1, B2 and B6
- Small amounts of calcium, B3 (niacin) and vitamin E
- It comes with 39 grams of carbohydrates and 4 grams of fat for a total of 222 calories.
- It also contains small amounts of omega-3 fatty acids.
Quinoa does not contain GMOs or gluten and is generally grown organically.