Quinoa and Rice in a quick Chinese fried rice / Quinoa with lots of Veggies

Again the days have come and gone, more like months have come and gone...and the year is quickly passing by. Though we are still not totally out of the clutches of winter in some parts, in other parts spring has already been showing its beauty. I continue to clicks lots of pictures of flowers as I so fascinated by all the different types of flowers nature has in store! I hope everyone out there is getting to enjoy a bit of the new spring and taking full advantage of it by planting new plants. I haven't started to plant here as yet but I sure to plan on getting on that job soon. Other than that life has been normal as always. Kids and their activities takes up most of the time and I find so less time to myself. The very less time I get, I just feel like relaxing...that's the reason I started spending so less time on the blog. I keep telling myself that I should do more...but...that just keeps hanging. :)

Well no worries, that's how life is I guess and I should just keep going on with it!

The reason I make this dish very so often is to finish any leftover rice. But then there are times when I make it to have as a side dish. Though noodles are kids favorite, I think my favorite has always been the fried rice. While trying to make it healthier whenever I feel like eating it, I started making it with quinoa. But then there come days when there is some left over rice and some left over quinoa. That's when I decide to combine both of them to make  this fried rice. 

Since rice and quinoa blend together very nicely, you cannot really tell which is which. :) That helps with kids!

This dish can be made completely with quinoa or completely with rice. I just like to add lots of vegetables and egg to make it more nutritious. You can add some cooked chicken or shrimp to make it more exotic too :).  Or omit the egg to make a wholesome vegetarian dish. Add some lima beans and sprouts to make even more delicious. Well these are just a few ways in which you can adapt this dish. Its more like a pantry dish where you can put what ever is there in your pantry to make it your type of dish.

Ingredients:

1 cup quinoa (cooked and cooled)

1/2 cup rice (leftover rice or cooked and cooled)

3 garlic cloves, chopped small

2 green chilies, chopped small

1/4 cup chopped carrots

1/4 cup peas

1/4 cup chopped beans

1/4 cup chopped bell pepper (you can use a mix of colored pepper if you wish)

1/2 cup of broccoli florets

1/2 onion, chopped

2 eggs, scrambled with pinch of salt and pepper

pinch of red pepper flakes (optional)

1 tbsp oil (can be substituted with sesame oil)

salt to taste

1 tbsp low sodium soy sauce

Chopped scallions for garnish

Method:

Heat the oil in a wok or pan to medium hight heat.

Add the chopped garlic and green chili and sauté for 10 seconds. Add the onions and saute for another 10-20 seconds.

Add the carrots, peas, bell pepper and beans and cook for a minute or two with a sprinkle of salt.

Add the broccoli florets, with a pinch of salt and saute for another 15 seconds.

Add the cooled rice and quinoa, along with the scrambled egg. Saute on high heat to mix well. Add the soy sauce and mix well again.

Garnish with chopped scallions or green onions.

Serve hot. Enjoy!!!