Brown Quinoa Rice: Want to Know About

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Do you love the Seeds of Change Brown Rice Quinoa Blend? Make this easy (and cheap!) copycat recipe in your electric pressure cooker! This healthy side dish is easy to make in batches and freeze.

This Brown Rice and Quinoa recipe is a homemade version of the popular side dish. You can find it at Costco. I love making this in large batches and keeping it in the freezer and is so much cheaper than the store-bought version.

I used my Ninja Foodi to make this dish, but you can also use an Instant Pot or other electric pressure cooker. However, stovetop instructions are included.

One of our favorite convenience foods is the Seeds of Change quinoa and brown rice with garlic. The ingredients are low, it’s super easy to cook, and it’s delicious! As with all prepackaged foods, the brown rice and quinoa blend has a decent amount of sodium in them. Once I realized how easy it is to make this copycat recipe at home, I had to share it with you all.

Recipe Idea

Ingredients

• 1 cup long-grain brown rice
• 1 cup red quinoa
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 small onion, finely diced
• 1 carrot, sliced crosswise 1/4 inch thick
• 1/4 pound shiitake mushrooms, stems discarded and caps thinly sliced
• 1 small zucchini, halved lengthwise and sliced crosswise 1/4 inch thick
• Salt
• 1 head of broccoli—stems peeled and sliced into coins, heads cut into small florets
• One 12-ounce bunch of kale, large stems discarded
• 1/4 cup tahini, at room temperature
• 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 tablespoons warm water
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
• 1 ripe avocado, cut into 1/2-inch dice
• 1 cup mung bean sprouts

Directions

1. In a medium saucepan, cover the brown rice with 2 inches of water and bring it to a boil. Cover and cook over low heat until the rice is just tender, about 40 minutes. Drain and return the rice to the saucepan; keep covered
2. Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, combine the quinoa with 2 cups of water and bring it to a boil. Cover the saucepan and simmer over low heat until the quinoa is tender and all of the water has been absorbed 20 minutes
3. In a large skillet, heat 2 tablespoons of the oil. Add the onion and cook over moderate heat until translucent, about 4 minutes. Add the carrot and cook until starting to soften about 3 minutes. Add the shiitake, cover, and cook until tender, about 4 minutes
4. Add the zucchini, season with salt, and cook, stirring a few times, until tender, about 3 minutes. Transfer to a bowl
5. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil to the skillet. Add the broccoli, cover, and cook over moderate heat, stirring a few times, until deep green, 5 minutes
6. Add the kale, cover, and cook, stirring a few times, until the broccoli and kale are just tender, 4 minutes. Season with salt. Stir in the other vegetables
7. In a small bowl, whisk the tahini with lemon juice, garlic, warm water, and crushed red pepper. Season with salt
8. Transfer the brown rice and quinoa to bowls. Top with cooked vegetables, diced avocado, and bean sprouts. Serve, passing the tahini sauce at the table

Stovetop Instructions

1. Bring your broth or water to a boil, then add quinoa and brown rice, and the garlic and olive oil
2. Simmer on low for 20-25 minutes, keeping an eye out for the liquid to absorb into the rice and quinoa. If you want to cover and cook this, be very careful that it doesn’t boil over–it makes a mess that’s tough to clean off the stove
3. Test the rice and quinoa to make sure it’s cooked thoroughly. If so, remove from heat and serve as a side dish

Recipe Tips

• It’s easy to spice this dish up a bit! Add red pepper flakes, roasted garlic, lemon juice, or lemon zest to give this side dish a fun flavor twist
• Cooking quinoa in the Instant Pot is easy because you don’t have to worry about it boiling over as it often does on the stove. It’s easy to cook on the stove too
• I love cooking quinoa and brown rice recipes in my pressure cooker–even more than in my rice cooker! I make Instant Pot Brown Rice weekly and freeze it for meal prep, and I love making extra of this recipe too

Healthy Eating Plans for Brown Quinoa Rice

21-Day Fix: 1/2 cup of this quinoa and brown rice counts as 1 yellow container.

Weight Watchers: 1/2 cup of this dish is 4 Blue Points | 4 Green Points | 0 Purple Points.

The points for the new 2023 points plan is 4.

Trim Healthy Mama: For THM, the small amount of olive oil makes this a great THM-E recipe.

Is this good for you?

Quinoa and brown rice make a great pair because the health benefits of these two grains are similar, and their flavors and textures complement. Both quinoa and brown rice are gluten-free making them a friendly grain for those with gluten sensitivities or looking to avoid it.

Meanwhile, they provide fiber, protein, and minerals which all help to support a healthy digestive system

Can you cook Quinoa and Rice at the same time?

Quinoa is similar enough to rice that both can be cooked together, or in the same time frame alongside one another. Stovetop is the traditional method for cooking grains and is what we use in this recipe. However, a pressure cooker is a fantastic way to cook grains as it is easily controlled, easy to clean up after, and cooks the grains perfectly without the risk of burning.

How do you cook Quinoa?

Any quinoa is the same as just like rice. That’s why this blend is such a great recipe. Simply cook in whatever liquid of your choice either water, meat-based stock, or vegetable broth. We picked quinoa because it is easy to prepare.

However, Cooking red quinoa is about the same as cooking white quinoa, so you can use whichever you prefer when making a rice blend. Quinoa can have a bitter outer coating if it’s not pre-washed, so be sure to rinse the quinoa prior to cooking.

FAQs about Brown Quinoa Rice

Here are some faqs

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