Garlic Mushroom Quinoa
An easy, healthy side dish that you’ll want to make with every single meal!
With the weather hitting 90 degrees this week, I think it’s safe to say that bikini season is officially here. So in an attempt to shed off all that donut weight, Jason and I have really been trying to get into this whole “clean-eating” situation. And instead of our usual carb-loaded french-fry-onion-ring-deep-fried side dishes, I decided to make a healthy, protein-rich side dish. That is, after we’ve had our morning cup of coffees and maple bars.
Now instead of just serving up a boring old bowl of quinoa, I decided to have a little bit of fun with it and add in one of my all-time favorite veggies = mushrooms. Not only do they have an amazing distinct flavor but they also add a range of nutritional and health benefits right into your meal! And no, this is not a sponsored post for mushrooms. I just REALLY love mushrooms.
So that’s what this is – a boring old bowl of quinoa with a fun twist, chockfull of mushrooms, garlic and thyme. It’s so simple and comes together so easily – it’s practically fool-proof!
Garlic Mushroom Quinoa
Ingredients
- 1 cup quinoa
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 pound cremini mushrooms, thinly sliced
- 5 cloves garlic, minced
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan
Instructions
- In a large saucepan of 2 cups water, cook quinoa according to package instructions; set aside.
- Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add mushrooms, garlic and thyme, and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 3-4 minutes; season with salt and pepper, to taste. Stir in quinoa until well combined.
- Serve immediately, garnished with Parmesan, if desired.
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Trying this with salmon patties tonight! Recipe looks awesome!!!!!!
This looks great — any idea how many calories/fat/fiber grams?
Nutritional information is provided only for select and new recipes at this time. However, if it is not available for a specific recipe, I recommend using free online resources at your discretion (you can Google “nutritional calculator”) to obtain such information. Hope that helps, Libby!
When cooking the mushrooms it creates extra broth. Should I leave it in pan before adding quinoa or drain?
No need to drain – it shouldn’t be too much of a mushroom broth to make a difference in liquid ratios.
Anyone know if this can be frozen. I am the only one in the house that will eat this dish.
Unfortunately, I cannot answer this with certainty as I have never tried freezing this myself – there were no leftovers left to freeze! Please use your best judgment for freezing and reheating.
This delicious vegetarian recipe is fast and highly nutritious!
I made this dish last night, served with crab cakes, and it was wonderful. My husband loved how the quinoa soaked up all the mushroom juices for an extra flavor punch. I made it in a wok. I will definitely repeat this one. Great idea!
Love this recipe, made it tonight for dinner, added some kale . Delish!
Made this tonight and it was sooo good! It was super easy and quick plus made enough for lunch tomorrow! Thanks for posting 🙂
Alicia @ http://www.GirlonaHike.com
Had this for dinner and added 2 over easy eggs on top and loaded it up with grated Parm. Amazing!
I was thinking this would be great topped off with over-easy eggs! Will definitely try that.
I can’t wait to try this! My daughter has gone Vegan since last Thanksgiving and I think this will be a super yummy dish for her. I’ll sub home made Vegan Parm. yummmmmm
Would this be ok cold on a buffet???
Yes.
Good base recipe; easy to tweak it and make it an entree. I cooked the quinoa with low sodium chicken broth and a splash of fresh squeezed orange juice. I sauteed the mushrooms with some shrimp, deglazed the pan with a little more OJ, and when it was done I tossed in a handful of baby kale and let it wilt very lightly. Finished it all off with some avocado and tomato slices for color. Healthy and easy!
I only had white button mushrooms and I sauted them with the garlic and thyme. I also added aprox 1/2 stick of button after I added the quinoa and cooked about 1 min longer and finished it with 1/4 cup of parm cheese. It was so flavorful. I served it with herb encrusted chicken breast on top.
I have made this as written, and it is AWESOME! I cook the quinoa in veggie stock or chicken stock to add more flavor sometimes, and then go crazy with the mushrooms and garlic. I have added a few handfuls of fresh spinach to the shrooms and garlic to bump up the veggie content. You can mix up the veggies…for instance right now I am eating it with some kale I cooked up in the EVOO/garlic mixture and added a pinch of crushed red pepper for a little kick, but I have also used chopped up Swiss chard.
This is really a great basic recipe and is only limited by what you have in the fridge! I make a big batch of this on the weekend, then portion it out for a week’s worth of lunches to take with me to work (sometimes with meat on the side, sometimes all by itself!). Thank you for sharing this one!!!!
We had this for dinner, delish! Thank you!
Made this as a side for roast chicken and it was fantastic! I used a little less garlic on mine, but the rest was just like the recipe. So easy and tasty and a great idea to make quinoa interesting! Will definitely make it again!
This dish was fast and delicious! I omitted the parmesan and added some fresh dill which gave this dish a fresh taste.
Planning on making this tonight, but was wondering how fresh Rosemary would pair with it instead of Thyme since that’s what I have on hand and won’t have time to stop at the store.
Sounds amazing! 🙂
Yummy! I made this tonight and paired it with a Paleo Creamy Sun Dried Tomato Chicken. Everyone loved it – 4 year old included! My hubby even requested left overs for lunch tomorrow! Thank you!
Great dish! To better infuse the garlic flavor I was looking for I roasted a whole head of seasoned Garlic in the oven for 30 minutes (cut the head off, drizzle with oil, wrap in aluminum foil) and then roughly chopped the garlic cloves once roasted. Greatly enhanced the garlic flavor while accenting the earthyness of the mushrooms.