Name: Easy Baked Quinoa with Curry, Cauliflower, and Cilantro
Total time: 50 min
Ingredients: 1½ cups prewashed white quinoa; 2 tablespoons olive oil; 2 garlic cloves , minced; 1½ cups chicken broth; 2 teaspoons curry powder; Salt and pepper; 2 tablespoons fresh cilantro; 2 cups small cauliflower florets

Why This Recipe Works

There are many ways to prepare quinoa, but this hands-off method delivers perfectly cooked quinoa—plus, it's simple to incorporate flavorful add-ins. For the cooking liquid we turned to chicken broth, which we microwaved with curry powder until just boiling; we poured the hot liquid over the quinoa, which we had combined with olive oil and garlic in a baking dish, then covered the dish with foil and placed it in the oven. Lemon juice and cilantro stirred in before serving lent bright notes to this side dish. We like the convenience of prewashed quinoa.

Before You Begin

If you buy unwashed quinoa (or if you are unsure whether it's washed), rinse it before cooking to remove its bitter protective coating (called saponin). To make this dish vegetarian, substitute vegetable broth for the chicken broth. To make this dish vegetarian, substitute vegetable broth for the chicken broth.

Instructions

Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 450 degrees. Combine quinoa, olive oil, and garlic in 8-inch square baking dish.

Microwave broth, curry powder, and ¼ teaspoon salt in covered bowl until just boiling, about 5 minutes. Pour hot broth over quinoa mixture and cover dish tightly with double layer of aluminum foil. Sprinkle cauliflower florets evenly into dish. Bake quinoa until tender and no liquid remains, about 25 minutes.

Remove dish from oven, uncover, and fluff quinoa with fork, scraping up any quinoa that has stuck to bottom. Re-cover dish with foil and let stand for 10 minutes. Fold in cilantro, and season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve.