quinoa

The latest healthy and delicious super-food worth checking out! Here's why...

The ancient Incan grain Quiona has recently made it's way into the US and is quickly gaining popularity. And with good reason as we will explore in this article all about quinoa nutrition facts. As a side note, you may be interested to know that the Inca called Quinoa the "Mother Grain". That's not surprising since it sustained them for over 5000 years.

This is in part because it is considered a complete protein. It contains all essential amino acids our bodies need including lysine. Interestingly quinoa is full of this important nutrient. The reason we need amino acids is that proteins are made up of them and your body needs them to make and maintain muscle tissue. Right now most of us get protein from meat and dairy foods. Only a handful of grains and other plant based foods contain all the different types of protein blocks we need. That's why quinoa is considered a super food and is also often called the mother grain.

Being low in cholesterol and sodium as well as providing lots of soluble fiber is another big reason why giving this old grain a try may be a good idea. Quinoa is also full of Thiamin, Riboflavin, Folate, Vitamin B6, Vitamin E, Niacine, Iron, Magnesium, Phosperous, and Manganese. In other words is packed with important vitamins and minerals while still being surprisingly low in calories. It comes to no-one's surprise that it is now classified as a super food.

Quinoa is perfect when you are trying to lose weight since both the fiber and protein in it will keep you full while you are enjoying a low-calorie dish. It makes a great pasta and rice substitute that's much better for you and won't make your blood sugar levels spike up.

It also happens to be a gluten-free food and lends itself to all sorts of healthy dishes like quinoa breads, puddings, breakfast cereal and various side dishes that taste very much like pilafs or risottos. Cooked quinoa can also be added to salads to give it some crunch and nutty flavor as well as making the salad more filling.