How to make puffed quinoa in minutes in a hot dry pan using 1 ingredient. This high-protein alternative to puffed rice is also called popped quinoa, and the crunchy treat can be sprinkled on salads, yogurt, ice cream and used in no bake snacks and granola.
How to make puffed quinoa in a pan. It takes just minutes to turn uncooked quinoa into to small nutty kernels that crunch between your teeth. Puffed quinoa, also called popped quinoa, is a blank canvas for flavors and spices much like flavored popcorn. Use it to increase the protein in your favorite recipes. I add puffed quinoa to salads such as my chickpea salad or in snacks such as my chocolate puffed quinoa bars, or my homemade protein bars.
Why You'll Love This
Easy to puff quinoa. No rinsing of quinoa is needed, and popping the kernels is faster than making popcorn. You don't even dirty the pan, no grease or water involved.
A single ingredient. Puffed quinoa is made from only one ingredient, quinoa. Popping it doesn't even count as cooking it, so you are still eating it raw which means you get the full benefit of quinoa's nutritional make up.
Nutritional benefits. Quinoa is part of the amaranth family, and is available year round, typically sold dry in the area where rice is sold. It's known for being high in protein, as well as higher in micronutrients than other grains. One cup of quinoa provides about 8 grams of protein.
Ingredients
Quinoa. All you need to make puffed quinoa is raw quinoa found on the shelf in the whole grain aisle, usually where rice is found. Quinoa comes in several colors such as red, white, tan or tricolor. Any color will pop nicely.
Tools needed
Saute pan. Popping quinoa is a process that needs as shallow pan to provide the correct air flow to encourage the quinoa kernels to pop. A Dutch oven or other deep pan won't work well, the popping will go slowly and the kernels might burn before they pop.
How to Puff Quinoa
Here are general steps to explain how to make puffed quinoa. For more detail, visit the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
Step 1. Add pan to stove. Put a dry sauté pan on the stove and turn on the heat to medium high. Do not oil the pan.
Step 2. Test the pan. When the pan seems hot, toss in a few kernels of dry quinoa onto the pan. If the temperature is correct to puff quinoa, the kernels will jump, snap and pop immediately.
Step 3. Add the quinoa. Add the rest of the dry quinoa to the pan and shake it around so it is only a single layer, about 1 kernel deep. Keep shaking the pan as it pops, and after a minute or less the popping will slow and the smell will be nutty. It's time to stop.
Step 3. Cool quinoa. Remove the pan from the stove, and allow the quinoa to cool enough to be able to be transferred to a storage container.
Pro-tip: Puffed quinoa explodes to a smaller size than does rice or popcorn. The kernel is barely larger than when not popped, but is distinguishable when tasted because it is light and airy, and have a strong nutty flavor.
Storage
Store puffed quinoa in a sealed container for a week or longer. It can be frozen but might need to be re-sautéed to return the crunchy texture.
Recipe Tips
Do not rinse the quinoa. Although freshly grown quinoa has a gut-irritating substance called saponins nature provided to help it avoid insects. It used to be that quinoa needed to be rinsed before eating, but now the commercial packaging process removes it so rinsing is not necessary, making the popping process even faster.
Do not coat the pan in oil. Any oil or water in the pan will prevent the quinoa from popping.
To be sure you don't burn your quinoa while it pops in the pan, add only enough quinoa to your pan to create a single layer, and keep the pan moving, shaking it back and forth while it pops. Remove it from heat as soon as the sound of popping goes away which is typically within under a minute.
How To Use
- Add spices to flavor as you would popcorn, then eat it with a spoon in front of a movie.
- Add to no baked recipes for crunch and protein such as to my edible cookie dough bites, peanut butter oatmeal balls, or even use them in my chocolate puffed quinoa bars.
- Add puffed quinoa as a topping to cakes and cupcakes.
- Or as a topping on yogurt and ice cream.
Create Flavors
Gingerbread Popped Quinoa: Toss with 1 teaspoon of butter, cinnamon, coconut sugar and all spice.
Italian Herb Popped Quinoa: Toss with 1 teaspoon of butter, italian seasoning, chopped fresh oregano, and a pinch of nutritional yeast.
Chili Pepper Popped Quinoa: Toss with 1 teaspoon of butter, chili powder, cumin, a pinch of cayenne.
FAQS
Puffed quinoa has a bland, nutty flavor, and a light airy texture like puffed rice.
Puffed quinoa, also called popped quinoa, is whole grain raw quinoa heated so it pops like popcorn although into a much smaller popped kernel.
Use it in place of puffed rice in any recipe that calls for it. This is usually cereals, granolas, energy bites, protein snacks, and even in salads.
Yes, there are a few online vendors, however commercially puffed quinoa is much larger than homemade puffed quinoa as the factory process of expanding the kernel is different and uses heavy machinery. The size of a commercially puffed quinoa is more like a round rice krispie.
Add raw uncooked quinoa to a dry hot saute pan and move it around with a spoon until it pops, smells nutty and the popping sound stops.
Other Quinoa Recipes
- Chocolate Puffed Quinoa Bars
- Quinoa Paella
- Chocolate Quinoa Bark (in my first dessert book)
- Homemade Protein Bar (with quinoa)
If you tried this recipe or any other recipe on my website, please leave a 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 star rating and let me know how it went in the 📝 comments below. Thanks for visiting!
📖 Recipe
How to Make Puffed Quinoa
Equipment
- sauté pan
Ingredients
- 1 cup quinoa uncooked, dry, any color
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Instructions
- Put a dry sauté pan on the stove and turn on the heat to medium high. Do not oil the pan.
- Toss in a few kernels of dry quinoa and if the pan is hot enough, the kernels will begin snapping and popping almost immediately. Add the rest of the dry quinoa to the pan and shake it around so it is only 1 kernel of quinoa deep.1 cup quinoa
- Keep shaking the pan as it pops, and after just under a minute the popping will slow and the smell will be nutty.* It's time to stop.
- Remove the pan from the stove, and allow the quinoa to cool enough to be able to be transferred to a storage container.
Storage
- Store puffed quinoa in a sealed container for a week or longer. It can be frozen but might need to be re-sautéed to return the crunchy texture.
Abríl
Hello Dee, A very close up photo of finished product would be helpful because I have Tried twice now and the quinoa just doesn't pop up like the puffed quinoa from Kretschmer...they are more edible than raw, yes, crunchy and toasty, yes, but definitely only like 2 grains out of a 1,000 actually puffed. I did tricolour maybe I should try other kinds....
Dee Dine
Hi Abril, you are doing it right if the kernels leap up in your pan. They won't expand in size as much as commercially-popped quinoa such as this brand because companies use an industrial air-pressure machine, something a home cook can't replicate. But homemade popped quinoa is more flavorful, nutty and crispy. Hope that helps!
Lolliime
Ridiculously easy! I mixed it into melted chocolate and poured it into cups. Instant crunch cups!