Dirty Quinoa

In traveling for my job I spent some time (not NEARLY ENOUGH) in the great state of Louisiana, between the cities of "Nawlins" and "Baton Rouge"  - and yes, I pronounce it with the Cajun/French accent. The food there is heavenly, but it's a very "rice enhanced" diet.  To have Étouffée or Jambalaya without a scoop of rice is sacrilege!  But my craving was for real "dirty rice"..  The kind you get a spicy, meaty pile of on your plate in the "meat and 3" you stopped in on the side of the road as you wander through the lowland on your daily excursions.

Of course, I'm not going to ask you to eat carby rice, so I go to my favorite "rice replacement", protein rich quinoa. (pronounced KEEN-wa)

There are those of you who are probably not chicken livers fans.  The original recipes that I fell in love with all feature them - BUT...  you can double up on the sausage if you choose to give the livers a pass.

This recipe makes a LOT! - but it refrigertes and freezes well

1 lb chicken livers, finely chopped
1 lb tube GOOD pork sausage
3 tbsp vegetable oil
1 cup onion, finely chopped
1/2 cup celery, finely chopped
1/2 cup green and/or red bell pepper, finely chopped
1 tsp crushed red pepper (to taste)

4 cups cooked quinoa 

Cook the quinoa by package directions.  I recommend cooking it in a good rich chicken or vegetable stock to add flavor.

Cook the sausage and chicken livers in a large skillet with 2 tbsp vegetable oil until browned - 8 to 10 minutes. 

Add the remaining oil and the vegetables and sauté until soft. 

Gently fold in crushed red pepper and the quinoa. 

Cook for 1 to 2 minutes to heat through.

Season to taste with salt and pepper

Cook's Notes:

• If you opted out of the chicken livers you can use 2 pounds of bulk sausage - mild or spicy as matches your taste - you can even use ground beef if you want, but you'll miss out on that "porky goodness."
• Parsley..  I'm not a fan of parsley as I grew up with it being a plate decoration in cheap diners, but you can add a 1/4 cup finely chopped parsley at the end if you so desire.
• Crushed red pepper is optional.  I use a mild pork sausage and kick it up with the pepper - but if you yours on the "mild side", by all means use less - or none at all.
• Cauliflower makes another great rice substitution.  You can get directions in my Cauliflower Rice Pudding recipe.

Questions?  You can always reach me via the Comments section or email me