Most of you might have known about rice, as the most eaten staple food in Asia. But what is quinoa? Have you known about it? Well, quinoa is the plant seed from Chenopodium quinoa plant.
Quinoa is considered to be a super food for its high content of fiber and the other beneficial nutrients. And how about combining the Asian most favorite staple food with mostly praised quinoa? You will have the amazing health benefits of rice and quinoa. Not only enhance the health benefits, the combination will also spice up the taste of your regular meal.
The Nutritional Information Of Rice And Quinoa
Both rice and quinoa are widely used as staple food for the similar content or nutrients in them. For example, rice and quinoa own calorie mainly from their carbohydrate content. Â Here are some nutrients contained by both rice and quinoa:
- Carbohydrates
- Sugar
- Fiber
- Protein
- Iron
- Magnesium
- Manganese
- Phosphorus
- Zinc
- Selenium
- Vitamin B-complex
The Health Benefits Of Rice And Quinoa
The nutrition in rice and quinoa are able to present health benefits for us. Here are some of the health benefits of rice and quinoa you should know:
- Reduce Blood Pressure
The consumption of rice and quinoa is able to improve blood circulation. This way, the regular consumption is able to prevent high blood pressure which mainly caused by the bad flow of the blood. The ability of rice and quinoa in controlling blood pressure may also prevent hypertension and further the heart attack and stroke.
- Prevent Anemia
Rice and quinoa is high with minerals such as iron. Iron is very beneficial for the process of red blood cell production. This way, the consumption of rice and quinoa is able to prevent anemia. It is very beneficial, especially for women which are prone to anemia, especially during the monthly period.
- Manage Weight
We can’t deny the high fiber content in rice and quinoa. Especially when we choose brown rice with its Benefits of Brown Rice For Health for the rice and quinoa blend. Brown rice possesses good amount of fiber. The rice and quinoa blend will provide you with the beneficial fiber.
As we know, fiber takes a little longer time to be digested. This way, you’ll feel your stomach full for a little longer. This feeling prevent you from having too much snack and avoid you from weight gain.
- Aid Good Digestion
The fiber in rice and quinoa is proven to be beneficial for digestion. It is able to protect your gastrointestinal tract very well. The fact is based on a research conducted in 2012. It also proved the anti-inflammatory property owned by quinoa that enables this super food to prevent any problem in the gut. The benefit can also be obtained from Health Benefits of Black Beans and Brown Rice.
- Gluten Free
Many people are allergic to gluten. It is quite annoying as gluten might be exist in many foods such bread, noodle, and the other foods produced from wheat and barley. As the solution, those people should seek for the other gluten free food as the option of staple food.
And luckily, rice and quinoa meets that requirement. The rice and quinoa blend contain no gluten and perfectly safe for those with gluten allergy. The other gluten free food you can choose for your staple food is jowar with Health Benefits of Jowar .
- Provide Complete Protein
White rice and brown rice might not contain complete protein as the absence of amino acids. However, quinoa contains amino acids which are able to provide the complete protein. Therefore, it is very good for vegetarian and vegan, as they are able to have the proper protein intake without consuming dairy, poultry, or sea product.
- Provide Energy
The high carbohydrate in rice and quinoa blend is excellent to provide energy for you. It is recommended to eat them for your breakfast to provide the energy to go through the day. But please consider the recommended portion, as too much carbohydrate makes you sleepy instead of energized.
- Prevent Cancer
The combination of rice and quinoa is known to be able in providing you with beneficial minerals. One of the beneficial minerals in the blend is manganese and selenium. Manganese and selenium is able to protect your tissue from oxidative stress.
The minerals do a very good job to form a shield and effectively protect the cells from the bad free radicals. As we know, free radicals are the main factor of cancer. this way, the enough manganese and selenium from rice and quinoa is able to reduce the risk in generating cancer.
- Improve Brain Power
The rich b vitamins in rice and quinoa blend are able to present health benefits of rice and quinoa. One of the beneficial b vitamins is Folate which is contained by quinoa. Folate is excellent to improve your brain power.
- Nourish Skin
The other vitamin B which is found to be beneficial from rice and quinoa is niacin. Niacin does a great job in nourishing skin. so, the consumption of rice and quinoa might help your skin treatment from the inside. To enhance the health benefits, you can also combine the consumption of rice and quinoa with the other beneficial ingredient such spinach with its Benefits of Spinach for Skin.
The other health benefits of rice and quinoa are listed below:
- Improve Blood Circulation
- Support Healthy Nerve
- Support DNA formation
- Good for pregnancy
- Boost wound healing
- Maintain healthy muscle
Recommendation In Consuming Rice And Quinoa
We might be able to easily grab some rice and quinoa blend from the store. However, we can also make it ourselves. Â As we know, quinoa provides excellent fiber and protein to the rice. It will be a great food to eat with meat dishes or salad. To enhance the taste of rice and quinoa, you can simply cook it with seasoned broth.
For example, you can add chicken broth to your rice and quinoa. Stir together lightly, and let it done by reducing the heat and perfectly cover the pan for about 25 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and let it sit until it is ready to serve. When it is cool, you can eat the rice and quinoa with salad to provide you more vitamins and minerals from vegetables.
Beet and kale salad is the perfect combination for it as they provide you the Health Benefits of Beets and Kale. It is both healthy and filling. In addition, the rice and quinoa blend can be reused if you place it properly in your fridge.