Pronounced keenwah.     Quinoa is an ancient food that's been cultivated in the South American Andes for more than 5000 years. The Incas considered the crop to be sacred, referring to it as the 'mother of all grains', and legend has it that the Incan emperor would sow the first seeds of the season using golden tools. Quinoa was used to sustain Incan armies, who frequently marched for many days eating little else. So beginning with the Spanish conquest in the 1500s, its cultivation was discouraged. Over 400 years it eventually became a minor crop grown only by peasants in remote areas for local consumption. Now enjoying a resurgence in popularity and found in most Western health-food stores, quinoa is widely cultivated in Bolivia, Peru, Chile and Ecuador. Botanically, quinoa is not a true grain since it belongs not to the grass family but the Chenopodium family, which also includes beets, spinach and chard. Best grown in altitudes above 10,000 feet, quinoa positively flourishes under extreme conditions, including poor soil, thin cold air, hot sun, frost, short growing days, minimal rainfall and even drought.   Quinoa was of great nutritional importance within pre-columbian Andean civilizations, and in modern times has also come to be highly appreciated for its outstanding nutritional value. The United Nations has classified it as a supercrop, and for good reason! Quinoa is an excellent source of complex carbohydrates, complete protein (one of the few vegetarian sources), calcium (more than milk), trace minerals, dietary fibre, vitamin E and several of the B vitamins, and even essential fatty acids. Quinoa is also gluten free and easy to digest. Because of all these characteristics, quinoa is being considered by NASA as a possible crop on long duration manned spaceflights. Quinoa would be a worthy addition to anyone's diet, supplying variety as well as good nutrition .     Quinoa is an easy food to prepare, has a pleasantly light, fluffy texture when cooked and its mild, slightly nutty flavor makes it an excellent alternative to rice or couscous. You cook it much the same way too. Because some of the bitter saponin covering on the grain can still be present even though most quinoa is washed before being sold, you should thoroughly rinse the dry grain under running water in a saucepan until the water stops forming suds. Combine 1 cup quinoa with 2 cups water and simmer for 15-25 minutes or until tender. For a nuttier taste, toast the quinoa in a hot dry pan for a few minutes before adding the water .

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