Cooking with Amaranth Grain

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This blog is dedicated to cooking with Amaranth Grain. Let’s begin by learning a little history of this grain.

Amaranth was known to the Aztecs as huauhtli, and was used in everyday life as well as in ceremonies. It is believed that up to 80% of the Aztecs calories were obtained from this grain. In ceremonies the amaranth grains were toasted much like popcorn and mixed with honey, molasses or chocolate to make a treat called alegria, meaning “joy” in Spanish. Amaranth was grown in large scale in ancient Mexico, Guatemala and Peru. This was all before the conquest.

In current day Amaranth is cultivated in small quantities in Mexico, Guatemala and Peru, but also grown in India, China, Nepal and in other tropical countries.

In 1977 in an article in the magazine Science Amaranth was described as “the crop of the future”. It can be grown inexpensively by indigenous people in rural areas for several reasons:
1. It is easy to harvest.
2. Its seeds are a good source of protein, and contain about 30% more than cereals like rice, sorghum and rye.
3. It is unusually rich in the amino acid lysine.
4. It is easy to cook.
5. It grows very rapidly and their large seed heads can weigh up to 1 kilogram and contain a half-million seeds in three species of amaranth.

Recipes
Amaranth Pancakes

½ cup whole amaranth
Pinch of sea salt
¼ cup amaranth or other gluten-free flour, plus extra for dusting pancakes
1 medium carrot, grated
¼ cup chopped scallions
1 tablespoon chopped cilantro or dill
Olive or sesame oil for cooking

Prep Time: 25 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 35 minutes

Preparation

In a small saucepan, add 1 ½ cups water to the whole amaranth and salt, and stir thoroughly. Bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat, and simmer 20 minutes. The amaranth will be the consistency of a thick porridge. Let it stand, covered, for 5 minutes.

In a mixing bowl, stir together amaranth, flour, carrots, scallions and herbs. The batter will be very thick.

Drop batter by the tablespoonful onto a well-floured parchment or plate, and lightly coat cakes with a dusting of flour.

Heat oil in a frying pan over medium flame. (I have tried both very lightly coating the pan and using more oil, and I personally prefer the low fat version. Using more oil will give a crispier but also greasier pancake.) Cook pancakes 2-3 minutes on each side, until golden. Hold on paper towels until ready to serve.

Amaranth Pilaf

Ingredients
3 cups water or combination chicken broth and water
1 cup amaranth
½ tsp salt
½ tsp. dried thyme leaves
2 Tbsp. softened butter
1/8 tsp. pepper

Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes
Yield: 6 servings

Preparation:
In a medium saucepan, combine water, amaranth, salt, and thyme. Bring to a boil, and then reduce the heat to a simmer. Cover saucepan and cook over low heat for 20-25 minutes or until the water is absorbed. Remove pan from heat and let stand, covered, for 15 minutes to steam. Stir in butter and pepper and serve.

Cinnamon Amaranth Grits

Ingredients:
4 ½ cups water
Pinch of sea salt
¾ cup amaranth
½ teaspoon cinnamon
1 small apple, cored and chopped
Agave nectar or maple syrup
Soy, rice or almond milk

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 40 minutes

Preparation:
Bring water and salt to a boil.

Meanwhile, heat a dry skillet over medium-high flame. When the pan is hot, add amaranth. Cover and shake the skillet to keep the amaranth moving, so that it toasts and pops but does not burn.

When about half of the seeds have popped, add amaranth to boiling water, along with the cinnamon. Stir well. Lower heat to a simmer and cook 20 minutes, stirring frequently. Add apple and cook an additional 10 minutes. Serve plain or with agave and ‘milk’ of choice.