This colorful quinoa pilaf is a great addition to the Passover holiday's festive Seder meal. Contributed to Vegan Holiday Kitchen's Passover chapter by a longtime reader of mine, Barbara Pollak, this pilaf is attractive made with a mix of red and white quinoa, but either color can be used on its own. Photos by Hannah Kaminsky.
Recipe
Passover Quinoa Pilaf
This colorful quinoa pilaf is a great addition to the Passover holiday's festive Seder meal.
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Servings: to 10
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups quinoa rinsed
- 3 cups prepared vegetable broth
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 medium yellow or red onions or 1 of each, quartered and thinly sliced
- 4 to 6 cloves garlic minced
- One 16-ounce bag shredded coleslaw cabbage
- 2 medium carrots sliced
- 2 cups finely chopped broccoli florets
- 1 cup sliced cremini or baby bella mushrooms
- 2 teaspoons minced fresh or jarred ginger or to taste
- ½ teaspoon dried basil
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice or to taste
- Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
- ½ cup minced fresh parsley
- ¼ cup minced fresh dill more or less to taste
Instructions
- Combine the quinoa with the broth in a large saucepan. Bring to a rapid simmer, then lower the heat, cover, and simmer gently until the water is absorbed, about 15 minutes. Test to see if the quinoa is done to your liking; if needed, add another ½ cup water and simmer until absorbed.
- Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large skillet or stir-fry pan. Add the onions and sauté over medium-low heat until translucent. Add the garlic and continue to sauté until the onion is golden.
- Add the cabbage, carrots, broccoli, mushrooms, ginger, basil, thyme, and lemon juice. Turn the heat up to medium-high and stir-fry until the cabbage is tender-crisp, about 5 minutes.
- Stir in the cooked quinoa, then season to taste with salt and pepper. Stir in the parsley and dill, remove from the heat, and serve.
Nutrition (Estimate per Serving)
Calories: 201kcalCarbohydrates: 29gProtein: 6gFat: 7gSaturated Fat: 1gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 4gSodium: 377mgPotassium: 426mgFiber: 4gSugar: 3gVitamin A: 3315IUVitamin C: 31mgCalcium: 53mgIron: 2mg
Vegan-ize any recipe!Grab our free vegan cheat sheet, packed with my favorite easy substitutions to make any recipe vegan.
- Here are more vegan Passover recipes and menus.
Ruchama says
Thanks so much for posting this in time for Passover, I've been scratching my head about second day lunch and this will do the trick. One thing, many of us are advised by our Rabbis that we can't use packaged salad mixes during Passover unless they are certified as kosher for Passover. Not a problem, I'll just make my own and enjoy this filling nutritious salad, perfect for Vegan Passover!!
Ruchama says
Thanks so much for posting this in time for Passover; I've been scratching my head about second day lunch and this will do the trick. One thing, many of us are advised by our Rabbis that we can't use packaged salad mixes during Passover unless they are certified as kosher for Passover. Not a problem, I'll just make my own and enjoy this filling nutritious salad, perfect for Vegan Passover!!
Nava says
Ruchama, this is actually a warm cooked pilaf, rather than a salad. If you're interested in quinoa salads, there's a few really nice ones on VegKitchen. Just go up to the search bar at the very top right and put in quinoa salad and you'll get a few results!
Ivy says
Hi, Nava. Could I make this without mushrooms? We have some mushroom haters in the family. 🙂 I have Vegan Holiday Kitchen and already planned on making this for another dinner.
Also, for the salted chopped pistachios for the chocolate-covered matzo bark, can I just chop the pistachios myself? I could only find pistachios in the shell.
Thanks,
Ivy
Nava says
Hi Ivy -- you can absolutely do this without mushrooms. A nice substitution would be green peas. Or you need not substitute at all. As for the pistachios, I meant shelled, not pre-chopped. Sorry if I wasn't clear; I don't think there's any such thing, actually. And of course you can just use pistachios that you shell yourself. Enjoy!
Barbara Pollak says
Whetting my appetite. Already told the guests I'm making this!
Nava says
Save some for me ... enjoy!
Rabbi Sheryl says
Hi Nava!
Thanks - this looks great. I haven't used quinoa before - will this dish work well made the day before and reheated (during the seder)? Also for your reader Ivy, while Sephardic Jews do eat peas during Passover, Ashkenazim (Euroopean Decent) by tradition do not. Perhaps eggplant or even water chestnuts in place of mushrooms? Happy Passover!
Nava says
Rabbi Sheryl, this would be a good recipe to make ahead and reheat. I would suggest leaving out the parsley until you reheat it, for brighter color. And thanks for your suggestion for Ivy. Happy Passover to you as well!
B. Good says
I made this dish for Passover this year and love it so much I am making it again for company Friday night. (One guest cannot eat any legumes which eliminates a lot of vegan dishes one might ordinarily make!) The pilaf is rather subtle, so I added roasted vegetables on top which I am going to make again. I found this recipe in Vegan Holiday Kitchen, which is now one of my very favorite cookbooks. The photographs are as sumptuous as the dishes. Thank you, Nava.
Nava says
Sorry for the delayed response, B. Good! So glad you enjoyed this enough to make it again for guests. And so glad you are finding Vegan Holiday Kitchen useful!
Leslie Shocket says
Made this pilaf for a Chanukah celebration. It was delicious. Then I puréed some, with extra veggie broth in the blender, and served it as soup to my 100 year old mother. She loves it!
Nava says
How lovely, Leslie. So glad that this added to your holiday celebration. Bless your mom's heart!
Abduttawwab Altalac says
Would love more of these recipes
Chaya says
Oh my, this is tasty! I was able to use fresh lemon thyme and basil from my garden. I can't wait for seder to begin to serve this!
One suggestion: please differentiate the amount of herbs and ginger needed depending upon whether using dried or fresh.